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Приветствую всех.

В этом посте я расскажу, что такое VBA и как с ним работать в Microsoft Excel 2007/2010 (для более старых версий изменяется лишь интерфейс — код, скорее всего, будет таким же) для автоматизации различной рутины.

VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) — это упрощенная версия Visual Basic, встроенная в множество продуктов линейки Microsoft Office. Она позволяет писать программы прямо в файле конкретного документа. Вам не требуется устанавливать различные IDE — всё, включая отладчик, уже есть в Excel.

Еще при помощи Visual Studio Tools for Office можно писать макросы на C# и также встраивать их. Спасибо, FireStorm.

Сразу скажу — писать на других языках (C++/Delphi/PHP) также возможно, но требуется научится читать, изменять и писать файлы офиса — встраивать в документы не получится. А интерфейсы Microsoft работают через COM. Чтобы вы поняли весь ужас, вот Hello World с использованием COM.

Поэтому, увы, будем учить Visual Basic.

Чуть-чуть подготовки и постановка задачи

Итак, поехали. Открываем Excel.

Для начала давайте добавим в Ribbon панель «Разработчик». В ней находятся кнопки, текстовые поля и пр. элементы для конструирования форм.

Появилась вкладка.

Теперь давайте подумаем, на каком примере мы будем изучать VBA. Недавно мне потребовалось красиво оформить прайс-лист, выглядевший, как таблица. Идём в гугл, набираем «прайс-лист» и качаем любой, который оформлен примерно так (не сочтите за рекламу, пожалуйста):

То есть требуется, чтобы было как минимум две группы, по которым можно объединить товары (в нашем случае это будут Тип и Производитель — в таком порядке). Для того, чтобы предложенный мною алгоритм работал корректно, отсортируйте товары так, чтобы товары из одной группы стояли подряд (сначала по Типу, потом по Производителю).

Результат, которого хотим добиться, выглядит примерно так:

Разумеется, если смотреть прайс только на компьютере, то можно добавить фильтры и будет гораздо удобнее искать нужный товар. Однако мы хотим научится кодить и задача вполне подходящая, не так ли?

Кодим

Для начала требуется создать кнопку, при нажатии на которую будет вызываться наша програма. Кнопки находятся в панели «Разработчик» и появляются по кнопке «Вставить». Вам нужен компонент формы «Кнопка». Нажали, поставили на любое место в листе. Далее, если не появилось окно назначения макроса, надо нажать правой кнопкой и выбрать пункт «Назначить макрос». Назовём его FormatPrice. Важно, чтобы перед именем макроса ничего не было — иначе он создастся в отдельном модуле, а не в пространстве имен книги. В этому случае вам будет недоступно быстрое обращение к выделенному листу. Нажимаем кнопку «Новый».

И вот мы в среде разработки VB. Также её можно вызвать из контекстного меню командой «Исходный текст»/«View code».

Перед вами окно с заглушкой процедуры. Можете его развернуть. Код должен выглядеть примерно так:

Sub FormatPrice()End Sub

Напишем Hello World:

Sub FormatPrice() MsgBox "Hello World!" End Sub

И запустим либо щелкнув по кнопке (предварительно сняв с неё выделение), либо клавишей F5 прямо из редактора.

Тут, пожалуй, следует отвлечься на небольшой ликбез по поводу синтаксиса VB. Кто его знает — может смело пропустить этот раздел до конца. Основное отличие Visual Basic от Pascal/C/Java в том, что команды разделяются не ;, а переносом строки или двоеточием (:), если очень хочется написать несколько команд в одну строку. Чтобы понять основные правила синтаксиса, приведу абстрактный код.

Примеры синтаксиса

' Процедура. Ничего не возвращает ' Перегрузка в VBA отсутствует Sub foo(a As String, b As String) ' Exit Sub ' Это значит "выйти из процедуры" MsgBox a + ";" + b End Sub' Функция. Вовращает Integer Function LengthSqr(x As Integer, y As Integer) As Integer ' Exit Function LengthSqr = x * x + y * y End FunctionSub FormatPrice() Dim s1 As String, s2 As String s1 = "str1" s2 = "str2" If s1 <> s2 Then foo "123", "456" ' Скобки при вызове процедур запрещены End IfDim res As sTRING ' Регистр в VB не важен. Впрочем, редактор Вас поправит Dim i As Integer ' Цикл всегда состоит из нескольких строк For i = 1 To 10 res = res + CStr(i) ' Конвертация чего угодно в String If i = 5 Then Exit For Next iDim x As Double x = Val("1.234") ' Парсинг чисел x = x + 10 MsgBox xOn Error Resume Next ' Обработка ошибок - игнорировать все ошибки x = 5 / 0 MsgBox xOn Error GoTo Err ' При ошибке перейти к метке Err x = 5 / 0 MsgBox "OK!" GoTo ne





  


                       
  




Err:

    MsgBox 
"Err!"
ne:

On Error GoTo 0 ' Отключаем обработку ошибок ' Циклы бывает, какие захотите Do While True Exit DoLoop 'While True Do 'Until False Exit Do Loop Until False ' А вот при вызове функций, от которых хотим получить значение, скобки нужны. ' Val также умеет возвращать Integer Select Case LengthSqr(Len("abc"), Val("4")) Case 24 MsgBox "0" Case 25 MsgBox "1" Case 26 MsgBox "2" End Select' Двухмерный массив. ' Можно также менять размеры командой ReDim (Preserve) - см. google Dim arr(1 to 10, 5 to 6) As Integer arr(1, 6) = 8Dim coll As New Collection Dim coll2 As Collection coll.Add "item", "key" Set coll2 = coll ' Все присваивания объектов должны производится командой Set MsgBox coll2("key") Set coll2 = New Collection MsgBox coll2.Count End Sub

Грабли-1. При копировании кода из IDE (в английском Excel) есь текст конвертируется в 1252 Latin-1. Поэтому, если хотите сохранить русские комментарии — надо сохранить крокозябры как Latin-1, а потом открыть в 1251.

Грабли-2. Т.к. VB позволяет использовать необъявленные переменные, я всегда в начале кода (перед всеми процедурами) ставлю строчку Option Explicit. Эта директива запрещает интерпретатору заводить переменные самостоятельно.

Грабли-3. Глобальные переменные можно объявлять только до первой функции/процедуры. Локальные — в любом месте процедуры/функции.

Еще немного дополнительных функций, которые могут пригодится: InPos, Mid, Trim, LBound, UBound. Также ответы на все вопросы по поводу работы функций/их параметров можно получить в MSDN.

Надеюсь, что этого Вам хватит, чтобы не пугаться кода и самостоятельно написать какое-нибудь домашнее задание по информатике. По ходу поста я буду ненавязчиво знакомить Вас с новыми конструкциями.

Кодим много и под Excel

В этой части мы уже начнём кодить нечто, что умеет работать с нашими листами в Excel. Для начала создадим отдельный лист с именем result (лист с данными назовём data). Теперь, наверное, нужно этот лист очистить от того, что на нём есть. Также мы «выделим» лист с данными, чтобы каждый раз не писать длинное обращение к массиву с листами.

Sub FormatPrice() Sheets("result").Cells.Clear Sheets("data").Activate End Sub

Работа с диапазонами ячеек

Вся работа в Excel VBA производится с диапазонами ячеек. Они создаются функцией Range и возвращают объект типа Range. У него есть всё необходимое для работы с данными и/или оформлением. Кстати сказать, свойство Cells листа — это тоже Range.

Примеры работы с Range

Sheets("result").Activate Dim r As Range Set r = Range("A1") r.Value = "123" Set r = Range("A3,A5") r.Font.Color = vbRed r.Value = "456" Set r = Range("A6:A7") r.Value = "=A1+A3"

Теперь давайте поймем алгоритм работы нашего кода. Итак, у каждой строчки листа data, начиная со второй, есть некоторые данные, которые нас не интересуют (ID, название и цена) и есть две вложенные группы, к которым она принадлежит (тип и производитель). Более того, эти строки отсортированы. Пока мы забудем про пропуски перед началом новой группы — так будет проще. Я предлагаю такой алгоритм:

Считали группы из очередной строки.
Пробегаемся по всем группам в порядке приоритета (вначале более крупные)
1. Если текущая группа не совпадает, вызываем процедуру AddGroup(i, name), где i — номер группы (от номера текущей до максимума), name — её имя. Несколько вызовов необходимы, чтобы создать не только наш заголовок, но и всё более мелкие.
После отрисовки всех необходимых заголовков делаем еще одну строку и заполняем её данными.

Для упрощения работы рекомендую определить следующие функции-сокращения:

Function GetCol(Col As Integer) As String GetCol = Chr(Asc("A") + Col) End FunctionFunction GetCellS(Sheet As String, Col As Integer, Row As Integer) As Range Set GetCellS = Sheets(Sheet).Range(GetCol(Col) + CStr(Row)) End FunctionFunction GetCell(Col As Integer, Row As Integer) As Range Set GetCell = Range(GetCol(Col) + CStr(Row)) End Function

Далее определим глобальную переменную «текущая строчка»: Dim CurRow As Integer. В начале процедуры её следует сделать равной единице. Еще нам потребуется переменная-«текущая строка в data», массив с именами групп текущей предыдущей строк. Потом можно написать цикл «пока первая ячейка в строке непуста».

Глобальные переменные

Option Explicit ' про эту строчку я уже рассказывал Dim CurRow As Integer Const GroupsCount As Integer = 2 Const DataCount As Integer = 3

FormatPrice

Sub FormatPrice() Dim I As Integer ' строка в data CurRow = 1 Dim Groups(1 To GroupsCount) As String Dim PrGroups(1 To GroupsCount) As String

"data").Activate I = 2 Do While True If GetCell(0, I).Value = "" Then Exit Do ' ... I = I + 1 Loop End Sub

Теперь надо заполнить массив Groups:

На месте многоточия

Dim I2 As Integer For I2 = 1 To GroupsCount Groups(I2) = GetCell(I2, I) Next I2 ' ... For I2 = 1 To GroupsCount ' VB не умеет копировать массивы PrGroups(I2) = Groups(I2) Next I2 I = I + 1

И создать заголовки:

На месте многоточия в предыдущем куске

For I2 = 1 To GroupsCount If Groups(I2) <> PrGroups(I2) Then Dim I3 As Integer For I3 = I2 To GroupsCount AddHeader I3, Groups(I3) Next I3 Exit For End If Next I2

Не забудем про процедуру AddHeader:

Перед FormatPrice

Sub AddHeader(Ty As Integer, Name As String) GetCellS("result", 1, CurRow).Value = Name CurRow = CurRow + 1 End Sub

Теперь надо перенести всякую информацию в result

For I2 = 0 To DataCount - 1 GetCellS("result", I2, CurRow).Value = GetCell(I2, I) Next I2

Подогнать столбцы по ширине и выбрать лист result для показа результата

После цикла в конце FormatPrice

Sheets("Result").Activate Columns.AutoFit

Всё. Можно любоваться первой версией.

Некрасиво, но похоже. Давайте разбираться с форматированием. Сначала изменим процедуру AddHeader:

Sub AddHeader(Ty As Integer, Name As String) Sheets("result").Range("A" + CStr(CurRow) + ":C" + CStr(CurRow)).Merge ' Чтобы не заводить переменную и не писать каждый раз длинный вызов ' можно воспользоваться блоком With With GetCellS("result", 0, CurRow) .Value = Name .Font.Italic = True .Font.Name = "Cambria" Select Case Ty Case 1 ' Тип .Font.Bold = True .Font.Size = 16 Case 2 ' Производитель .Font.Size = 12 End Select .HorizontalAlignment = xlCenter End With CurRow = CurRow + 1 End Sub

Уже лучше:

Осталось только сделать границы. Тут уже нам требуется работать со всеми объединёнными ячейками, иначе бордюр будет только у одной:

Поэтому чуть-чуть меняем код с добавлением стиля границ:

Sub AddHeader(Ty As Integer, Name As String) With Sheets("result").Range("A" + CStr(CurRow) + ":C" + CStr(CurRow)) .Merge .Value = Name .Font.Italic = True .Font.Name = "Cambria" .HorizontalAlignment = xlCenterSelect Case Ty Case 1 ' Тип .Font.Bold = True .Font.Size = 16 .Borders(xlTop).Weight = xlThick Case 2 ' Производитель .Font.Size = 12 .Borders(xlTop).Weight = xlMedium End Select .Borders(xlBottom).Weight = xlMedium ' По убыванию: xlThick, xlMedium, xlThin, xlHairline End With CurRow = CurRow + 1 End Sub

Осталось лишь добится пропусков перед началом новой группы. Это легко:

В начале FormatPrice

Dim I As Integer ' строка в data CurRow = 0 ' чтобы не было пропуска в самом начале Dim Groups(1 To GroupsCount) As String

В цикле расстановки заголовков

If Groups(I2) <> PrGroups(I2) Then CurRow = CurRow + 1 Dim I3 As Integer

В точности то, что и хотели.

Надеюсь, что эта статья помогла вам немного освоится с программированием для Excel на VBA. Домашнее задание — добавить заголовки «ID, Название, Цена» в результат. Подсказка: ~~CurRow = 0~~ CurRow = 1.

Файл можно скачать тут (min.us) или тут (Dropbox). Не забудьте разрешить исполнение макросов. ~~Если кто-нибудь подскажет человеческих файлохостинг, залью туда.~~

Спасибо за внимание.

Буду рад конструктивной критике в комментариях.

UPD: Перезалил пример на Dropbox и min.us.

UPD2: На самом деле, при вызове процедуры с одним параметром скобки можно поставить. Либо использовать конструкцию Call Foo(«bar», 1, 2, 3) — тут скобки нужны постоянно.

Источник

What is Programming in Excel?

Programming refers to writing a set of instructions that tell Excel to perform one or more tasks. These instructions are written in the Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) as this is the language understandable to Excel. To write an instruction, one can either write a code in VBA or record a macro in Excel. A macro is recorded to automate repetitive tasks. When a macro is recorded, VBA generates a code in the background.

For example, to submit an Excel report, a table needs to undergo the same set of tasks each time. These tasks include applying a pre-defined border, color, alignment, and font. To program in Excel, a macro can be recorded for performing all these tasks.

The purpose of programming in Excel is to save the user from performing the same tasks again and again. Moreover, it helps accomplish multiple tasks at a great speed that would have taken a lot of time, had they been performed manually.

What is Programming in Excel?
- Stages of Programming in Excel VBA
  - Stage 1–Enable the Developer Tab in Excel
  - Stage 2–Record a Macro in Excel
  - Stage 3–View and Examine the VBA Code Generated by the Recorded Macro
  - Stage 4–Test the VBA Code of the Recorded Macro
  - Stage 5–Save the Recorded Macro (or the VBA Code)
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Recommended Articles

Stages of Programming in Excel VBA

Programming in Excel VBA is carried out in the following stages:

Enable the Developer tab in Excel
Record a macro in Excel
View and examine the VBA code generated by the recorded macro
Test the VBA code of the recorded macro
Save the recorded macro (or the VBA code)

Further in this article, every stage of programming ine xcel has been discussed one by one. The steps to be performed in each stage are also listed.

Stage 1–Enable the Developer Tab in Excel

Let us understand how to enable the Developer tabEnabling the developer tab in excel can help the user perform various functions for VBA, Macros and Add-ins like importing and exporting XML, designing forms, etc. This tab is disabled by default on excel; thus, the user needs to enable it first from the options menu.read more in Excel. This tab is enabled to record a macro and access VBA. When the Developer tab is enabled, it appears on the Excel ribbonRibbons in Excel 2016 are designed to help you easily locate the command you want to use. Ribbons are organized into logical groups called Tabs, each of which has its own set of functions.read more. However, by default, Excel does not display the Developer tab.

Note: To know an alternate method to record a macro and access VBA, refer to the “alternative to step 1” in stages 2 and 3.

The steps to enable the Developer tab in Excel are listed as follows:

Step 1: Go to the File tab displayed on the Excel ribbon.

Step 2: Select “options” shown in the following image.

Step 3: The “Excel options” window opens, as shown in the following image. Select “customize ribbon” displayed on the left side of this window.

Step 4: Under “choose commands from” (on the left side of the window), ensure that “popular commands” is selected. Under “customize the ribbon” (on the right side of the window), choose “main tabs” from the drop-down list.

Next, select the checkbox of “developer” and click “Ok.” This checkbox is shown in the following image.

Step 5: The Developer tab appears on the Excel ribbon, as shown in the following image.

Stage 2–Record a Macro in Excel

Let us learn how to record a macroRecording macros is a method whereby excel stores the tasks performed by the user. Every time a macro is run, these exact actions are performed automatically. Macros are created in either the View tab (under the “macros” drop-down) or the Developer tab of Excel.
read more in Excel. When a macro is recorded, all tasks performed by the user (within the workbook) are stored in the Macro Recorder until the “stop recording” option is clicked. Apart from Microsoft Excel, a macro can be recorded for all Office applications that support VBA.

The steps to record a macro in Excel are listed as follows:

Step 1: From the Developer tab, click “record macro” from the “code” group.

Alternative to step 1: One can also click “record macro” from the “macros” group of the View tab of Excel.

Step 2: The “record macro” window opens, as shown in the following image. In this window, one can name the macro before recording it. The default macro name given by Excel is “macro1.”

The rules governing a macro name are stated as follows:

It should not contain any space ( ), period (.) or exclamation point (!).
It cannot contain any special characters (like $, @, ^, #, *, &) except the underscore (_).
It should not begin with a numerical value. Rather, it must start with a letter.
It cannot exceed 255 characters in length.

Note: It is recommended to use short and meaningful names for macros. Further, one must assign a unique name to each macro. In VBA, two macros within the same code module cannot have the same names.

Step 3: In the “macro name” box, we have entered the name “recording_macro.”

Notice that an underscore has been used as a separator between the two strings (recording and macro) of the name. No spaces, periods or special characters have been used in this name.

Step 4: Click “Ok” to start recording the macro. Once “Ok” is clicked in the preceding window, the “record macro” button (in the Developer tab or the View tab) changes to the “stop recording” button.

Next, carry out the tasks to be recorded in the macro “recording_macro.”

Note: Since the Macro Recorder records every action performed by the user, ensure that the actions are executed in the right sequence. If the recorded sequence is correct, Excel will perform the tasks efficiently each time the macro is run.

However, if a sequencing error occurs, one must either re-record the actions or edit the VBA codeVBA code refers to a set of instructions written by the user in the Visual Basic Applications programming language on a Visual Basic Editor (VBE) to perform a specific task.read more manually. If one is recording the macro for the first time, it is recommended to keep a copy of the workbook to prevent any undesired changes to the stored data.

In the following steps (step 4a to step 4c), the tasks to be recorded have been performed.

Step 4a: Select cell A1 of the worksheet. This is the first task that is recorded. The selection is shown in the following image.

Step 4b: Type “welcome to VBA” in cell A1. This is the second task that is recorded. Exclude the beginning and ending double quotation marks while typing.

Step 4c: Press the “Enter” key. As a result, the selection shifts from cell A1 to cell A2. This becomes the third task that is recorded.

The selection is shown in the following image.

Step 5: Click “stop recording” in the “code” group of the Developer tab. By clicking this option, Excel is told to refrain from recording any further tasks.

The “stop recording” option is shown in the following image.

Stage 3–View and Examine the VBA Code Generated by the Recorded Macro

Let us observe and study the VBA code generated by the macro recorded in stage 2. Remember that one can either directly write a code in the Visual Basic Editor (VBE or VB Editor) or let a macro do the same.

The VBE is a tool or program where VBA codes are written, edited, and maintained. When a macro is recorded, a code is automatically written in a new module of VBE. Note that VBA is the programming language of Excel.

The steps to view and study the code generated by the recorded macro are listed as follows:

Step 1: Click “visual basic” from the “code” group of the Developer tab. This option is shown in the following image.

Alternative to step 1: As a substitute for the preceding step, press the keys “Alt+F11” together. This is the shortcutAn Excel shortcut is a technique of performing a manual task in a quicker way.read more to open the VBE window.

Note: “Alt+F11” is a toggle key which when pressed repeatedly, helps to switch between VBE and Excel.

Step 2: The Visual Basic Editor window opens, as shown in the following image.

To the left of the VBE window, the worksheet, workbook, and module are shown. This window on the left (named “Project-VBAProject”) is also known as the Project window or the Project Explorer of VBE.

Step 3: Double-click “modules” shown in the following image.

Note: “Modules” are folders shown in the Project window after recording a macro. They are not shown prior to recording a macro. “Modules” are also shown when a module is inserted manually from the Insert tab of the VBE.

Step 4: Double-click “module1” under modules. A code appears on the right side of the VBE window. This window on the right [named “Book1-Module1 (Code)”] is known as the module code window.

The code is displayed in the following image.

Note: The code generated by recording a macro can be checked in the “modules” folder (in the module code window). In a module code window, one can also write a code manually or copy-paste it from another source.

In the following steps (step 4a to step 4d), the code generated by the recorded macro has been studied.

Step 4a: The first word of the code is “Sub.” “Sub” stands for subroutine or procedure. At the start of the code, the word “Sub,” the macro name (recording_macro), and a pair of empty parentheses are displayed. This is followed by the statements to be executed by the code. These statements are:

ActiveCell.FormulaR1C1 = “Welcome to VBA”

Range (“A2”). Select

The code ends with “End Sub.”

The start or head [Sub Recording_Macro ()] and the end or tail [End Sub] of the code are shown in the following image.

Note 1: The words “macro” and “code” are often used interchangeably by several Excel users. However, some users also distinguish between these two words.

A VBA code is a command created either by writing a code directly in VBE or by recording a macro in Excel. In contrast, a macro consists of instructions that automate tasks in Excel. According to one’s choice, one can decide whether or not to differentiate between the two words.

Note 2: The “Sub” can be preceded by the words “Private,” “Public,” “Friend,” or “Static.” All these words set the scope of the subroutine. The default subroutine used in VBA is “Public Sub.” So, when “Sub” is written in a code, it implies “Public Sub.”

A “Public Sub” can be initiated by subroutines of different modules. However, a “Private Sub” cannot be initiated by subroutines of other modules.

Step 4b: The first activity we performed (in step 4a of stage 2) was to select cell A1. Accordingly, the following statement of the code tells Excel that the active cell is R1C1.

ActiveCell.FormulaR1C1

When a macro is recorded, VBA uses the R1C1 style for referring to cells. In this style, the letter R is followed by the row number and the letter C is followed by the column number. So, cell R1C1 implies that the row number is 1 and the column number is also 1. In other words, cell R1C1 is the same as cell A1 of Excel.

Step 4c: The second activity we performed (in step 4b of stage 2) was to type “welcome to VBA” in cell A1. So, the following statement of the code tells Excel that the value in cell R1C1 is “welcome to VBA.”

ActiveCell.FormulaR1C1 = “Welcome to VBA”

Step 4d: The third activity we performed (in step 4c of stage 2) was to press the “Enter” key. By pressing this key, the selection had shifted from cell A1 to cell A2. Therefore, the following statement tells Excel to select cell A2.

Range (“A2”). Select

This is the way VBA generates a code for all the activities performed under stage 2 of programming in Excel. Examining the code line-by-line makes it easier to interpret it.

Stage 4–Test the VBA Code of the Recorded Macro

Let us test the code when it is run multiple times. Note that a macro (or code) can be run as many times as one wants. Each time it runs, it performs the recorded tasks in Excel.

The steps to test the code that we examined in stage 3 are listed as follows:

Step 1: Delete the string “welcome to VBA” from cell A1 of Excel. Let A1 remain as a blank, selected cell. The following image shows the empty cell A1.

Note: To go back from VBE to Excel, press the toggle key “Alt+F11.”

Step 2: Go to VBE again by pressing the key “Alt+F11.” Click anywhere within the code. Next, click the “Run Sub/UserForm (F5)” button. This button is shown within a blue box in the following image.

Note: Alternatively, one can press the key F5 to run the VBA code.

Step 3: The output is shown in the following image. The preceding code enters the string “welcome to VBA” in cell A1. Thereafter, the selection shifts to cell A2. The string “welcome to VBA” has been entered in cell A1 because this cell was selected (in step 1) before running the code.

Each time the code is run, the currently selected cell (or the active cell) is filled with the string “welcome to VBA.” Then, the selection shifts to cell A2. So, if cell M10 is the active cell, running the code fills this cell with the stated string and selects cell A2 at the end.

However, had cell A2 been selected, running the code would have filled this cell with the string “welcome to VBA.” Moreover, in the end, cell A2 would have remained the selected cell.

Stage 5–Save the Recorded Macro (or the VBA Code)

Let us learn how to save a workbook containing a recorded macro. If a macro is saved, its VBA code is also saved.

The steps to save a workbook containing a macro (or a VBA code) are listed as follows:

Click “save as” from the File tab of Excel. The “save as” dialog box opens, as shown in the following image.
Assign a name to the Excel workbook in the “file name” box. We have entered the name “macro class.”
Save the workbook with the “.xlsm” extension. So, in the “save as type” box, choose “Excel macro-enabled workbook.”
Click “save” to save the workbook.

A workbook containing a macro should always be saved with the “.xlsm” extension. This extension ensures that the macro is saved and can be reused the next time the workbook is opened.

Note 1: The “save as” command is used when a workbook is saved for the first time. It is also used when a new copy of the workbook is to be created and, at the same time, the original copy is to be retained as well.

Note 2: If the workbook containing a macro is saved as a regular workbook (with the “.xlsx” extension), the macro will not be saved. Further, one may lose the code of the recorded macro.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is programming and how is it carried out in Excel?

Programming refers to instructing Excel to perform one or more tasks. To instruct Excel, either a code can be written in the Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) or a macro can be recorded in Excel. Each time a macro is recorded, a code is generated by VBA in the background.

The steps to carry out programming in Excel are listed as follows:

a. Enable the Developer tab in Excel.
b. Record a macro in Excel. For recording, perform each activity in the sequence in which it should be recorded.
c. Save the code generated by the recorded macro and run it whenever required.

One can also carry out programming by writing a code manually and then saving and running it.

Note: To learn the details of programming in Excel, refer to the description of the different stages given in this article.

2. How to write a code for programming in Excel?

For programming in Excel, a code is written in Visual Basic Editor (VBE), which is a tool of VBA. The steps to write a code in VBE are listed as follows:

a. Open a blank Excel workbook.
b. Press the keys “Alt+F11” to open VBE.
c. Select any worksheet from “Microsoft Excel Objects” listed in the “Project-VBA Project window.”
d. Click the Insert tab and choose “module.” A folder named “modules” and an object named “module1” are created in the “Project-VBA Project window.” At the same time, a window opens on the right, which is titled “Book1-Module1 (Code).”
e. Enter the code in the “Book1-Module1 (Code)” window that has opened in the preceding step.
f. Click anywhere within the code once it has been written entirely.
g. Run the code by pressing F5 or clicking the “Run Sub/UserForm (F5)” button.

If the code has been entered correctly in step “e,” Excel will perform the tasks it has been instructed to. However, if there is an error in the code, an error message will appear.

Note: For saving a code, refer to stage 5 of programming in Excel given in this article.

3. How to learn programming in Excel?

To learn programming, one can learn how to record a macro in Excel. It is easier to learn macro recording than to create a code manually in VBE. Moreover, macro recording can be done even if one does not know VBA coding.

However, each time a macro is recorded, examine the generated code carefully. As one becomes proficient in macro recording, the codes too will become understandable. In this way, learning programming in Excel will no longer be a complicated task.

Introduction to Programming in Excel

Have you ever been tired of doing a task in Excel which you feel can be automated and save your time? Most of the time, you must have encountered such tasks. However, in order to automate any task, you first need to have programming skills for that particular language. In Excel, you can do programming with the help of Visual Basic for Application (VBA) which is Excel’s own programming language that can help you to automate the tasks. In this article, we will see how we can do programming in Excel VBA. VBA can be used to write a program that can automate the task for you. The piece of lines we write under VBA is called Macro, which is written in such a way that they instruct the Excel system about what to be done.

How to Program in Excel?

Let’s understand how to Program in excel with few illustrations.

Enabling Developer Tab

The first thing that comes is enabling the developer tab that helps you to record and store a macro (VBA Code). Let us see how we can get that enabled.

Navigate to the File menu in your excel file and click on it.

Within the File menu, click on Options, and it will load a new window with all excel options available.

In the new window that popped up named Excel Options, click on the Customize Ribbon tab. You can see all the customization options you can use for Excel Ribbon, which appears at the top of your Excel file.

Enable Developer option under Main Tabs dropdown within Customize the Ribbon: section. You can check (tick-mark) the Developer tab to enable it. Click the OK button placed at the bottom right of the Excel Options tab, and that’s it.

You have successfully enabled the Developer option within your excel. If you check the Excel Ribbon in your file now, you’ll be able to see a new tab added there with the name Developer on it.

This is the first step you need to follow before you start writing macros in Excel. Because the Developer tab is needed to record and run the macro, this option tab is not by default enabled, which is why we tried enabling it here first.

Recording a Macro

Open the Excel file. Navigate towards the Developer tab you just enabled and then click on the Record Macro button, categorized and can be seen under the Code section.

As soon as you click on the Record Macro button, you’ll see a window popping up; in that window, you must have to assign a name to the macro; you can also assign a shortcut key for this macro to run. Can you add the description, if any, for this macro you are creating? Once you are done with all this, you can click on the OK button placed at the right bottom of the window. See the screenshot below for your reference.

As soon as you click OK, the system starts recording the macro and all the tasks you perform will be recorded and converted to Excel Program in the backend.

Try typing the sentence “This is my first VBA code, and I am very happy!” in cell A1 within the Excel sheet and press Enter key. These steps will be recorded in the backend of the macro.

Under the Code section, you might have observed that the Record Macro button has changed to Stop Recording. This is like Play and Stop. Record Macro Works as Play button and Stop Recording work as Stop button. Click on the Stop Recording button to stop the recording.

The magic behind all this is, Excel has recorded my steps here and converted those into pieces of code so that this task can be automated. It means, every single step, selecting cell A1, inputting the text as “This is my first VBA code, and I am happy!”, clicking Enter to go to the next cell. All these steps are converted into a VBA code. Let’s check the code now.

In order to go to Visual Basic Editor, you can click on the Visual Basic option under the Code category in the Developer tab, or you can use Alt + F11 as a shortcut for the same.

Navigate towards the Modules section under VBAProject and click on the plus button under it to see the list of active modules in VBA.

Inside the Modules folder, you can see Module1 as soon as you click on the plus sign. You can double click on Module1; it is where your code for the task we performed in previous steps (Step 3 and 4) are recorded. Save this code, and you can run it every time to get the same output. See the screenshot below:

Conclusion

We can record a macro in Excel to automate day to day small tasks, which are simpler for the system to manipulate programmatically.
The cool thing about it is you don’t need to dig your head deep for the logic behind each step you perform. Excel VBA does it for you.
For some complex tasks, such as the one which involves looping and conditional statements, you need to write code manually under VBA.

Things to Remember About Programming in Excel

The Developers tab is not by default enabled and visible to you in Excel Ribbon. You need to enable it through Excel Options.
Recording a macro works on simple tasks that are repeating, and you need those to be automated. However, for complex tasks which involve looping or Conditional Inputs and Outputs are still need to be coded manually under VBA.
You need to save the file as an Excel-Macro Enable file format in order to be able to read and run the code again on your excel.