Integrating Excel and Access

Chapter 8. Advanced Excel Reporting Techniques

You should now be familiar enough with moving data between Access and Excel that you think of ways to automate reporting and analysis traditionally done in Excel. When considering report automation, I break it into three categories:

• Changing data in an existing report

• Creating a report from scratch including all data, formulas, and formatting

• Using a report template built in a database table

In order to take advantage of these options, you need to become very familiar with the Excel Worksheet and Range objects. You also need to work effectively with multiple worksheets in the same workbook and work step by step through the reporting process. Even for the most complicated reports, you will most likely be able to walk through the steps manually and put in logic checks for each thought process. Then it's a matter of getting the data, writing the formulas, and formatting the worksheet.

Writing Flexible Formulas

In addition to dealing with the Excel objects, understanding how to use R1C1 format to write formulas makes coding much easier. For example, subtracting the cell one row above from the cell two rows above is very straightforward when using R1C1 notation . If you use A1 notation, you have to go through multiple steps to write the string. First, figure out what column and row you are in, and then turn the column number into a letter. Next, create strings by concatenating the column letter with the row numbers needed for your formula. Doing ...