Book Image

VBA Automation for Excel 2019 Cookbook

By : Mike Van Niekerk
Book Image

VBA Automation for Excel 2019 Cookbook

By: Mike Van Niekerk

Overview of this book

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is a programming language developed by Microsoft to automate tasks in MS Office applications. This book will help you to focus on the essential aspects of your role by automating mundane tasks in Excel and other Office applications. With comprehensive coverage of VBA delivered in the form of practice problems and bite-sized recipes, this book will help you to hit the ground running. Unlike most books that assume prior programming experience, this book starts with the fundamentals and gradually progresses to solving bigger problems. You’ll start by becoming familiar with VBA so that you can start recording macros right away. With this foundation in place, you’ll advance to using the full capabilities of the language as you apply loops, functions, and custom dialog boxes to design your own automation programs. You'll also get to grips with embedded macros and other advanced tools to enhance productivity and explore topics relating to app performance and security. Throughout this VBA book, you’ll cover multiple practice projects in Excel, Word, and PowerPoint while exploring tips and best practices to hone your skills. By the end of this book, you’ll have developed the skills you need to use VBA to create your own programs that control MS Office applications.
Table of Contents (20 chapters)

Creating a module for storing a Sub procedure

In this recipe, we will be creating a new module, which is yet another object, in the Project window. So far, we've seen only two objects in the Project window: Sheet1 and ThisWorkbook. It is possible to create a code window for each, but Sub procedures must be created and stored in a module in the Project window. This is where coding for all objects can be created and saved.

Getting ready

Make sure that Excel is open and that the VBA Editor is visible.

How to do it…

The steps for this recipe are as follows:

  1. With Excel open on a new sheet, select the Developer tab. In the Code group, select the Visual Basic icon to activate the VBA Editor. If you prefer using the shortcut key, simply press Alt + F11.

    In the VBA Editor, observe the Project window. Under Microsoft Excel Objects, only two objects are visible: Sheet1 (Sheet1) and ThisWorkbook.

  2. On the menu bar, select Insert. From the drop-down menu, select Module, as shown:
Figure 2.14 – The Insert menu's Module option

Figure 2.14 – The Insert menu's Module option

Once you've made your selection, the VBA Editor adds a new module – visible in the Project window – and a new code window appears on the right:

Figure 2.15 – Newly inserted module

Figure 2.15 – Newly inserted module

How it works…

When you open a new spreadsheet in Excel and then activate the VBA Editor, no modules will be visible in the Project window.

However, should you record a macro and then activate the VBA Editor, that macro will be stored in a module.

Finally, if you choose not to record a macro, but to insert the code yourself, you have to create a module yourself.