Numeric data read as string of characters AND is read as unpopulated.

I have 2 fields of data in an Excel 4.0 Workbook that are both numeric data fields. When the data was initially placed on a Crystal report it was viewd as a string of characters, and athough there were some rows that contained data in the column, it was seen us an empty data set. There are no filters affecting the data, so even if it is read as characters it should be visible in Crystal. It is also in decimal form with no characters, such as ".

In order to eliminate all possible errors, I changed the names of the column headers in Excel & remapped the data to Crystal, but the import was still unsuccessful for the same two fields. Now, I have to remap EVERY TIME!

The only way I have been successful in importing these 2 fields into Crystal is to fill in every row of the two columns of data with a number, even though it is not required in most rows. Then, not only does Crystal fill in the data, but it also recognizes it as a numeric field.

Does anyone have any tips or helpful information on this topic???