1. Unleash the Power of Excel with VBA

The Power of Excel

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) combined with Microsoft Excel is probably the most powerful tool available to you. VBA is sitting on the desktops of 500 million users of Microsoft Office, and most have never figured out how to harness the power of VBA in Excel. Using VBA, you can speed the production of any task in Excel. If you regularly use Excel to produce a series of monthly charts, you can have VBA do the same task for you in a matter of seconds.

Barriers to Entry

There are two barriers to learning successful VBA programming. First, Excel’s macro recorder is flawed and does not produce workable code for you to use as a model. Second, for many who learned a programming language such as BASIC, the syntax of VBA is horribly frustrating.

The Macro Recorder Doesn’t Work!

Microsoft began to dominate the spreadsheet market in the mid-1990s. Although it was wildly successful in building a powerful spreadsheet program to which any Lotus 1-2-3 user could easily transition, the macro language was just too different. Anyone proficient in recording Lotus 1-2-3 macros who tried recording a few macros in Excel most likely failed. Although the Microsoft VBA programming language is much more powerful than the Lotus 1-2-3 macro language, the fundamental flaw is that the macro recorder does not work.

With Lotus 1-2-3, you could record a macro today, play it back tomorrow, and it would faithfully work. When you attempt the same feat in Microsoft Excel, the macro might work today but not tomorrow. In 1995, when I tried to record my first Excel macro, I was horribly frustrated by this.

Visual Basic Is Not Like BASIC

The code generated by the macro recorder was unlike anything I had ever seen. It said this was “Visual Basic” (VB). I had the pleasure of learning half a dozen programming languages at various times; this bizarre-looking language was horribly unintuitive and did not resemble the BASIC language I had learned in high school.

To make matters worse, even in 1995 I was the spreadsheet wizard in my office. My company had forced everyone to convert from Lotus 1-2-3 to Excel, which meant I was faced with a macro recorder that didn’t work and a language that I couldn’t understand. This was not a good combination of events.

My assumption in writing this book is that you are pretty talented with a spreadsheet. You probably know more than 90 percent of the people in your office. I also assume that even though you are not a programmer, you might have taken a class in BASIC at some point. However, knowing BASIC is not a requirement—it actually is a barrier to entry into the ranks of being a successful VBA programmer. There is a good chance that you have recorded a macro in Excel and a similar chance that you were not happy with the results.

Good News: Climbing the Learning Curve Is Easy

Even if you’ve been frustrated with the macro recorder, it is really just a small speed bump on your road to writing powerful programs in Excel. This book will not only teach you why the macro recorder fails, but also how to change the recorded code into something useful. For all the former BASIC programmers in the audience, I will decode VBA so that you can easily pick through recorded macro code and understand what is happening.

Great News: Excel with VBA Is Worth the Effort

Although you probably have been frustrated with Microsoft over the inability to record macros in Excel, the great news is that Excel VBA is powerful. Absolutely anything you can do in the Excel interface can be duplicated with stunning speed in Excel VBA. If you find yourself routinely creating the same reports manually day after day or week after week, Excel VBA will greatly streamline those tasks.

The authors of this book work for MrExcel Consulting. In this role, we have automated reports for hundreds of clients. The stories are often similar: The MIS department has a several-month backlog of requests. Someone in accounting or engineering discovers that he or she can import some data into Excel and get the reports necessary to run the business. This is a liberating event—you no longer need to wait months for the IT department to write a program. However, the problem is that after you import the data into Excel and win accolades from your manager for producing the report, you will likely be asked to produce the same report every month or every week. This becomes very tedious.

Again, the great news is that with a few hours of VBA programming, you can automate the reporting process and turn it into a few button clicks. The reward is great. So, hang with me as we cover a few of the basics.

This chapter exposes why the macro recorder does not work. It also walks through an example of recorded code and demonstrates why it will work today but fail tomorrow. I realize that the code you see in this chapter might not be familiar to you, but that’s okay. The point of this chapter is to demonstrate the fundamental problem with the macro recorder. You also learn the fundamentals of the Visual Basic environment.

Knowing Your Tools: The Developer Tab

Let’s start with a basic overview of the tools needed to use VBA. By default, Microsoft hides the VBA tools. You need to complete the following steps to change a setting in Excel options to access the Developer tab.

1. Open the File menu to get to the new Backstage view.
2. Along the left navigation bar, select Options under Excel.
3. In the Excel Options dialog, select Customize Ribbon from the left navigation.
4. In the Right list box, the Developer tab is third from the bottom. Select the check box next to this item.
5. Click OK to return to Excel.

Excel displays the Developer tab shown in Figure 1.1.

Figure 1.1. The Developer tab provides an interface for running and recording macros.

The Code group on the Developer tab contains the icons used for recording and playing back VBA macros, as listed here:

• Visual Basic icon—Opens the Visual Basic Editor.

• Macros icon—Displays the Macro dialog, where you can choose to run or edit a macro from the list of macros.

• Record Macro icon—Begins the process of recording a macro.

• Use Relative Reference icon—Toggles between using relative or absolute recording. With relative recording, Excel will record that you move down three cells. With absolute recording, Excel will record that you selected cell A4.

• Macro Security icon—Accesses the Trust Center, where you can choose to allow or disallow macros to run on this computer.

The Controls group of the Developer tab contains an Insert menu where you can access a variety of programming controls that can be placed on the worksheet. See “Assigning a Macro to a Form Control, Text Box, or Shape,” later in this chapter. Other icons in this group enable you to work with the on-sheet controls. The Run Dialog button enables you to display a custom dialog box or userform that you designed in VBA. For more on userforms, see Chapter 10, “Userforms: An Introduction.”

Macro Security

After VBA macros were used as the delivery method for some high-profile viruses, Microsoft changed the default security settings to prevent macros from running. Therefore, before we can begin discussing the recording of a macro, we need to show you how to adjust the default settings.

In Excel 2010, you can either globally adjust the security settings or control macro settings for certain workbooks by saving the workbooks in a trusted location. Any workbooks stored in a folder that is marked as a trusted location will automatically have its macros enabled.

You can find the macro security settings under the Macro Security icon on the Developer tab. When you click this icon, the Macro Settings category of the Trust Center is displayed. You can use the left navigation bar in the dialog to access the Trusted Locations list.

Adding a Trusted Location

You can choose to store your macro workbooks in a folder that is marked as a trusted location. Any workbook stored in a trusted folder will have its macros enabled. Microsoft suggests that a trusted location should be on your hard drive. The default setting is that you cannot trust a location on a network drive.

To specify a trusted location, follow these steps:

1. Click Macro Security in the Developer tab.
2. Click Trusted Locations in the left navigation pane of the Trust Center.
3. If you want to trust a location on a network drive, select Allow Trusted Locations on My Network.
4. Click the Add New Location button. Excel displays the Microsoft Office Trusted Locations dialog (see Figure 1.2).
   

   Figure 1.2. Manage trusted folders on the Trusted Locations category of the Trust Center.

5. Click the Browse button. Excel displays the Browse dialog.
6. Browse to the parent folder of the folder you want to be a trusted location. Click the trusted folder. Although the folder name does not appear in the Folder Name box, click OK. The correct folder name will appear in the Browse dialog.
7. If you want to trust subfolders of the selected folder, select Subfolders of This Location Will Be Trusted.
8. Click OK to add the folder to the Trusted Locations list.

Although trusted locations are not new in Excel 2010, Microsoft has made the process of adding trusted locations more discoverable in Excel 2010.

Using Macro Settings to Enable Macros in Workbooks Outside of Trusted Locations

For all macros not stored in a trusted location, Excel relies on the macro settings. The Low, Medium, High, and Very High settings that were familiar in Excel 2003 have been renamed.

To access the macro settings, click Macro Security in the Developer tab. Excel displays the Macro Settings category of the Trust Center dialog. Select the second option, Disable All Macros with Notification. A description of each option follows:

• Disable All Macros Without Notification—This setting prevents all macros from running. This setting is for people who never intend to run macros. Because you are currently holding a book that teaches you how to use macros, it is assumed that this setting is not you. This setting is roughly equivalent to the old Very High Security setting in Excel 2003. With this setting, only macros in the Trusted Locations folders can run.

• Disable All Macros with Notification—This setting is similar to Medium security in Excel 2003 and is the recommended setting. In Excel 2003, a Medium setting caused a box to be displayed when you opened a file containing macros. This box forced the person to choose either Enable or Disable. Many novice Excel users randomly choose from this box. In Excel 2010, the message is displayed in the Message Area that macros have been disabled. You can choose to enable the content by clicking that option, as shown in Figure 1.3.

Figure 1.3. Open a macro workbook using the Disable All Macros with Notification setting to enable the macros.

• Disable All Macros Except Digitally Signed Macros—This setting requires you to obtain a digital signing tool from VeriSign or another provider. This might be appropriate if you are going to be selling add-ins to others, but a bit of a hassle if you just want to write macros for your own use.

• Enable All Macros (Not Recommended: Potentially Dangerous Code Can Run)—This setting is similar to Low macro security in Excel 2003. Although it requires the least amount of hassle, it also opens your computer up to attacks from malicious Melissa-like viruses. Microsoft suggests that you do not use this setting.

Using Disable All Macros with Notification

It is recommended that you set your macro settings to Disable All Content with Notification. If you use this setting and open a workbook that contains macros, you will see a Security Warning in the area just above the formula bar. Assuming you were expecting macros in this workbook, click Enable Content.

If you do not want to enable macros for the current workbook, dismiss the Security Warning by clicking the X at the far right of the message bar.

If you forget to enable the macros and attempt to run a macro, Excel indicates that you cannot run the macro because all macros have been disabled. If this occurs, close the workbook and reopen it to access the message bar again.

Overview of Recording, Storing, and Running a Macro

Recording a macro is useful when you do not have experience in writing lines of code in a macro. As you gain more knowledge and experience, you will begin to record lines of code less frequently.

To begin recording a macro, select Record Macro from the Developer tab. Before recording begins, Excel displays the Record Macro dialog box, as shown in Figure 1.4.

Figure 1.4. Use the Record Macro dialog box to assign a name and a shortcut key to the macro being recorded.

Filling Out the Record Macro Dialog

In the Macro Name field, type a name for the macro. Be sure to type continuous characters. For example, type Macro1 without a space, not Macro 1 with a space. Assuming you will soon be creating many macros, use a meaningful name for the macro. A name such as FormatReport is more useful than Macro1.

The second field in the Record Macro dialog box is a shortcut key. If you type J in this field, and then press Ctrl+J, this macro runs. Note that most of the lowercase shortcuts from Ctrl+a through Ctrl+z already have a use in Excel. Rather than being limited to the unassigned Ctrl+j, you can hold down the Shift key and type Shift+A through Shift+Z in the shortcut box. This will assign the macro to Ctrl+Shift+A.

In the Record Macro dialog box, choose where you want to save a macro when it is recorded: Personal Macro Workbook, New Workbook, This Workbook. It is recommended that you store macros related to a particular workbook in This Workbook.

The Personal Macro Workbook (Personal.xlsb) is not a visible workbook; it is created if you choose to save the recording in the Personal Macro Workbook. This workbook is used to save a macro in a workbook that will open automatically when you start Excel, thereby enabling you to use the macro. After Excel is started, the workbook is hidden. If you want to display it, select Unhide from the View tab.

The fourth box in the Record Macro dialog is for a description. This description is added as a comment to the beginning of your macro. Note that legacy versions of Excel automatically noted the date and username of the person recording the macro. Excel 2010 no longer automatically inserts this information in the Description field.

After you select the location where you want to store the macro, click OK. Record your macro. When you are finished recording the macro, click the Stop Recording icon in the Developer tab.

Running a Macro

If you assigned a shortcut key to your macro, you can play it by pressing the key combination. Macros can also be assigned to toolbar buttons, forms controls, drawing objects, or you can run them from the Visual Basic toolbar.

Creating a Macro Button on the Ribbon

You can add an icon to a new group on the Ribbon to run your macro. This is appropriate for macros stored in the Personal Macro Workbook. Follow these steps to add a macro button to the Ribbon:

1. Click the File menu and select Excel Options to open the Excel Options dialog.
2. In the Excel Options dialog, select the Customize Ribbon category from the left-side navigation.

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   Tip

   Note that a shortcut to replace steps 1 and 2 is to right-click the Ribbon and select Customize Ribbon.

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3. In the list box on the right, choose the tab name where you want to add an icon.
4. Click the New Group button below the right list box. Excel adds a new entry called New Group (Custom) to the end of the groups in that ribbon tab.
5. To move the group to the left in the ribbon tab, click the up-arrow icon on the right side of the dialog several times.
6. To rename the group, click the Rename button. Type a new name, such as Report Macros. Click OK. Excel will show the group in the list box as Report Macros (Custom). Note that the word Custom will not appear in the Ribbon.
7. Open the upper-left drop-down and choose Macros from the list. The Macros category is fourth in the list. Excel displays a list of available macros in the left list box.
8. Choose a macro from the left list box. Click the Add button in the center of the dialog. Excel moves the macro to the right list box in the selected group. Excel uses a generic VBA icon for all macros. You can change the icon by following steps 9 and 10.
9. Click the macro in the right list box. Click the Rename button at the bottom of the right list box. Excel displays a list of 180 possible icons. Choose an icon. Alternatively, type a friendly label for the icon, such as Format Report.
10. Click OK to close Excel options. The new button appears on the selected Ribbon tab.

Creating a Macro Button on the Quick Access Toolbar

You can add an icon to the Quick Access toolbar to run your macro. If your macro is stored in the Personal Macro Workbook, you can have the button permanently displayed in the Quick Access toolbar. If the macro is stored in the current workbook, you can specify that the icon should appear only when the workbook is open. Follow these steps to add a macro button to the Quick Access toolbar:

1. Click the File menu and select Excel Options to open the Options dialog.
2. In the Excel Options dialog select the Quick Access Toolbar category from the left-side navigation.

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   Tip

   Note that a shortcut to replace steps 1 and 2 is to right-click the Quick Access toolbar and select Customize Quick Access Toolbar.

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3. If your macro should be available only when the current workbook is open, open the upper-right drop-down and change For All Documents (Default) to For <FileName.xlsm>. Any icons associated with the current workbook are displayed at the end of the Quick Access toolbar.
4. Open the upper-left drop-down and select Macros from the list. The Macros category is fourth in the list. Excel displays a list of available macros in the left list box.
5. Choose a macro from the left list box. Click the Add button in the center of the dialog. Excel moves the macro to the right list box. Excel uses a generic VBA icon for all macros. You can change the icon by following steps 6 through 8.
6. Click the macro in the right list box. Click the Modify button at the bottom of the right list box. Excel displays a list of 180 possible icons (see Figure 1.5).
   

   Figure 1.5. Attach a macro to a button on the Quick Access toolbar.

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   Note

   Considering Excel 2003 offered 4,096 possible icons and an icon editor, the list of 180 is a major disappointment.

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7. Choose an icon from the list. In the Display Name box, replace the macro name with a short name that will appear in the ToolTip for the icon.
8. Click OK to close the Modify Button dialog.
9. Click OK to close Excel options. The new button appears on the Quick Access toolbar.

Assigning a Macro to a Form Control, Text Box, or Shape

If you want to create a macro specific to a workbook, store the macro in the workbook and attach it to a form control or any object on the sheet.

Follow these steps to attach a macro to a form control on the sheet:

1. On the Developer tab, click the Insert button to open its drop-down list. Excel offers 12 form controls and 12 ActiveX controls. Many icons look similar in this drop-down. Click the Button Form Control icon at the upper-left icon in the drop-down.
2. Move your cursor over the worksheet; the cursor changes to a plus sign.
3. Draw a button on the sheet by clicking and holding the left mouse button while drawing a box shape. Release the button when you have finished.
4. Choose a macro from the Assign Macro dialog box and click OK. The button is created with generic text such as Button 1. To customize the text or the button appearance, follow steps 5 through 7.
5. Type a new label for the button. Note that while you are typing, the selection border around the button changes from dots to diagonal lines to indicate that you are in Text Edit mode. You cannot change the button color while in Text Edit mode. To exit Text Edit mode, either click the diagonal lines to change them to dots or Ctrl-click the button again. Note that if you accidentally click away from the button, you should Ctrl+click the button to select it. Then drag the cursor over the text on the button to select the text.
6. Right-click the dots surrounding the button and select Format Control. Excel displays the Format Control dialog with seven tabs across the top. If your Format Control dialog has only a Font tab, you failed to exit Text Edit mode. If this occurred, close the dialog, Ctrl-click the button, and repeat this step.
7. Use the settings in the Format Control dialog to change the font size, font color, margins, and similar settings for the control. Click OK to close the Format Control dialog when you have finished. Click on a cell to unselect the button.
8. Click the button to run the macro.

Macros can be assigned to any worksheet object such as clip art, a shape, SmartArt graphics, or text box. In Figure 1.6, the top button is a traditional button form control. The other images are clip art, a shape with WordArt, and a SmartArt graphic. To assign a macro to any object, right-click the object, and select Assign Macro.

Figure 1.6. Assigning a macro to a form control or an object appropriate for macros stored in the same workbook as the control. You can assign a macro to any of these objects.

Using New File Types in Excel 2010

Excel 2010 offers support for four file types. Macros are not allowed to be stored in the default file type. You have to use the Save As setting for all of your macro workbooks, or you can change the default file type used by Excel 2010.

The available files types are as follows:

• Excel Workbook (.xlsx)—Files are stored as a series of XML objects and then zipped into a single file. This new file-saving paradigm in Excel 2010 allows for significantly smaller file sizes. It also allows other applications (even Notepad!) to edit or create Excel workbooks. Unfortunately, macros cannot be stored in files with an .xlsx extension.

• Excel Macro-Enabled Workbook (.xlsm)—This is similar to the default .xlsx format, except macros are allowed. The basic concept is that if someone has an .xlsx file, he or she will not need to worry about malicious macros. However, if they see an .xlsm file, they should be concerned that there might be macros attached.

• Excel Binary Workbook (.xlsb)—This is a binary format designed to handle the larger 1.1-million-row grid size in Excel 2010. Legacy versions of Excel stored their files in a proprietary binary format. Although binary formats might load quicker, they are more prone to corruption, and a few lost bits can destroy the whole file. Macros are allowed in this format.

• Excel 97-2003 Workbook (.xls)—This format produces files that can be read by anyone using legacy versions of Excel. Macros are allowed in this binary format; however, when you save in this format, you lose access to any cells outside of A1:IV65536. In addition, if someone opens the file in Excel 2003, he or she will lose access to anything that used features introduced in Excel 2007 or later.

To avoid having to choose a macro-enabled workbook in the Save As dialog, you can customize your copy of Excel to always save new files in the .xlsm format by following these steps:

1. Click the File menu and select Excel Options.
2. In the Excel Options dialog, select the Save category from the left navigation pane.
3. The first drop-down is Save Files in This Format. Open the drop-down and select Excel Macro-Enabled Workbook (*.xlsm). Click OK.

Understanding the VB Editor

Figure 1.7 shows an example of the typical VB Editor screen. You can see three windows: Project Explorer, the Properties window, and the Programming window. Don’t worry if your window doesn’t look exactly like this because you will see how to display the windows you need in this review of the editor.

Figure 1.7. The VB Editor window.

VB Editor Settings

Several settings in the VB Editor enable you to customize this editor. The following subsection covers the setting that will help with your programming.

Customizing VB Editor Options Settings

Under Tools, Options, Editor, you will find several useful settings. All settings except for one are set correctly by default. The remaining setting requires some consideration on your part. This setting is Require Variable Declaration. By default, Excel does not require you to declare variables. I prefer this setting because it can save time when you create a program. My coauthor prefers to change this setting to require variable declaration. This change forces the compiler to stop if it finds a variable that it does not recognize, which reduces misspelled variable names. It is a matter of your personal preference if you turn this setting on or keep it off.

The Project Explorer

The Project Explorer lists any open workbooks and add-ins that are loaded. If you click the + icon next to the VBA Project, you will see that there is a folder with Microsoft Excel objects. There can also be folders for forms, class modules, and standard modules. Each folder includes one or more individual components.

Right-clicking a component and selecting View Code or just double-clicking the components brings up any code in the Programming window. The exception is userforms, where double-clicking displays the userform in Design view.

To display the Project Explorer window, select View, Project Explorer from the menu, and then press Ctrl+R or click the Project Explorer icon on the toolbar.

Figure 1.8 shows the Project Explorer pane. This pane can show Microsoft Excel objects, userforms, modules, and class modules.

Figure 1.8. The Project Explorer window displays different types of modules.

To insert a module, right-click your project, select Insert, and then choose the type of module you want. The available modules are as follows:

• Microsoft Excel objects—By default, a project consists of sheet modules for each sheet in the workbook and a single ThisWorkbook module. Code specific to a sheet such as controls or sheet events is placed on the corresponding sheet. Workbook events are placed in the ThisWorkbook module. You learn more about events in Chapter 9, “Event Programming.”

• Forms—Excel allows you to design your own forms to interact with the user. You learn more about these forms in Chapter 10.

• Modules—When you record a macro, Excel automatically creates a module in which to place the code. Most of your code will reside in these types of modules.

• Class modules—Class modules are Excel’s way of letting you create your own objects. They also allow pieces of code to be shared among programmers without the programmer needing to understand how it works. You will learn more about class modules in Chapter 22, “Creating Classes, Records, and Collections.”

The Properties Window

The Properties window enables you to edit the properties of various components such as sheets, workbooks, modules, and form controls. The Property list varies according to what component is selected. To display this window, select View, Properties Window from the menu, press F4, or click the Project Properties icon on the toolbar.

Understanding Shortcomings of the Macro Recorder

Suppose you work in an accounting department. Each day you receive a text file from the company system showing all the invoices produced the prior day. This text file has commas separating each field. The columns in the file are InvoiceDate, InvoiceNumber, SalesRepNumber, CustomerNumber, ProductRevenue, ServiceRevenue, and ProductCost (see Figure 1.9).

Figure 1.9. Invoice.txt file.

Each morning, you manually import this file into Excel. You add a total row to the data, bold the headings, and then print the report for distribution to a few managers.

This seems like a simple process that would be ideally suited to using the macro recorder. However, due to some problems with the macro recorder, your first few attempts might not be successful. The following case study explains how to overcome these problems.

Examining Code in the Programming Window

Let’s look at the code you just recorded from the case study. Don’t worry if it doesn’t make sense yet.

To open the VB Editor, press Alt+F11. In your VBA Project (MacroToImportInvoices.xls), find the component Module1, right-click the module, and select View Code. Notice that some lines start with an apostrophe—these are comments and are ignored by the program. The macro recorder starts your macros with a few comments, using the description you entered in the Record Macro dialog. The comment for the Keyboard Shortcut is there to remind you of the shortcut.

Recorded macro code is usually pretty neat (see Figure 1.11). Each noncomment line of code is indented four characters. If a line is longer than 100 characters, the recorder breaks it into multiple lines and indents the lines an additional four characters. To continue a line of code, type a space and an underscore at the end of the line.

Figure 1.11. The recorded macro is neat looking and nicely indented.

Consider that the following seven lines of recorded code is actually only one line of code that has been broken into seven lines for readability:

Counting this as one line, the macro recorder was able to record our 21-step process in 14 lines of code, which is pretty impressive.

Test Each Macro

It is always a good idea to test macros. To test your new macro, return to the regular Excel interface by pressing Alt+F11. Close Invoice.txt without saving any changes. MacroToImportInvoices.xls is still open.

Press Ctrl+I to run the recorded macro. It should work beautifully if you completed the steps correctly. The data is imported, totals are added, bold formatting is applied, and the columns are made wider. This seems like a perfect solution (see Figure 1.12).

Figure 1.12. The macro formats the data in the sheet.

Running the Macro on Another Day Produces Undesired Results

After testing the macro, be sure to save your macro file to use on another day. The next day, after receiving a new Invoice.txt file from the system, you open the macro, press Ctrl+I to run it, and disaster strikes. The data for June 6 happened to have 9 invoices, while the data for the June 7 has 17 invoices. However, the recorded macro blindly added the totals in Row 12 because this was where you put the totals when the macro was recorded (see Figure 1.13).

Figure 1.13. The intent of the recorded macro was to add a total at the end of the data, but the recorder made a macro that always adds totals at Row 11.

This problem arises because the macro recorder is recording all your actions in absolute mode by default. Instead of using the default state of the macro recorder, the next section discusses relative recording and how this might get you closer to a final solution.

Possible Solution: Use Relative References When Recording

By default, the macro recorder records all actions as absolute actions. If you navigate to Row 11 when you record the macro on Monday, the macro will always go to Row 11 when the macro is run. This is rarely appropriate when dealing with variable numbers of rows of data. The better option is to use relative references when recording.

Macros recorded with absolute references note the actual address of the cell pointer, such as A11. Macros recorded with relative references note that the cell pointer should move a certain number of rows and columns from its current position. For example, if the cell pointer starts in cell A1, the code ActiveCell.Offset(16, 1).Select would move the cell pointer to B17, which is the cell 16 rows down and 1 column to the right.

Let’s try the same case study again, this time using relative references. The solution will be much closer to working correctly.

Open MacroToImportInvoices.xls and run the new macro with Ctrl+J. This time, everything should look good with the totals in the correct places. Look at Figure 1.16—see anything out of the ordinary?

Figure 1.16. The result of running the Relative macro.

If you aren’t careful, you might print these reports for your manager. If you did, you would be in trouble. When you look in cell E19, Excel has inserted a green triangle to tell you to look at the cell. If you happened to try this back in Excel 95 or Excel 97 before SmartTags, there would not have been an indicator that anything was wrong.

When you move the cell pointer to E19, an alert indicator pops up near the cell. This indicator tells you the formula fails to include adjacent cells. If you look in the formula bar, you will see that the macro totaled only from Row 10 to Row 18. Neither the relative recording nor the nonrelative recording is smart enough to replicate the logic of the AutoSum button.

At this point, some people would give up. However, imagine that you might have had fewer invoice records on this particular day. Excel would have rewarded you with the illogical formula of =SUM(E6:E1048574) and a circular reference, as shown in Figure 1.17.

Figure 1.17. The result of running the Relative macro with fewer invoice records.

If you have tried using the macro recorder, most likely you would run into similar problems as the ones produced in the last two case studies. Although this is frustrating, you should be happy to know that the macro recorder actually gets you 95 percent of the way to a useful macro.

Your job is to recognize where the macro recorder is likely to fail and then to be able to dive into the VBA code to fix the one or two lines that require adjusting to have a perfect macro. With some added human intelligence, you can produce awesome macros to speed up your daily work.

Never Use the AutoSum Button While Recording a Macro

There actually is a macro-recorder solution to the current problem. It is important to recognize that the macro recorder will never correctly record the intent of the AutoSum button.

If you are in cell E99 and click the AutoSum button, Excel starts scanning from cell E98 upward until it locates a text cell, a blank cell, or a formula. It then proposes a formula that sums everything between the current cell and the found cell.

However, the macro recorder records the particular result of that search on the day that the macro was recorded. Rather than record something along the lines of “do the normal AutoSum logic,” the macro recorder inserts a single line of code to add up the previous 98 cells.

The somewhat bizarre workaround is to type a SUM function that uses a mix of relative and absolute row references. If you type =SUM(E$2:E10) while the macro recorder is running, Excel correctly adds code that will always sum from a fixed row two down to the relative reference that is just above the current cell.

Here is the resulting code with a few comments:

This third macro will consistently work with any size dataset.

To see a demo of recording this macro, search for Excel VBA 1 at YouTube.

Three Tips When Using the Macro Recorder

You will rarely be able to record 100 percent of your macros and have them work. However, you will get much closer by using these three tips demonstrated in the following subsections.

Tip 1: Use Relative References Setting Usually Needs to Be On

Microsoft should have made this setting be the default. Unless you specifically need to move to Row 1 from the bottom of a dataset, you should usually leave the Use Relative References button in the Developer tab turned on.

Tip 2: Use Special Navigation Keys to Move to Bottom of a Dataset

If you are at the top of a dataset and need to move to the last cell with data, you can press Ctrl+down arrow or press the End key and then the down-arrow key.

Similarly, to move to the last column in the current row of the dataset, press Ctrl+right arrow or press End and then press the right-arrow key.

By using these navigation keys, you can jump to the end of the dataset, no matter how many rows or columns you have today.

Tip 3: Never Touch the AutoSum Icon While Recording a Macro

The macro recorder will not record the “essence” of the AutoSum button. Instead, it will hard-code the formula that resulted from pressing the AutoSum button. This formula does not work any time you have more or fewer records in the dataset.

Instead, type a formula with a single dollar sign, such as =SUM(E$2:E10). When this is done, the macro recorder records the first E$2 as a fixed reference and starts the SUM range directly below the Row 1 headings. Provided the active cell is E11, the macro recorder recognizes E10 as a relative reference pointing directly above the current cell.

Next Steps

Chapter 2, “This Sounds Like BASIC, So Why Doesn’t It Look Familiar?” examines the three macros you recorded in this chapter to make more sense out of them. After you know how to decode the VBA code, it will feel natural to either correct the recorded code or simply write code from scratch. Hang on through one more chapter. You’ll soon learn that VBA is the solution, and you’ll be writing useful code that works consistently.