Welcome to the CDXZipStream July 2015 Newsletter

Update on the New CDXZipStream Release

 

In previous newsletters we've provided some updates on the pending new CDXZipStream, and we have some more information on the upcoming release scheduled for late September.

The new improved version will work with both 32 and 64-bit Microsoft Excel, and will provide a more straightforward product registration and data updating process that can be performed directly from the main toolbar.  There will be no loss of Microsoft MapPoint functionality, which was a concern when switching to 64-bit Excel.  A settings option when importing demographics data will also allow the user to select either CDXZipStream custom function formulas or values be returned to the worksheet. 

The newest feature we also plan for this release will be some basic Bing map functionality, providing geocoding (determining latitude and longitude for a location), and driving distance calculations.  Route optimization and mapping capability will not, in this release, be available through Bing.  This is a first step towards replacing MapPoint, which has been discontinued by Microsoft.

Please note that the transition to Bing will not affect current users.  You can indefinitely continue to use Microsoft MapPoint as a stand-alone software and in conjunction with your version of CDXZipStream.

 

The upgrade to the new version will be available free of charge for current users of CDXZipStream that have an active data subscription.   Additional detailed pricing information will be announced in September.

Correct Address Formatting

   

When working with address lists, you can greatly increase the chance of identifying the correct location or verifying the address by the proper use of commas to help define the street, city, state, country (where applicable) and postal code.  This applies to all mapping systems, although on-line systems such as Google and Bing Maps generally have the search capability to find addresses regardless of formatting.  For a desk-top software like MapPoint, formatting is important.

 

Here are the recommended formatting and comma placement for countries covered by the address find functionality in MapPoint:

 

 

CDXZipStream Formulas vs. Values

 

As mentioned above, the next version of CDXZipStream will have a settings feature that allows you to specify either values or custom function formulas be returned to the worksheet.  This applies to data retrieved from the main CDXZipStream interface, primarily ZIP Code and demographics data from the U.S. Census.

 

Custom function formulas come in handy when updating data, and when copying and pasting these formulas to other data sets.  A lot of formulas in a single worksheet, however, can significantly slow down Excel whenever they recalculate, so using values instead can be more appropriate when working with extremely large data sets.

Right-click functions, such as CDXRadius, CDXZIPCode, CDXRouteMP, etc., will continue to return formulas.  For those working with right-click functions applied to large data sets, there are several options that can be used to keep Excel working at full speed:

 

- Use CDXZipStream Templates:  We offer a variety of free Excel templates that automate many of the right-click functions available with CDXZipStream.  Since they use VBA to directly access CDXZipStream functions, they are faster than using worksheet formulas.  And since they are designed for use with large data sets, they also return values.  The templates cover the following topics:  geocoding, reverse geocoding, driving distance and time calculations, route optimization, and ZIP Code radius analysis.  You can download them from our links page.

 

- Copy and Paste:  When you don't need formulas anymore, remove them from the worksheet by copying and pasting them to the same location as values.  This works especially well when you can break up your work into smaller sets of data, and copy and paste as values as you go along.  You may want to leave one line of original formulas untouched in case you need to use them later; you can always copy and paste these as needed if your ZIP Code or other data list expands in the future.

 

- Turn Off Automatic Recalculation:  You can retain formulas in your worksheet by turning off automation recalculation and manually recalculating only when it's convenient for you.  In later versions of Excel, click on the File tab (or Office button in Excel 2007), and from the "Options" area select "Formulas", and then the desired setting under "Workbook Calculation".   The workbook will recalculate only when saving, or you can force recalculation by using F9 or the "Calculate Now" command under the Formulas tab.   For more information on using manual recalculation in all Excel versions, please see this Microsoft article.

Latest Data Updates

 

Canadian and U.S. data feeds were updated as of June 27.  There were 108 changes made to the U.S. database this month.  If you would like to update your database to reflect these changes, click on the "License Information and Software Updates" icon on the CDXZipStream toolbar, and select "Data Updates" to login to your account.

 

We hope you find the information here helpful for you and your organization.  You can contact us with your feedback and suggestions by replying to this email.

 

The Team at CDX Technologies