Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Automatically Hiding the Personal Workbook.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 29, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Ken is having a problem with his Personal.xls workbook. When he needs to work on it, he unhides it. If he forgets to rehide it when he is done, then the next time he starts Excel the Personal.xls workbook is immediately visible. Since it looks like a new, blank worksheet, he often starts typing in it and this messes up her Personal.xls workbook. He wonders if there is a way to automatically force Personal.xls to be hidden if he forgets to hide it manually.
There are a couple of things you need to keep in mind. First, if you are only making changes to macros in Personal.xls, you don't need to unhide the workbook to work on those macros. Instead, display the VBA editor and use the object browser to make sure you are working on the macros in the Personal.xls workbook. When you are done editing the macros, you can save them without ever needing to make the workbook visible.
If this still doesn't work for you—perhaps you have some other reason to make Personal.xls visible—then you could make some sort of editing change to the first worksheet in the workbook. For instance, place the text "THIS IS PERSONAL" into cell A1 of the workbook. Do something to make it stand out (bold, colors, flashing, etc.), and you will never again miss that you are working in the Personal.xls workbook when you first start Excel.
If you want a macro approach to make sure that the workbook is hidden, then you could add the following code to the ThisWorkbook object for Personal.xls:
Private Sub Workbook_BeforeClose(Cancel As Boolean) Windows("PERSONAL.XLS").Visible = False ThisWorkbook.Save End Sub
The macro is executed just before the workbook is closed (when happens when Excel is exited). It hides the workbook and then saves it. That way, the next time you start Excel, Personal.xls will be automatically hidden.
Note:
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3371) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Automatically Hiding the Personal Workbook.
Program Successfully in Excel! John Walkenbach's name is synonymous with excellence in deciphering complex technical topics. With this comprehensive guide, "Mr. Spreadsheet" shows how to maximize your Excel experience using professional spreadsheet application development tips from his own personal bookshelf. Check out Excel 2013 Power Programming with VBA today!
This tip presents two techniques you can use to print multiple workbooks all at the same time. Both techniques involve ...
Discover MoreYou already know that you can define names that apply to different ranges of cells and other elements such as formulas. ...
Discover MoreWhat are you to do is you share a workbook with others, and then suddenly the workbook won't open properly? Dealing with ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2024 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments