There are a number of JDBC-Excel drivers out there, but most seem to be nearly abandoned. Moreover, they all either use native pieces, are read-only, or do disconcerting things with in-memory databases, none of which work for me.

So, what is a self-respecting hacker to do besides write their own? Here's the nutshell:

SQLSheet is a JDBC driver which allows you to interact with Microsoft Excel spreadsheets using SQL statements.

Features:

• Pure Java (no native components)
• Fast (operates directly on the spreadsheet, does not rely on an in-memory database)
• Read and write operations
• PreparedStatement support

Now, if you just want to manipulate spreadsheets, just use Apache's POI - it's great. Why is SqlSheet useful, then? Mainly for manipulating spreadsheets inside other tools that are database-oriented. You can just give them a jdbc:xls URL and start doing whatever you normally do. In my case, I specifically wanted to be able to manipulate spreadsheets from inside the Scriptella ETL framework.

(more...)