Thank you, Gord Dibben, for your answer to my question. Based upon your
answer I was able to create a work-around to my problem. I still do not know
why Excel 2007 suddenly started asking me if I want to save changes to
"Book1" when there have been no changes or how to eliminate the inquiry, but
I am now able to launch Excel without creating "Book1" at all. This is
sufficient for my purposes, at least at present, inasmuch as by eliminating
"Book1" I am able to exit Excel without encountering the nuisance question
whether I want to save changes to the workbook.
It appears, however, that your answer was written with Windows XP in mind.
I encountered a fair amount of difficulty determining how to apply your
solution to Windows Vista because, in Windows Vista, there is no "File Types"
tab in "Folder Options" and I could discover no way to edit a file type in
Windows Vista as could be done as you suggested in Windows XP. With the help
of some other research materials I was able to find a means of essentially
accomplishing the same result in Windows Vista. The answer can be found at
Microsoft Office Online under "Command-line switches for Excel." There it
explains how to create a Shortcut to Excel (or any other application)
applying various parameters including command-line switches such as the "/e"
discussed in your reply. I created a Shortcut to Excel with the "/e"
command-line switch, named the Shortcut "Microsoft Office Excel 2007," and
replaced other copies of my Excel Shortcut with the newly created Shortcut
containing the "/e" command-line switch.
I can't forsee the need to do so but, should I ever want to launch Excel
without the "/e" command-line switch, I can either navigate to C:\Program
Files\Microsoft Office\Office12 and click on Excel.exe, select "Excel.exe" at
"Start>Run," or create another Excel Shortcut (temporary or otherwise) sans
the "/e" command-line switch.
Gord Dibben said:
Append a /e to your Excel startup command to prevent Book1 from opening.
Go to Start>Settings>Control Panel>Folder Options>File Types
If using WinXP OS you would scroll down to .XLS then "Advanced">Open>Edit.
In Command line the path should be similar to this....
"C:\PROGRAM FILES\MICROSOFT OFFICE\OFFICExx\EXCEL.EXE" /e
You must have the double quotes and the <space>/e prevents a new blank book
from opening.
Below have "use DDE" checked and this in the DDE message box....[open("%1")]
Application should read "Excel"(no quotes)
Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP
Unfortunately, Pete_UK has chosen merely to question my inquiry rather than
supply any information that might assist me in solving the problem.
I have a very good reason for launching the Excel application and then
opening a preexisting workbook. I will not take the time to elaborate on
that issue inasmuch as it might only serve to further complicate this matter.
In any event, as previously stated, when I launch the Excel application, a
"New" workbook titled "Book1" is automatically generated. When I then open a
preexisting workbook, the "New" workbook "Book1" also remains. When I am
finished with the preexisting workbook, I save it, if I have made any changes
to it, and then close it, or I simply close it without having made any
changes. At that point, the newly created workbook titled "Book1" remains
open. When I then attempt to exit Excel, a dialog box appears asking me if I
want to save changes to "Book1." It is this dialog box that has only
recently begun to appear and that I wish to eliminate.
:
Why do you launch Excel and automatically generate a new workbook?
(whether used or not?) Or, why do you open a "New" workbook? When you
come to close Excel it doesn't know if you want to save the new file
or not, so it asks you. If you want to avoid the question, as you have
discovered, then don't open a new workbook if you don't need it.
Pete
This relates to Excel 2007 and seems to have started maybe about a week or so
ago. I never had this problem before. It is a nuisance and frustrating to
have to click on "No" in the dialog box when I simply want to exit Excel. It
now happens whenever I have first launched Excel 2007 (a process that
automatically generates a blank, new workbook titled "Book1") and then have
opened a preexisting workbook, or when I have started Excel by clicking on a
preexisting workbook, then opened a "New" workbook (which is titled "Book1"),
saved and closed any and all workbooks other than the new "Book1" (which I
have not used at all), and then try to exit Excel. It may be noteworthy that
this does not happen if I simply start Excel by clicking on a preexisting
workbook and then exit Excel without having made any changes to that
workbook. It seems to occur only when "Book1" (or, I suppose, a "Book2,"
etc.) is involved.
