Macro Automate everything in Excel

When you find yourself repeatedly performing the same actions or tasks in your spreadsheets, it might be time for you to create a macro. A macro is a recording of each command and action you perform to complete a task. Then, whenever you need to carry out that task in your spreadsheets, you just run the macro instead. Macros can be activate by a couple of keystrokes or by a worksheet button so they are easy to execute, and, provided they were recorded correctly, they will always carry out the same steps in the same order with no chance for operator error.

Although complex macros can be created in Excel using the Macro editor, it also possible to create relatively simple ones is using the Excel macro recorder. When you record macros from within Excel, the code it generates often produces screen flicker, which not only slows down your macro, but also makes the macro's activity look very disorganized. Fortunately, you can eliminate screen flicker while at the same time speeding up your code. One drawback with recorded macros in Excel is that the code produced is often very inefficient. This can mean macros that should take a matter of seconds to complete often take a lot longer and look very unsightly. Also, when you write macros using the macro recorder, all keystrokes are recorded, whether they are meant to be or not.

This means that if you make an error and then correct it, the keystrokes required to complete those actions also will be recorded in your macro code. Many tasks you perform in Excel, such as entering sales data for a particular day or adding a formula to a worksheet (worksheet: The primary document that you use in Excel to store and work with data. Also called a spreadsheet. A worksheet consists of cells that are organized into columns and rows; a worksheet is always stored in a workbook.), are done just once. Other tasks, like changing the format of a range of cells, are repeated often but can be done quickly by using tools in Excel.

However, you often have one or two tasks that you perform frequently and that require a lot of steps to accomplish. A Macro is a recorded set of instructions. When you start recording a macro it starts converting all the activities you perform on Microsoft Excel in Visual Basic and saves it in a module.

After recording a macro you can run it as many times you want and it will do same actions as you have performed earlier. Macros are useful to avoid doing same work again and again like suppose you are getting a report in Microsoft Excel from any source and you do some formatting on it and send it to concern person. Instead of doing same formatting every day you can record a macro and when you will get the source report just run the recorded macro and the work is over. Recording a macro is the simplest way of automation.

A macro can be run on request or on an event like workbook open, workbook close, and worksheet change. It is you who will decide when you want to run a macro. Refer to the resources below to learn how you can record a macro and successfully run it when you need.

Excel Macro Tutorial