Glossary A–ZLetter C
CSV import
A CSV import reads data from a CSV file into a system; a CSV file is a plain text file in which each line is a record and the fields are separated by a delimiter.
CSV stands for “comma-separated values”; in German-speaking countries the delimiter is often a semicolon.
In screen networks, CSV import is used, for example, to take over price lists, menus, device lists or location data in one go instead of typing them in individually. Many spreadsheet programs and specialist systems can export CSV, which makes the format a common lowest common denominator. The import can be a one-off or run regularly from a fixed storage location.
Typical sources of error are the delimiter, the character encoding and the number format: umlauts and accents appear garbled if the file is not saved in the expected encoding, and a comma used as a decimal separator clashes with a comma used as a delimiter. Operators should agree on a sample file and check a preview before importing. CSV has no data types and no mandatory fields; the importing system has to carry out these checks.