Keeping lead zeros in excel text format when saving as CSV file

[Richard James]

I am working in excel and need to import into Sage. I can create the CSV
file that is required but I lose the leading zeros from certain text
columns/fields when I convert to from excel to CSV (for example 025 becomes
25). How can I overcome this. If I edit the CSV file in Notepad will this
do the trick. If it does, this will be OK for the odd item, but I may need to
do it for hundreds of items in the same column/field and this is impractical
in Notepad.

 

[David Biddulph]

My guess is that you are not losing the leading zero when you save from
Excel to CSV (try reading the CSV in Notepad to be sure), but that you may
lose the leading zero if you read back from CSV to Excel by File/ Open or by
double-clicking on the CSV. You can read the CSV into Excel by Data/ Import
External Data, and then during the import you can choose Text as the format
for the relevant column.