Excel Web App API?

Chris (who started this thread) recently posted a blog post in which he used Data Explorer (a new product from the SQL Server team) to consume data from Google Docs. I'm sure he would have liked to use Excel Web App for this but of course without an API

• he can't do that.

The blog post is here:

Using Google Docs, Data Explorer and PowerPivot for Questionnaires

I would like to support this request for API in Windows Live Excel Web App from the point of view from the video gaming community.

Basic Background:

This might be an odd enough request, but I actively play Eve Online which is an online-only space ship based video game. Within this game, every item is built by another player. There is a huge intricate system of production and markets bringing producers, sellers, buys, and consumers together. This game has a relatively large, dedicated, and older than average player-base. The last posted average age of players was 28 years old. I play with a group of thirty or so others and I, being 28, am the youngest of the entire group.

With that being said, there are thousands of people who use spreadsheets and data analysis to gain a competitive edge over thier opponents in the game. The producers recognise this and have built in ways to extract market data from the game for external use and analysis. CCP (the creators of Eve Online) employ a full economic team to over-see such activities.

This data exporting has resulted in many websites organizing API access to the data that has been retrieved over the years. Importing onto your computer and using Excel (or other local software) was the preferred form of analysis until Google Docs released their own web-based API supported spreadsheets.

I (and many others in my community) have since moved my spreadsheets to Google Docs in order to more easily share my findings with my fellow gamers. I frequently express my desires to have the better features found in Excel for my spreadsheets but I simply cannot justify leaving the API-supported sheets and many in my community share my feelings. Google Docs does what we need it to but we greatly desire something better (like Excel).

Hi Jamie !

You're right. 

I've posted new thread here

SQL

I'd like to add a recently customer requirement:

• It'd be great if Excel Web App could read files from skydrive such as CSV and .CUB files:

A customer of mine needs to publish a small local cube file and allow overseas users to analyze it through Excel Web App.

As mentioned above actually Excel Web App is totally blind to even its own skydrive environment.

Please you (MS) should promote ths functiontality.

Thanks

That'd be nice, I agree, but its not relevant to this thread. Maybe you could raise it on a separate thread? I would "vote" for it.

http://sqlblog.com/blogs/jamie_thomson/ |@jamiet