Hello FME users,
I just wanted to share some information about an update to data types in FME2020, which I don't think has been publicized much. The best demonstration is through a video, but first here's a brief description of the update...
Data Type PreservationIn previous versions of FME, attribute data type would not be preserved fully throughout a workspace. For example, a writer could not determine the data type of an attribute added or edited in the workspace.
You could prove this by following these steps:
- Open FME Workbench 2019
- Add a writer and set the feature type attributes to automatic
- Add an AreaCalculator transformer connected to the writer
The result is that _area is added to the writer, as type char(200). The writer was not able to tell that this attribute should be a numeric type. You would often see char(200) fields as a default for unknown types.
In FME 2020 this has changed.
If you repeated the above step in FME 2020, the result would be a real64 field (or the equivalent of that for the format being used).
In short, data types are now better preserved throughout a workspace.
Video DemonstrationHere's a video demonstration of the improved functionality in FME 2020
Note: If you don't see the video above, it's attached here:
Summary
I hope you find this of use. You don't need to change any settings to apply this; you'll just find that FME is doing a better job at handling data types throughout a workspace.
