How to open Multiple copies of excel 2003 from Explorer

[fred]

Excel 2003 SP3 - Plus all post hot fixes

When I am in explorer and click an excel file - excel opens - when I click
on the next file it opens in the same excel, but on task bar it shows I have
2 excel files opened. But it will not let me look at files side by side

I actual want it to open 2 or more copies of excel so that I can view data
side by side. This is default behavior on my system for Word - every time I
click a word doc it opens a copy of word for each file.



I turned on Tools>Options>General "Ignore other applications" this opens
different copies of excel but not the files I click on. Excel opens blank.

Tools - Options - View - Windows in Taskbar. this doesn't help either

I don't like the Compare side by side option under Window.

Thanks

 

[JP]

You can toggle between workbooks by pressing Ctrl-Tab.

Is that what you were looking for?

--JP

 

[fred]

No

I want to be able to have 2 or more excel windows open side by side - like
the way word does it.

I can do it manually, by opening excel then go and open file, then open new
version of excel and open file, once I have 2 open I can rearrange on screen
so I see them side by side.

But this doesn't work if I open them from explorer - they all go to the same
excel.

You can toggle between workbooks by pressing Ctrl-Tab.

Is that what you were looking for?

--JP

 

[Gord Dibben]

When you have the two workbooks open in one instance of Excel, go to Window>New
Window.

Window>Arrange>Vertical to have the two side by side.

Cuts down on the overhead of having two instances of Excel running.


Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP

 

[fred]

I want 2 instance of Excel running

I tried that I don't like it

 

[JP]

Did you try File>Open? What about selecting both files in the Explorer
and then pressing Enter? I don't recall offhand how to manually start
two instances of Excel.


--JP

 

[fred]

Seems the only way to do this is to open 2 instances of excel and then open
each file once excel is opened




Did you try File>Open? What about selecting both files in the Explorer
and then pressing Enter? I don't recall offhand how to manually start
two instances of Excel.


--JP

 

[Stuart Summerville]

Its been a while since I did this, but...

In addition to the "Ignore other applications" option in Excel, you need
to disable use of DDE in Windows Explorer when launching xls files.

Explorer => Tools => Folder Options => File Types => XLS => Advanced =>
Open => Edit
1) untick "Use DDE",
2) add a "%1" to the end of the "Application used" string above.

It works as you require, but IIRC doing Office Updates can revert it,
which then gets annoying.

Also annnoying that you have to do this per each extension (XLT etc...)
and Action per extension (New etc...).

HTH & HIW.

Stu.