Best Excel VBA book (All)

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Is John Walkenbach’s Power Programming book still considered the best Excel VBA book?
For learning?
For reference?

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Without having read John’s book, I’d say the book of this foursome is good as well:

Excel 2000/2002 VBA Programmers Reference. Stephen Bullen, John Green, Rob Bovey, Robert Rosenberg. Wrox Press.

Excellent overview of the object model, good chapter on international issues, API, ADO, VBE programming.

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I have the Wrox book, for Excel 2000 but have not yet read it.

In general, I do not like Wrox books, but that’s not for discussion here.

I’m close to finishing Steve Roman’s Writing Word Macros (1999 edition). I find it very disappointing.
There was a new edition recently, but I have not seen that.

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I just finished reading the 1999 edition of Sreve Roman’s Writing Excel Macros.
I would definitely recommend NOT purchasing the book as a means to learning Excel VBA.
It might be useful as a reference, but I’ll reserve judgement until I read other books.

Perhaps, the recently released updae to the book for Excel 2002 is better, I’ve not seen it.

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I found that although both Steven Roman’s Word and Excel books have almost identical material as the help files, they are much easier to reference and read, but I haven’t read either book cover-to-cover. You’re a braver man than me, Howard! On the other hand, Steven Roman’s Access Database is very readable and almost made me understand databases.

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Although Steve Roman’s Writing Word Macros book is organized along the same lines as his Writing Excel Macros book, the Word book does cover more specific tutorial/example material. His Word book is the best of the, sorry, Word VBA lot.

Way back before I got Office 97, I had never used Access, so one weekend I got bored and ran to the local bookstores and purchased:

1. Access 97 for Dummies
2. Steve Roman’s Access DataBase Design and Programming. I believe that this was the first of books I ever purchased.

I really liked the book and, as I recall, I read the whole thing in less than a weekend. I had not done any real DB stuff in quite some time, so the book was perfect for me, but then I had DB exposure and already programmed VB (I bought VB 5 Learning Edition to prepare for the day I got Office 97 Pro).

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Howard, you aren’t exactly a beginner! But for a book that will take one from beginner through intermediate (about sums me up) I really liked the structure and thoroughness of Julitta Korol’s Learn Microsoft Excel 2000 VBA Programming, ISBN: 1556227035. Walkenbach ‘s book is very good. With your familiarity with VBA coding, Jan Karel’s recommendation applies.

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Glad to hear somebody likes a book from Wordware, perhaps they now have their act together. A number of years ago, I looked at a book they had on WordBasic. To be kind, it was not worth the paper it was printed on. Maybe they have done better since then.

And, Yes, I’m not a beginner, I’ve been around the blocjk at least once in each direction.

I read such VBA books like a novel, rarely a need to go to the PC to try the code.
Indeed, IMHO, Excel VBA is easier than Word VBA because of the nature of the app.
Much of what one learns for Word VBA applies to Excel VBA, e.g., the fundamental VBA stuff, userforms, commandbars, shapes, etc.

And vice versa. Given the inadequacy of the Word VBA books available, much of John Walkenbach’s book applies to Word as well as Access.

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I was thinking that you would find many parts of any Excel VBA book to be familiar, all the VBA basics such as Variables, Functions, Loops, Case, etc, and the common Application elements such as File operations, Userforms, Commandbars, etc. Though you don’t see me post in Word or VBA Forums, I lurk there when I need to learn something, so I have seen your work.

The Excel Object model is pretty clear, perhaps the easiest to understand, what’s so hard about WorkBooks, WorkSheets and Ranges? Charts are bit messier, but I’m an old beancounter who spurns graphics. Maybe a few more alternatives with Events, such as Sheet Change and Workbook Change events, but I don’t know Word well enough to compare. If I knew of a book that focuses on the Excel Object Model, I’d recommend it (and I’d have a copy), but the VBA Help files and Object Browser can get you through most of those questions.

Everyone learns differently, I found that the Korol book was very organized (almost rigidly), but still an excellent step-by-step learning tool that builds as it goes, where Walkenbach’s book kind of focuses on “here’s the stuff you should need to get most things done”. I was more comfortable in the more structured environment when I was starting out. I would expect that at -least- half the Korol book would be well-trodden ground for you.

Rumor has it that Korol is writing a Word book; if so I’ll be interested in your thoughts on it at that future time of publishing.

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When getting a beginner’s book, I prefer a more comprehensive book that can also be used as a reference.
That’s why I like Gary Cornell’s Visual Basic 6 from the Ground Up.

I doubt that I’ll ever look at the Karol Word book.
I have no need to get any more elementary Word books.
I stick with VB, and advanced VBA , books and I’ve already got too many of those.

Actually, I’m starting to concentrate on VS .NET PRO to prepare the .NET-izing of Office.
Once Office is .NET-ized, might need to get books for VSA, but not many.

I’ve been asked, more than once, to write all, or part of, a Word (VBA) book. Earlier this year a MAJOR computer book publisher asked me to submit a proposal. I said, what the heck and did. The crap that publishers put you thru before they will sign off and layout a pittance of an advance turned me off (I do have a high pain threshhol, but a low ###### tolerance)so I just dropped the task. I’m curious to see if they find anyone else to do the book.

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>When getting a beginner’s book, I prefer a more comprehensive book that can also be used as a reference.

Respectfully:

1. Korol is not going to work as a reference for you for very long (but may still be worth a spending few surreptitious hours previewing at your local chain bookstore, nudge, wink).
2. I haven’t found beginners’ books that work as references, and vice versa. (As a reference I use O’Reilly Press VB & VBA in a Nutshell by Paul Lomax. Recurse to my comments on an Excel Object Model book.)

Write that book, Howard.

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Gary Cornell’s VB6 from the Ground Up works well as both a beginners’ book and reference.

VB & VBA in a Nutshelll is OK for VB, but doesn’t work as well for Office VBA.

If I decide to write a book, I’d do a beginning Word VBA book and sell it as an ebook, but I’ve not looked into the details of setting up an ebook.

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VB & VBA In A Nutshell is great! I read it nearly cover to cover. It’s helped with anything VB/VBA related which includes Office VBA. It made me aware of many functions that I wouldn’t have known about before. I wouldn’t recommend it to someone just learning, but someone who’s gotten their feet wet with VB/VBA should get it to expand their knowledge.

I wouldn’t slam Steve Roman’s book too much either. Once you have an understanding of the VB language, getting exposure to the object models is half the battle. His book exposes you to the object model.

Surprisingly, the Office 2000 Programmer’s Guide has proven helpful too. I might not go into great detail, but it tries to cover the major objects in each of the office apps.

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I use Steven Roman’s Writing Excel Macros. It’s cheap, thin, and usually has the information that I need. I would imagine that John Walkenbach’s book is the best, but I haven’t found anyone to buy it for me. I used his CD’s when studing for the MOUS exam and they were excellent, but only they only covered Excel not VBA.

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Ooops, I meant to say

I’m close to finishing Steve Roman’s Writing Excel Macros (1999 edition). I find it very disappointing.
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I’m close to finishing Steve Roman’s Writing Word Macros (1999 edition). I find it very disappointing.
There was a new edition recently, but I have not seen that.

Steve’s book is likely useful as a reference, but not as a learning book.
He did a better job in his Writing Word Macros.

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