[Resolved] favor needed - XL App wont become visible

[Muddy]

I have an app that isnt working on a client's box (he is using W98 and Excel 98). One part of the app opens an existing XL spreadsheet. It works fine on my XP system, but the spreadsheet never becomes visible on his W98/XL98 box.

Can someone please test the following on a W/98/XP98 machine and tell me if the spreadsheet opens and becomes visible (I have no idea why it wouldnt). All you need is a ref to excel09.olb and an existing dummy spreadsheet to test.

Thanks in advance.

Private Sub Command1_Click()
    Dim objXL As New Excel.Application
    Dim objWB As Excel.Workbook
    Set objWB = objXL.Workbooks.Open("c:\tst.xls")
    objXL.Visible = True
    Set objXL = Nothing
    Set objWB = Nothing
End Sub

[RobDog888]

It might not be the code. There may be a hidden instance of Excel
already running on the 98 system. Check the task manager for
Excel and close it, or to be sure reboot the system. Then run your
code again.

I have come accross this issue when I am debugging and I stop.
The Excel object does not close when you stop debugging. Then
when I run again Excel does not appear. This is only when I have
Excel set to Visible = False.

[Muddy]

Originally posted by RobDog888
It might not be the code. There may be a hidden instance of Excel
already running on the 98 system. Check the task manager for
Excel and close it, or to be sure reboot the system. Then run your
code again.

I have come accross this issue when I am debugging and I stop.
The Excel object does not close when you stop debugging. Then
when I run again Excel does not appear. This is only when I have
Excel set to Visible = False.

Yes, that has happened to me before. This is on a client's box. I already had him shut down all instances of Excel and try it again .. no help .

Thanks for the reply ...

[Muddy]

Originally posted by Muddy
Yes, that has happened to me before. This is on a client's box. I already had him shut down all instances of Excel and try it again .. no help .

Thanks for the reply ...

then again .. i didnt have him try on a fresh boot .. ill ask him to try that tomorrow ..t hanks

[RobDog888]

Does the user have Excel visible at all? Does it open Excel, but
not the workbook?

You refer to Excel 98 but excel09.olb is for 2K isn't it?

[Muddy]

Originally posted by RobDog888
Does the user have Excel visible at all? Does it open Excel, but
not the workbook?

it does everything except make the app visible

Originally posted by RobDog888

You refer to Excel 98 but excel09.olb is for 2K isn't it?

I dunno ... I got the olb off his box and he is running W98 ... honestly I cant remember which version of XL he has XL97 or XL98 (was there even an XL98?) ...

[RobDog888]

There was a Outlook 98, but Excel only had ??, 97, 2K, XP, and 2003.

excel09.olb is a file that gets created when you create an installation package. This file is for Excel 2K.

How do you know it does everything, but make the app visible.

[Muddy]

Originally posted by RobDog888
There was a Outlook 98, but Excel only had ??, 97, 2K, XP, and 2003.

excel09.olb is a file that gets created when you create an installation package. This file is for Excel 2K.

How do you know it does everything, but make the app visible.

Ill try it again with Excel08 if the reboot doesnt help. Hes been running this for quite awhile now with no problems up till now. I just added a new routine and cant seem to get the wb to be visible (for the new routine only).

I believe it does everything except make th app visible, cause it runss withoiut error and leaves an instance of EXCEL.exe running.

Thanks for all the help, btw ...

[RobDog888]

Try adding some logging to your code. Write it out to a text file to
trace what is happening and what the variable values are at
each point. This will definately help to se what is going on.

[Sorky]

Would the DCOM settings have an effect in 98???

I have seen this with a VBScript from a web page, where the app gets loaded under a different user account to the logged in user, and therefore doesn't appear. This was on Windows 2000, so I don't know how that will relate to 98. The solution for me was to run DCOMCNFG and to change the "Microsoft Excel Application" properties to "Identity / Interactive User".

[Armbruster]

Muddy,

I don't have a Win98 box handy, but I will check it on a Win95 XL97 machine tomorrow. Excel 97 uses the Excel 8.0 Object Library. I don's see anything wrong with your code, but I will test it tomorrow.

[ae_jester]

I'm afraid I can't help you out, but I have a wierd problem and wouldn't mind any of the Excel experts to try and solve this one.

Whenever I open excel, from code or regularly, a worksheet opens up "Personal.xls" every single time (only on my computer). Personal.xls is the name of the default macro worksheet isn't it??? How do I stop this from happening?

[Armbruster]

If you have ever saved a macro in the personal workbook, personal.xls is created. Even if you delete the modules in personal.xls, it will be loaded whenever you start excel. The solution? Search for personal.xls and delete it!

If you prefer, start excel first and verify that you don't have any codes saved in personal.xls before deleting. The workbook won't be created again until you save a macro there.

[Muddy]

ok, i stuck in some msgboxes and found a problem with a sort statement (xl method). So no need to run the code i posted ... Thanks!

[Muddy]

The problem was a sort statement. I wasnt explicity providing the sort Key to the call. XP was OK with this, but 97 barfed. I got the same behavior with both early and late binding.

Apparently when XL barfs while being programatically manipulated, the instance of excel.exe stays active even after the object is set to Nothing (I saw this in another problem also). A hard error is NOT necessarily generated.

Thanks for all the replies!