Importing columns from a spreadsheet

If the shape you want already exists somewhere, start from it. File → Import columns… reads a spreadsheet's header row and adds one column per header.

Supported: .xlsx, .csv, .tsv, .txt.

What happens

• One column per header, in file order, appended to whatever you already have. Existing columns are untouched.
• Every imported column starts as Word. The import knows the names, not the intent - so set the types afterwards. That is deliberate: guessing types from a sample tends to be confidently wrong.
• Blank headers become Column 3 by position rather than being dropped, so imported columns still line up with the source file.
• Duplicate headers are made unique by suffixing.
• Quoted headers containing the delimiter stay one column.

Choosing a sheet

With one sheet, it is used. With several, you are asked, and the dialog previews the headers it found in each so you can tell them apart. A sheet with no header row is not offered, and the dialog says so rather than silently omitting it.

Import against reading values

Two different things:

	Importing columns	File Column
Reads	The header row, once	A column of values, every run
Result	New columns to configure	A column that draws from the file
After import	The file is no longer needed	The file is needed at generation time

Import to get a starting schema. Use a file-backed column when you want the real values.