This book is aimed squarely at Excel users who want to harness the power of the VBA language in their Excel applications. At all times, the VBA language is presented in the context of Excel, not just as a general application programming language.
The Primer has been written for those who are new to VBA programming and the Excel object model. It introduces the VBA language and the features of the language that are common to all VBA applications. It explains the relationship between collections, objects, properties, methods, and events and shows how to relate these concepts to Excel through its object model. It also shows how to use the Visual Basic Editor and its multitude of tools, including how to obtain help.
The middle section of the book takes the key objects in Excel and shows, through many practical examples, how to go about working with those objects. The techniques presented have been developed through the exchange of ideas of many talented Excel VBA programmers over many years and show the best way to gain access to workbooks, worksheets, charts, ranges, and so on. The emphasis is on efficiency-that is, how to write code that is readable and easy to maintain and that runs at maximum speed. In addition, the chapters devoted to accessing external databases detail techniques for accessing data in a range of formats.
The final four chapters of the book address the following advanced issues: linking Excel to the Internet, writing code for international compatibility, programming the Visual Basic Editor, and how to use the functions in the Win32 API (Windows 32-bit Application Programming Interface).
Get ready to take your Excel applications to the next level by harnessing the power of the VBA language. This comprehensive resource will help you gain more control over your spreadsheets by using VBA while also showing you how to develop more dynamic Excel applications for other users. From introductory concepts to advanced developer topics, it guides you through every aspect of Excel 2007, including the Ribbon and the XML file formats.
In order to master all of the new features of this program, you'll find an introduction to VBA and details on how to use it to enhance Excel. You'll then learn how to work with the key objects and uncover the best ways to gain access to workbooks, worksheets, charts, and more. And you'll find out how to write code for international compatibility, program the Visual Basic Editor, and use the functions in the Win32 API, which will expand your Excel VBA programming skills.
What you will learn from this book
- How to write code that is readable, easy to maintain, and runs at maximum speed
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Tips for utilizing the Visual Basic® Editor and its multitude of tools
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Techniques for accessing data in a range of formats
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Ways to set up your applications and convert them to add-ins
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How to manipulate the Office XML file formats
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A thorough explanation of RibbonX
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Best practices for managing external data and using OLAP data sources
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Methods for effectively debugging your application
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Tips for packaging and distributing customized applications to other users
Who is this book for?
This book is for Excel users and programmers from beginning to advanced. You should have a reasonable working knowledge of Excel and a full installation of the software.
Wrox Programmer's References are designed to give the experienced developer straight facts on a new technology, without hype or unnecessary explanations. They deliver hard information with plenty of practical examples to help you apply new tools to your development projects today.
