personal.xls doesn't open when double-clicking on Excel file

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tom
  • Start date Start date
T

Tom

Hi,

I want to make my macro accessible no matter what Excel file is open,
so I put it in the personal.xls file. That works fine if I open Excel
(double-clicking desktop icon, program files menu, etc.) then
File|Open the Excel documents. But if I double-click on an Excel file
to open it, personal.xls doesn't load and the macro isn't available.

Is that how it's supposed to work? Regardless, is there a way to make
personal.xls load in all cases that Excel is used? The macro is meant
for non-computer savvy people, so telling them to manually open
personal.xls is not an option.

Tom
 
Put the file in the XLStart folder, typically C:\Program
Files\Microsoft Office\Office\XLStart .


--
Cordially,
Chip Pearson
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Pearson Software Consulting, LLC
www.cpearson.com
 
Hi Tom,

.... and then back in Excel use Window, Hide file
to hide your personal.xls
 
Thanks for both replies, but I don't think I'm getting the problem
across properly. The personal.xls file is in the XLStart directory (we
actually specify a custom start directory, but it's the same
regardless) and hidden. When I open the Excel _application_ (running
the executable through a desktop icon or the start menu), personal.xls
comes up fine. I can then File|Open any file and use the macro on it.

The problem is when I don't run the Excel _application_, but
double-click on an XLS (or CSV, or anything associated with Excel)
_file_. It opens the file in Excel, but personal.xls doesn't load with
it and the macros are not available. The difference is how the file is
opened.

Example:
Double-click on Excel icon and File|Open C:\file.xls. Everything
works.
Double-click on C:\file.xls and it opens up in Excel. Personal.xls
doesn't load with it.

The difference may seem minor, but it's meant for people who only
understand how to double-click things on the desktop. They may not
understand Windows directory structures and can't be expected to know
how to use File|Open.

Thanks for any additional help.

Tom
 
A complete guess....

Try reregistering excel.

Close Excel
Windows Start Button|Run
excel /unregserver
then
Windows Start Button|Run
excel /regserver

The /unregserver & /regserver stuff resets the windows registry to excel's
factory defaults.
 
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