I have a PowerPoint add-in with auto events which run when the presentation is saved or closed (e.g. updating footer, slide numbers). I would like these functions to be disabled through checkboxes on the ribbon. I've created the checkboxes in XML, but can't work out how to write the code to check their status and then run/not run my subs. I also want their status to be remembered when powerpoint is closed so next time it is opened, they are loaded correctly.
Any help would be appreciated, as I am getting very confused.
You ask several questions. You have to try to isolate the different parts into separate questions. That said, here's my suggestion:
When a checkbox is checked, set a global variable in the addin in a vba callback function.
The variable can be saved to the registry or a settings file right away or when PowerPoint closes.
When the auto events trigger, check the variable set in step 1.
Related
I can make it popup on opening the document, but what if I close the userform and want to it to show up again in the same document? I know in excel you can add a button onto a worksheet directly and make it show the userform on click, but this button is unavailable for microsoft Word. Is there a solution besides initiating the script by hand?
To display a VBA userform, you can trigger it from a macrobutton field, from a form field, from a shape, from a QAT button or from an ActiveX button. There are probably a couple of other methods I'm not remembering at the moment. Each is a little different in the exact steps, but all will run the command:
UserFormName.Show
I have a PowerPoint presentation which consists of a single slide and some VBA code. The code displays a dialog box (not inside the presentation) which configures the slide.
I need the code to be started when the presentation is started.
I found various suggestions and ended up going with
this one however I am getting inconsistent results!
If I do the following, in sequence, it works:
Open presentation in PowerPoint
Select Developer tab
Select Visual Basic (to open VBA editor)
Close VBA editor
Select Slide Show tab
Select From Beginning
However, if I skip steps 2-4, it does not! I.E.:
1. Open presentation in PowerPoint
2. Select Slide Show tab
3. Select From Beginning
It is almost as though Visual Basic support isn't even loading until the editor is opened.
I also tried adding a slide before my main one with an auto-transition immediately and again, no-go.
This is driving me insane as I need to get this deployed to the rest of my department.
Anyone have any ideas?
It's kind of a known problem.
OnSlideShowPageChange sometimes doesn't fire. To get around it, add any of the Active-X controls from the Developer tab to the first slide. Scoot it off the slide if you don't want it visible.
Somehow the control forces VBA to initialize, so events fire.
After I did this with your presentation, it fired off right away.
I am developing an excel sheet which has lots of ActiveX elements in it.
I am not using UserForm and all the data is loaded when an activeX button is pressed.
At this point a hidden excel app is created where various actions are performed.
This new app is then combined with other data etc etc.. based on what the user is doing on the front-end with the provided ActiveX controls.
My problem comes when the "project is reset", where all the objects are released from memory and everything.
If this was a user form I would have implemented "on terminate" event where I would close hidden all workbooks that I have used, basically clean after myself.
However this is not a userform and there is no way to detect when the "project is reset"(as far as I know) so the hidden excel app that I've created remain open but nothing points to it.
If I go to the task manager i see various "EXCEL.EXE" and the number of those is basically the number of times I have run the tool.
So, is there any way for me to detect when VBA is about to "stop the project" in the same was as there is "terminate" for user forms so I can delete unsused stuff and reset elements in the spreadsheet?
Thank you!
I have found that there is no corresponding event to catch this.
Best way to handle this is to create a hidden userform object which will "hold" all global variables and objects that I define. I can then implement a UserForm_Deactivate event to catch when the form is exiting and clean up after myself.
Can VBA code be written to perform actions on any Excel file?
When I create a project in Visual Studio, it asks for an Excel file to be linked to it. All the code that I write is in ThisWorkbook.vb and hence acts only on the Excel file linked to the project.
Ideally, I want a script that:
When the user double-clicks, he/she should be allowed to select an Excel file of choice for the actions to be performed on that file.
If the above is not possible, I'd at least like to invoke the VBA script from within an Excel file.
Basically, the VBA code should be independent of any Excel file.
I looked at VBScript, but the syntax for it seems to differ slightly.
You've mentioned Visual Studio, VBA, and VBScript. The solution I'm outlining works directly with VBA rather than Visual Studio or VBScript. (However, you might adapt Visual Studio (C# or VB) along the lines of what I'm outlining below.) Hope it's helpful, so here goes:
Here's what I do, and, it ultimately results in an .xlam Excel AddIn as #chris above has commented.
Overview
I start with ordinary .xslx workbook, to which I add a VBA project, making it an .xlsm. Then create some VBA Subs (macros). Then create some Excel QAT (Quick Access Toolbar) buttons for the workbook, which are bound to (i.e. they invoke) the VBA subs/macros. Then convert the workbook (with VBA in it) to an .xlam, which is an Excel AddIn. When you're all done, the buttons are accessible from any workbook (and the VBA code has access to any user workbooks as well as those originally in your .xlsm). Further, the workbook associated with the .xlam is invisible. So it just looks like you've added some buttons to the QAT that appear on all users .xlsx windows. The .xlam is pretty easy for users to install (though I provide a buttons to uninstall/reinstall/check version). You can upgrade an .xlam independently of users' workbooks; users' workbooks can thus be data only (.xlsx, no VBA).
Details
Write some Excel Subs you want to use later
You need to be aware that the buttons can only invoke macros (VBA Subs) without parameters, so the macros will have to check things like ActiveSheet and ActiveWorkbook and Selection to figure on what sheet the button was pressed, hence what user data to really operate on. (If you need to refer to your workbook with the VBA code in it, use “ThisWorkbook”). You should be aware that there can be naming conflicts, so try to name the parameterless subs with rather long names, such as MySomewhatUniqueProjectName_button1, etc…
Add Buttons to your .xlsm
Using Excel 2010 (I think this works with 2007 or later), I put workbook-specific buttons on the QAT part of the ribbon, which connect to macros (VBA subs) in the VBA code.
To do this, you from the Quick Access Toolbar customization drop down (the tiny down arrow at the very top row of the Excel window, the last icon from left to right) choose "More Commands…". When the “Customize Quick Access Toolbar” dialog box comes up, from the (2nd) "Customize Quick Access Toolbar:" heading (top to the right), choose "For XYZ.xlsm" from the dropdown instead of the "For all documents (default)". And from under "Choose Commands From:", use "Macros" (instead of “Popular Commands”) from the dropdown. Once you have those two things selected, you can move VBA subs from the left box to the right box using “Add >>”. Each so moved will become buttons visible in your QAT. As you’re doing this you can also edit the icon and text for the buttons, add a separator as needed (I always end with a separator in case other .xlam’s use the QAT). (Now is a good time to save this .xlsm.)
Convert the .xlsm into a .xlam
Then I convert the .xlsm to an Excel add-in, by merely saving it as an .xlam file. This will end up (1) hiding the workbook associated with the code you have (though it is still accessible to itself.). Further, now, (2) the (invisible, as now it's an .xlam) workbook will load whenever Excel is loaded. (To keep this fast for when users use Excel but don’t run my VBA code, I don't run any code when the .xlam is loaded, I only run code when a button is pushed.)
You can manage the AddIn using Excel’s AddIn manager. To update the AddIn, you have to use some trickery. While you can copy over it when Excel is not running, on the other hand, you cannot directly uninstall the AddIn, you can only disable it from Excel. But once disabled, you can delete the .xlam, and relaunch Excel, go to the AddIn manager to try to work with the (now gone) AddIn and you’ll get Excel saying it can’t find it, so do you want to delete it. Say yes, and it will be uninstalled.
FYI, Notes
I keep the .xlsm to edit later, but you can actually debug and edit the .xlam and later convert it back to an .xlsm with a minor bit of trickery: find its "ThisWorkbook" entry in VBA, and then the "IsAddIn" property, set to false, its workbook will suddenly appear and you can save as .xlsm, or edit its workbook and set the property back to true to resave as .xlam directly.)
Answer 1
You can do that in VB.Net too. Just make a regular project. (comment by #SLaks)
This worked for me very well and was exactly what I was looking for.
Answer 2
The very descriptive answer posted by #ErikEidt
I haven't tried this, but it seems like a good and alternative way of getting macros to work.
First of all, thank you for your time and assistance in reviewing this!...
I'm trying to upgrade an Excel VBA workbook to a VSTO Excel Add-in in VB.NET using VS 2010. In the original (i.e.- VBA) version I have a modeless UserForm (called frmMain) that floats on top and is visible at all times while the user is still within the Excel application, but is not visible if the user moves to another window outside of Excel.
For example, within Excel the user can click on any worksheet tab, select any cell, etc. and the UserForm is still visible. This is exactly how I'd like it.
The problem is, that in the new VSTO add-in, I can not get the Windows form to mimic this same behavior.
I use frmMain.Show() to show the form as a modeless form, but the moment the user clicks an Excel worksheet (i.e.- activates a worksheet) the form becomes hidden behind the worksheet.
I can manually Alt-Tab to bring the form back into view, but I need it to always remain in view - floating on top of the Excel worksheets so long as the user hasn't left the Excel application.
I tried various things, including setting the form to TopMost, however, that causes the form to be TopMost everywhere - including outside of Excel. Worse than that, if the user does anything that would normally result in Excel's launching a dialog box (e.g.- closing an open workbook, raising the alert "Do you want to save the changes...") the alert dialog box itself is hidden and inaccessible behind the frmMain form (since the frmMain is TopMost).
How can I get my form to behave in the desired way (i.e.- the same way it did in VBA)?
Thanks!!!
Rob
You should take a look at Custom Task Panes which can be docked or floated within the Excel application. You could also look into the COM interfaces for a lower level connection (see related SO Post) - although Task Panes are really what this type of behavior was intended for.
This method might work (worked for me):
Create a worksheet_selectionChange event handler inside your form class
Put these lines in this event handler:
Dim FormHandle As IntPtr = Me.Handle
Me.Visible = False
Me.Show(NativeWindow.FromHandle(FormHandle))