Excel Commands

Executes a command that is document-specific, such as retrieving the value

from a spreadsheet cell.

The available commands are:

Create Workbook

Creates a new Excel spreadsheet document (.XLS). If data is provided, this

spreadsheet will be native Excel 3.0 format, which ensures that the
generated XLS file will be backward compatible with all existing Microsoft
Office installations (it can be easily re-saved in the current format). This
design also allows a new spreadsheet to be created even if Microsoft Office or
Excel is not installed on the PC. This is important when this action is used
inside of a compiled EXE that is distributed to computers without Excel.

If no data is provided, a blank spreadsheet is created in the current version of

the Microsoft Office installation. You may then add data to the spreadsheet
using the Set Excel Cell command to fill in the data. Therefore, this provides
an alternative method for creating a spreadsheet: first use the Open
Workbook command with a new name, and then use the Set Excel Cell
command to set the data. Be sure to set the "Save" option when using this
approach.

If the parent folder(s) and subfolders of the file do not exist, they are also
created. If a document with the same name already exists, it is overwritten
without additional confirmation. The File or the IF File Exists commands
may be used to check existence prior to running this command.

The new spreadsheet is not automatically opened when using the "Create
Workbook" command. Use the Open Workbook action to display and use
the spreadsheet.

The "Row Delimiter" and "Column Delimiter" determine where new rows and
columns are inside of the text. Usually, a tab or comma is used to separate
columns, and each new line of text is a new row.
A basic example:
Since the input used to create the spreadsheet is raw text, embedded
formatting options must be placed inside of the actual text:

"bgcolor=red sample text here"

The tags are removed prior to creating the spreadsheet. Where possible, cell formatting
options follow the standard HTML formatting names, such as "bgcolor".

Using Standard HTML Color Names for Background: (bgcolor=)

bgcolor=red bgcolor=maroon

bgcolor=lime bgcolor=green

bgcolor=cyan
bgcolor=teal
bgcolor=aqua

bgcolor=blue bgcolor=navy

bgcolor=magen
ta
bgcolor=pink bgcolor=yellow
bgcolor=fuchsi
a

bgcolor=olive bgcolor=purple

bgcolor=silver bgcolor=gray

bgcolor=black bgcolor=white

Using Standard HTML Color Names for Font: (color=)

color=blue
 bgcolor=yellow, color=red

Note: all the other colors listed

above are also available
Using Border: (border=)

border=1

border=2

Note: Other border settings are

not currently supported.
Using Alignment: (align=)

align=left

align=center

align=right

Note: Vertical alignment

settings are not currently
supported.
Using Column Width: (width=)

width=200

width=50

Note: Vertical height settings

are not currently supported.
Using Font: (font=, font-size= and font-style=)

font=Verdana font-size=20

font=Times-New-Roman font-
size=16
font-
style=italic+bold+underlined

Note: Spaces inside of a font

name should be replaced with
"-" or "_"
(due to lack of any HTML syntax
enforcement in clear text)

vTask is able to include formula calculations in Excel spreadsheets:

All of the following are valid formulas that vTask can accurately create formulas for in
Excel, when using the "Create Workbook" action:
=8+9
=8 + 9.5
=A1+B2
=$A$1 + $B$2
=A1 + B2 / A1
=A1 * B2 + 100
=A1 & B2
=A1 < B2
=A1 = B2
= A1 * B2 * C3 + 123.456
=A1 * 0.05

Excel Functions (such as SUM) and expressions with parenthesis are not
supported with the "Create Workbook" action. However, functions and
calculations can be set with the Set Excel Cell command listed below. Set
Excel Cell has no restrictions on what can be placed into a cell - even images
can be inserted.

When vTask creates a spreadsheet for you, it will intelligently format the cell
to fit the data. The default cell formatting options are used for Text, Numbers,
Money/Currency, and Dates.
Examples:
 Open Workbook

Opens or creates a Excel workbook. A "workbook" is a collection of sheets. Before using

other Excel actions such as "Get Cell", this command must be used.

*Tip: All Excel actions require that the Open Workbook

command is used first. This allows vTask to access the
correct spreadsheet.

This action can be used with a filename that does not exist yet. If the XLS file
does not exist, a new (blank) workbook is created. The "Save" option will
immediately save the new workbook to disk after creation.

The "Hidden" option will open the workbook, but it will not be visible to the
user. Use this option to update spreadsheets without displaying the Excel
interface. The spreadsheet will run in the background, until the Close
Workbook command is used.

To start the workbook with an initial cell or range selected, enter the
appropriate names into the "Cell or Range" field. See the Select Cell action
for a discussion of how to address specific Sheets, Cells, and Ranges.

The Close Workbook command should be used when you are finished with
all Excel actions.

NOTE: It is not possible to step-through Excel commands. They must be

executed with a single thread, from open to close.

Save Workbook

Writes a workbook to disk.

This command allows you to save a spreadsheet during the middle of editing,
without needing to close the workbook. You can also save a workbook by
selecting the same option in the Open Workbook and Close Workbook
actions.

Close Workbook

Exits a workbook that was previously opened with the Open Workbook
command. The "Save" option will write all changes to disk. Without "Save"
chosen, the file will not be saved, and no notification will be given.
If you want to leave the spreadsheet open after the script completes, you do
not need to call the Close Workbook action. However, it is important to use
Close Workbook if you opened the spreadsheet in "Hidden" mode - otherwise
the process will continue running, invisible and inaccessible to the user.

Get Cell

Retrieves the data contents (text, number, or date) from an Excel sheet cell
or group of cells. The "Workbook Name" is required because it determines
which spreadsheet to use. This is important for situations where you are
using multiple workbooks at the same time. The name should match the
same name that was used in the Open Workbook command (an Excel .XLS
file name).

This command is able to get the contents from more than one cell, also called
a "Range" of cells. You address the range the same way that you would in
Excel itself, such as B2:C4. See the Select Cell action for a discussion of
how to address specific Sheets, Cells, and Ranges.

You can set the "Column Delimiter" to be anything you want, such as a
comma, or even a longer string. If nothing is provided, a tab character will be
used. This is the same as Excel itself provides, which can be verified by
copying a group of cells to the clipboard.

The following data would be returned for this spreadsheet:

abc 100
def 200
ghi 300

Set Cell

Places new data (text, number, or date) into an Excel sheet cell or group of
cells. The "Workbook Name" is required because it determines which
spreadsheet to use. This is important for situations where you are using
multiple workbooks at the same time. The name should match the same
name that was used in the Open Workbook command (an Excel .XLS file
name).
Be sure to use the "Save" option with either Open Workbook or the Close
Workbook command to ensure that the cell changes are stored.

This command is able to set the contents from more than one cell, also called
a "Range" of cells. You address the range the same way that you would in
Excel itself, such as "B2:C4". See the Select Cell action for a discussion of
how to address specific Sheets, Cells, and Ranges.

To clear a cell (or range), use an empty value for the "Data" field (leave it
blank).

The "Save Document" option allows you to make the cell change
permanent. This option is provided in case you want to make multiple
changes before saving the document, or allowing the user to be prompted
during the save, such as when the file already exists.

To place a bitmap in a cell, use the filename as the data:

Select Cell

This command places the highlight box in the location that you specify. It is a
very versatile command, and is able to perform the following:
Change to a different Sheet and activate it
Go to a Cell
Select/Highlight a Cell
Move to and select a Range of cells

For example, to put the current selection into a single cell, use an entry such
as "B2":
To put the current selection into a group of cells, use an entry such as B2:C4:

To put the current selection into a group of cells in a specific sheet, use an
entry such as Sheet2!B2:C4:
(these cell/range naming conventions are the same as Excel itself uses)

Get Cell Format

This is a general-purpose command that allows you to retrieve many aspects
of a cell's formatting, such as the font, color, and other options.

For the example table below, the following spreadsheet is used for
demonstration:

Return
Example
Format Description
(using sample
spreadsheet
above)
Returns the specified formatting for data (such as
numbers). For example, "#.00" would be numeric,
Data and "@" would be text. These are the same as the #,##0.00
Format format specifications inside of Excel, as shown in
the screen image below.
The "Custom" option shows what data formats are returned by vTask:

Is Bold 1 (TRUE) of the font is Bold, else 0 (FALSE) 1

Is Italic 1 (TRUE) of the font is Italic, else 0 (FALSE) 1
Is
1 (TRUE) of the font is Underlined, else 0 (FALSE) 1
Underlined
Font Name The face name of the font Tahoma
 Font Size The point size of the font 16
Font Color The HTML color of the font (RGB) #0000FF
Backgroun
The fill color of the cell (RGB) #FFFF99
d Color
Border
The thickness of the border line around the cell medium
Weight
Border
The type of line of the border line around the cell dash dot
Line Style
Horizontal
The position of the data within the cell center
Alignment
Vertical
The position of the data within the cell bottom
Alignment
The horizontal size of the cell, measured in pixels.
Column
NOTE: This value may not be exact, due to Excel's 120
Width
use of typeface points rather than pixels
Row
The vertical size of the cell, measured in pixels 64
Height

Returns the count of rows in a sheet. This is the

Total Rows most distant vertical cell with data. The "Cell or 1
Range" parameter is not used.
Returns the count of columns in a sheet. This is
Total
the most distant horizontal cell with data. The 1
Columns
"Cell or Range" parameter is not used.

Set Cell Format

This is a general-purpose command that allows you to change many aspects

of a cell's formatting.
You can apply formatting changes to a group of cells. See the Move to Cell
action for a discussion of how to address specific Sheets, Cells, and Ranges.

Format Description Sample Format Text Example

Changes the
data display for
"#,###.0" will show:
a cell, such as
decimal places.
This is the
0.0
Cell same as the
mm/dd/yyyy
Formattin "Format Cells - #,##0_);[Red](#,##0)
"dddd, mmmm dd,
g Number"
yyyy" will show:
command @ (for text)
inside of Excel
(see
screenshot
below)
 Changes font
Bold 1=Bold, 0=Not Bold
to bold
Changes font
Italic 1=Italic, 0=Not Italic
to italic
Changes font 1=Underlined, 0=Not
Underline
to underlined Underlined
Same as Font selection
Changes the
Font Name in Excel, such as
font typeface "Verdana"
Same as point size in
Changes font
Font Size Font selection, such
point size as "18"
Changes font
color.
#FF0000 = red
Font Color Use standard #808080 = gray
HTML colors
(RGB)
Changes cell
color.
Backgroun #f8f800 = red
Use standard #f0f0f0 = light gray
d Color
HTML colors
(RGB)
Placement of
Horizontal
text inside a left, center, right
Alignment
cell
Placement of
Vertical
text inside a top, middle, bottom
Alignment
cell
Column Size of a Number of pixels for
Width column new width
 Row
Height of a row Number of pixels
Height

Changes
none, thin, medium,
Border border around thick
cell