Author:
William Ramirez
Date Of Creation:
15 September 2021
Update Date:
1 July 2024
Content
This article will show you how to convert an XLS file (Excel spreadsheet) to DAT format on a Windows computer. To do this, the XLS file is first converted to CSV format (comma delimited), and then the CSV file is converted into a DAT file in Notepad.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: How to Convert XLS to CSV
1 Start Microsoft Excel. To do this, open the Start menu and click All Apps> Microsoft Office> Excel. 
2 Open the menu File. You will find it in the upper left corner of the screen. 
3 Click on Open.
4 Click on the required XLS file to open it in Excel.
5 Open the menu File.
6 Please select Save as.
7 Navigate to the folder where you want to save the file.
8 Open the File Type menu. A list of file types will be displayed. 
9 Please select CSV (comma delimited). Do this to create a CSV file that can be converted to DAT format. 
10 Enter a name for the file. Do this on the "Filename" line. If you do not want to change the default name, skip this step. 
11 Click on Save. A window will open. 
12 Click on OK. The CSV file will be created.
Part 2 of 2: How to Convert CSV to DAT
1 Click on ⊞ Win+E. The Explorer window will open. 
2 Navigate to the folder with the generated CSV file. Do not click on the file itself. 
3 Right click on the CSV file.
4 Please select To open with. A list of programs will be displayed. 
5 Click on Notebook. The CSV file will open in Notepad. 
6 Open the menu File. You will find it in the upper left corner of the Notepad. 
7 Click on Save as.
8 Open the File Type menu. You will find it under the "Filename" line. A list of file types will be displayed. 
9 Please select All files. The native file extension will be displayed. 
10 Change the file extension to DAT. For example, if the "File name" line displays Sheet1.txt, change this name to Sheet1.dat. - The .DAT extension can be entered in both lowercase and uppercase letters.
11 Click on Save. So you've converted your original XLS file to DAT format.
