Learn about Microsoft and Excel Macros, Forumlas, and VBA Programming

What is a Macro?

What is an Add-In?

Add-Ins, such as Macros for Microsoft Excel that easily allow the user to input Excel formulas more efficiently, are programs that add optional commands and features to Microsoft Office Programs (e.g. Excel). These Add-Ins are designed to save time, make your job easier, and enable you to perform actions that might otherwise be impossible.

Requirements

All of our macros work with the following versions of Microsoft Office:

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Our Excel macros will not work with Excel 97 or earlier versions or with any version of Microsoft Office for Macintosh.

Three (3) types of Add-Ins

Excel has three types of Add-In programs:

Microsoft Office Add-Ins

Custom Component Object Model (COM) Add-Ins

Automation Add-Ins

NOTE: COM Add-In is supplemental program that extends the capabilities of a Microsoft Office program by adding custom commands and specialized features. COM Add-Ins can run in one or more Office programs. COM Add-Ins use the file name extension .dll or .exe.

Add-Ins included with Excel

Following is a list of the Add-In programs that Excel installs by default…

•     Analysis ToolPak Adds financial, statistical, and engineering analysis  tools        and functions.

•     Analysis ToolPak VBA Allows developers to publish financial, statistical, and       engineering analysis tools and functions using Analysis ToolPak syntax, all while using the flexibility of VBA and VB programming.

•     Conditional Sum Wizard Creates a formula that sums data in a range if       the   data matches criteria you specify.

•     Euro Currency Tools Formats values as euros, and provides the       EUROCONVERT worksheet function to convert currencies.

•     Internet Assistant VBA Allows developers to publish Excel data to   the       Web by using Internet Assistant syntax.

•     Lookup Wizard Creates a formula to look up data in a range by   using        another known value in the range.

•     Solver Add-In Calculates solutions to what-if scenarios (scenario: A        named set of input values that you can substitute in a worksheet        model.) based on adjustable cells and constraint cells.

Where are Add-Ins installed on my computer?

Add-Ins, such as a Microsoft Excel macro, are typically installed on certain folders, but can actually reside anywhere on your computer.

The Library folder or one of its subfolders in the Microsoft Office/Office folder.

The  Documents   and  Settings/<username>/Application Data/Microsoft/AddIns folder.

The administrator for your company's network can designate other locations for Add-In programs. See your administrator for     more information.

To find all of the Add-Ins on your computer, do the following…  Open your Search Tool by going to Start | Search| Search for   Files and Folders. In Search for Files or Folders Named: enter     *.xla. In Look in: select all drives. Make sure that Search  Subfolders checkbox under Advanced Options is checked.

Installing Add-Ins

Before you can use an Add-In like an excel template, you must first install it on your computer. This is the process of downloading the file and either saving it to a specified directory on your computer, or running the installation program that will do this for you. After installing the Add-In, you must Load it into your MS Office Program (e.g. Excel) for it to work.

Loading Microsoft Office Add-Ins

Follow these steps to Load an Add-In into your MS Office Program (e.g. Excel)…

Open the workbook where you would like the Microsoft Excel macro to function. Note: The Add-Ins command will not appear on the Tools menu if a workbook is not open.

Choose Add-Ins from the Tools menu.

If the Add-In you want to use is not listed in the Add-Ins available box, click Browse, and then locate the Add-In. If the Add-In is not     currently installed on your computer, click Yes to install it.

In the Add-Ins dialog box, place a checkmark next to the name of the macro you want to load.

Click OK .

Unloading Microsoft Office Add-Ins

To conserve memory and improve performance, unload Add-Ins you don't use often. Unloading an Add-In removes its features and commands from your Microsoft Office Program (e.g. Excel), but the Add-In program remains on your computer so you can easily reload it. When you unload an Add-In program, it remains in memory until you restart your Office Program.

Choose Add-Ins from the Tools menu. Note: The Add-Ins command will not appear on the Tools menu if a workbook is not open.

In the Add-Ins dialog box, place a checkmark next to the name of the macro you want to unload.

Click OK.

The Add-In will not be removed from the menu until you restart your Microsoft Office Program (e.g. Excel).

Note: Unloading or removing an Add-In from the menu does not remove it from your computer. To remove the Add-In from your computer, you must either uninstall it by following the instructions of the setup program that installed it, or manually delete it.

Loading a COM Add-In

COM Add-Ins are supplemental programs that provide additional functionality in a variety of programming languages, including Visual Basic, Visual C++, and Visual J++.

Developers and solution providers usually design custom Component Object Model (COM) Add-Ins and automation Add-Ins. Note: A COM Add-In is a supplemental program that extends the capabilities of a Microsoft Office program by adding custom commands and specialized features. COM Add-Ins can run in one or more Office programs. COM Add-Ins use the file name extension .dll or .exe.

The developer of a COM Add-In usually provides installation and removal programs for the Add-In. Contact the person who provided the Add-In to you for instructions on how to install and use it.

On the View menu, point to Toolbars, and then click Customize.

Click the Commands tab.

In the Categories box, click Tools.

In the Commands box, select COM Add-Ins and drag it to a toolbar.

On the toolbar, click COM Add-Ins to see a list of available Add-Ins.

Unloading a COM Add-In

On the toolbar, click Com Add-Ins. If Com Add-Ins is not visible on the toolbar, refer to Loading a COM Add-In.

To unload an Add-In from memory but keep its name in the list, clear the check box next to its name in the COM Add-In dialog box.

Note: Unloading or removing a COM Add-In from memory does not remove it from your computer. To remove the Add-In from your computer, you must either uninstall it by following the instructions of the setup program that installed it, or manually delete it.

Loading an Automation Add-In

Automation Add-Ins allow COM automation functions to be called from a worksheet.

The developer of an automation Add-In usually provides installation and removal programs for the Add-In. Contact the person who provided the Add-In to you for instructions on how to install and use it. Automation Add-Ins that have been registered on the system can be accessed through the Tools menu.

Note: If you are not a developer, you should not need to use this procedure. Contact the administrator who provided the Add-In if you want installation and removal instructions.

On the Tools menu, click Add-Ins.

Note: Not all automation servers in the list can be installed as automation Add-Ins.

Unloading an Automation Add-In

Automation Add-Ins must be removed from the registry. See your system administrator for details.

Safety Tips

In most cases, it is always safe to assume that the results of, for example, a microsoft word macro, are irreversible. If you think that way, you will avoid a lot of problems. Always save your file before running any commands and verify the results are desired before saving your file. It's always a good idea to create a backup copy of your file under a different name or extension (e.g. *.bak) before running unfamiliar macros.

Sometimes the results of running a macro can be “undone” with Ctrl+Z (Edit | Undo), but it's wise to avoid this practice.

Removing Microsoft Office Add-Ins

Unloading or removing an Add-In from the menu does not remove it from your computer. To remove the Add-In from your computer, you must either uninstall it by following the instructions of the setup program that installed it, or manually delete it.

Troubleshoot Add-Ins

If Microsoft Excel can't find the Add-In you want to use; check the Add-In file on   your computer. The file may have been renamed, moved, or deleted.

Check with your Office or Excel administrator. Your administrator may  have decided not to make the Add-In available for installation. In this   case, you may need to reinstall Office or Excel. Check with your   administrator for more  information.

If the Add-In is stored on a network, check the network drive. The  network drive may be unavailable. To ensure that you can use the Add-In when your network is unavailable or your computer is offline,  keep a copy of the Add-In on your computer.

If you are working on a different computer, check your original computer. For the Add-In to be available on other computers that you use, you   must store it    on your original computer in the Documents and   Settings/<user name>/Application Data/Microsoft/AddIns folder. Check     with the administrator  for your company's computer systems for more information about working on  other computers.

Guarantee

All of our macros are thoroughly tested, using a wide variety of hardware. It was also tested with several non-English language versions of Excel. It was impossible, of course, to test this product under all possible scenarios, so it is possible that there will be situations in which the product does not perform as it should. If you discover a problem with any of our macros, email us at info@timenow.com and we will work diligently to resolve the problem.