Limitations in MS Project 2003?

[Lars]

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

 

[John]

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

Lars,
The 256 character limit still applies to all text based fields in all
Project versions. The only text field (in all versions) that will hold
more characters, although they can't all be displayed as a column in a
view, is the Notes field. Exceeding the character limit in the
Predecessor field is particularly easy if one or more of the links is
external because the full path is included and that can "chew" up a lot
of characters in a hurry. If external links aren't an issue, then there
are two options. First, review all long Predecessor strings and
eliminate redundancy and/or unnecessary links. It is rare that a single
task really has that many valid dependencies. Second, if the links are
all necessary and valid, I suggest breaking the task into two (or more)
separate identical tasks (i.e "[task] - part "A" and [task] - part "B")
and distribute the links between them.

For your second issue, my guess is that the one user who doesn't get an
error may have calculation set to "manual" (Tools/Options/Calculation
tab). I don't know why the Predecessor field is coming across as empty
but I'd say that is a good thing because it makes it a lot easier to
find the circular relationship (i.e. it's probably one of the
predecessors to that task). The most common cause of circular
relationships is due to Predecessors being attached to Summary Lines. I
would look there first.

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP

 

[JackD]

Another way to deal with the pred/successor limit is to use the "Unique ID
Predecessors" and "Unique ID Successors" fields.
The text should be shorter.

--
-Jack ... For Microsoft Project information and macro examples visit
http://masamiki.com/project
or http://zo-d.com/blog/index.html
..

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

Lars,
The 256 character limit still applies to all text based fields in all
Project versions. The only text field (in all versions) that will hold
more characters, although they can't all be displayed as a column in a
view, is the Notes field. Exceeding the character limit in the
Predecessor field is particularly easy if one or more of the links is
external because the full path is included and that can "chew" up a lot
of characters in a hurry. If external links aren't an issue, then there
are two options. First, review all long Predecessor strings and
eliminate redundancy and/or unnecessary links. It is rare that a single
task really has that many valid dependencies. Second, if the links are
all necessary and valid, I suggest breaking the task into two (or more)
separate identical tasks (i.e "[task] - part "A" and [task] - part "B")
and distribute the links between them.

For your second issue, my guess is that the one user who doesn't get an
error may have calculation set to "manual" (Tools/Options/Calculation
tab). I don't know why the Predecessor field is coming across as empty
but I'd say that is a good thing because it makes it a lot easier to
find the circular relationship (i.e. it's probably one of the
predecessors to that task). The most common cause of circular
relationships is due to Predecessors being attached to Summary Lines. I
would look there first.

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP

 

[John]

Another way to deal with the pred/successor limit is to use the "Unique ID
Predecessors" and "Unique ID Successors" fields.
The text should be shorter.

Jack,
I don't know if you are still monitoring this post but why do you say
that the Unique ID Predecessor/Successor field will make any difference?
The Predecessor and Successor fields will still be populated with the
full text string whether it is displayed or not. Also, in every file I
have used the Unique IDs are generally higher in number (i.e. need more
digits) than the ID values because of extensive editing to the file, so
I think the string length of the Unique ID Predecessor and Successor
fields will generally contain more characters of text.

John

 

[D Pingger]

John,

I do have this condition in my Master Project.

When viewed in the split view, all the predecessors paths are listed
accordingly. Does this limitation affect only the display of the data but
project calculates the dates properly anyway? Does this condition affect
impact to schedule slips or can we ignore this condition altoghether?

TIA

Pingger

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

Lars,
The 256 character limit still applies to all text based fields in all
Project versions. The only text field (in all versions) that will hold
more characters, although they can't all be displayed as a column in a
view, is the Notes field. Exceeding the character limit in the
Predecessor field is particularly easy if one or more of the links is
external because the full path is included and that can "chew" up a lot
of characters in a hurry. If external links aren't an issue, then there
are two options. First, review all long Predecessor strings and
eliminate redundancy and/or unnecessary links. It is rare that a single
task really has that many valid dependencies. Second, if the links are
all necessary and valid, I suggest breaking the task into two (or more)
separate identical tasks (i.e "[task] - part "A" and [task] - part "B")
and distribute the links between them.

For your second issue, my guess is that the one user who doesn't get an
error may have calculation set to "manual" (Tools/Options/Calculation
tab). I don't know why the Predecessor field is coming across as empty
but I'd say that is a good thing because it makes it a lot easier to
find the circular relationship (i.e. it's probably one of the
predecessors to that task). The most common cause of circular
relationships is due to Predecessors being attached to Summary Lines. I
would look there first.

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP

 

[JackD]

Yes, the limitation on the predecessor or successor field is only a display
issue. You can have many more predecessors than that field can display. The
calculation is done with the complete set of predecessors, not just by those
which fit in the limited field so yes, you can ignore it.

--
-Jack ... For Microsoft Project information and macro examples visit
http://masamiki.com/project
or http://zo-d.com/blog/index.html
..

John,

I do have this condition in my Master Project.

When viewed in the split view, all the predecessors paths are listed
accordingly. Does this limitation affect only the display of the data but
project calculates the dates properly anyway? Does this condition affect
impact to schedule slips or can we ignore this condition altoghether?

TIA

Pingger

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

Lars,
The 256 character limit still applies to all text based fields in all
Project versions. The only text field (in all versions) that will hold
more characters, although they can't all be displayed as a column in a
view, is the Notes field. Exceeding the character limit in the
Predecessor field is particularly easy if one or more of the links is
external because the full path is included and that can "chew" up a lot
of characters in a hurry. If external links aren't an issue, then there
are two options. First, review all long Predecessor strings and
eliminate redundancy and/or unnecessary links. It is rare that a single
task really has that many valid dependencies. Second, if the links are
all necessary and valid, I suggest breaking the task into two (or more)
separate identical tasks (i.e "[task] - part "A" and [task] - part "B")
and distribute the links between them.

For your second issue, my guess is that the one user who doesn't get an
error may have calculation set to "manual" (Tools/Options/Calculation
tab). I don't know why the Predecessor field is coming across as empty
but I'd say that is a good thing because it makes it a lot easier to
find the circular relationship (i.e. it's probably one of the
predecessors to that task). The most common cause of circular
relationships is due to Predecessors being attached to Summary Lines. I
would look there first.

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP

 

[D Pingger]

Thanks, JD. I feel much better now.

D Pingger

Yes, the limitation on the predecessor or successor field is only a display
issue. You can have many more predecessors than that field can display. The
calculation is done with the complete set of predecessors, not just by those
which fit in the limited field so yes, you can ignore it.

--
-Jack ... For Microsoft Project information and macro examples visit
http://masamiki.com/project
or http://zo-d.com/blog/index.html
..

John,

I do have this condition in my Master Project.

When viewed in the split view, all the predecessors paths are listed
accordingly. Does this limitation affect only the display of the data but
project calculates the dates properly anyway? Does this condition affect
impact to schedule slips or can we ignore this condition altoghether?

TIA

Pingger

Hi there,
We are currently using Project 2000, and have problems with the 255
character limitation in the Predecessor and Successor fields. Is this limit
gone in Project 2003?

We also have a "weird" problem. When importing a xls file, I always get an
error, if there's a loop between tasks in the file. But one of the users
dosn't get this error, and we can't figure out why? After he has imported the
file, the predecessor field for the last task in the loop is just empty, but
he get's no errormessage. Anyone know why?

Regards,
Lars

Lars,
The 256 character limit still applies to all text based fields in all
Project versions. The only text field (in all versions) that will hold
more characters, although they can't all be displayed as a column in a
view, is the Notes field. Exceeding the character limit in the
Predecessor field is particularly easy if one or more of the links is
external because the full path is included and that can "chew" up a lot
of characters in a hurry. If external links aren't an issue, then there
are two options. First, review all long Predecessor strings and
eliminate redundancy and/or unnecessary links. It is rare that a single
task really has that many valid dependencies. Second, if the links are
all necessary and valid, I suggest breaking the task into two (or more)
separate identical tasks (i.e "[task] - part "A" and [task] - part "B")
and distribute the links between them.

For your second issue, my guess is that the one user who doesn't get an
error may have calculation set to "manual" (Tools/Options/Calculation
tab). I don't know why the Predecessor field is coming across as empty
but I'd say that is a good thing because it makes it a lot easier to
find the circular relationship (i.e. it's probably one of the
predecessors to that task). The most common cause of circular
relationships is due to Predecessors being attached to Summary Lines. I
would look there first.

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP