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Terribly misleading title. Packages to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files have been around for a long time. Like MeinBlutIsBlau, I thought this was

Terribly misleading title. Packages to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files have been around for a long time. Like MeinBlutIsBlau, I thought this was going to be Microsoft finally ditching VBA for Python as its macro language.

dragonwriter 5y ago
> Terribly misleading title. No, its not. > Packages to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files have been around for a long time. Xlwings (1) has been around for a while, itself, and more to the point (2) isn’t just a “package to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files”. It includes an Excel add-in to allow embedding Python in Excel, using it for purposes similar to VBA. > Like MeinBlutIsBlau, I thought this was going to be Microsoft finally ditching VBA for Python as its macro language. Well, it allows users to do that without Microsoft doing it, so that's closer to accurate than the description implied by your dismissal.
pjmlp 5y ago
If you don't want to use VBA, you don't have to. There is lambda and JavaScript support. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/lambda-the-ultimatae-excel-worksheet-function/ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/lambda-the-ult... https://exceljet.net/excel-functions/excel-lambda-function https://exceljet.net/excel-functions/excel-lambda-function https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dev/add-ins/reference/overview/excel-add-ins-reference-overview https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dev/add-ins/referenc...
WalterGR 5y ago
> Microsoft finally ditching VBA for Python as its macro language. Can't you use any language that 'integrates with' Microsoft Scripting Host? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Script_Host https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Script_Host
- ptx 5y ago
  You can use any language that supports COM by creating an Excel add-in. But then you have to figure out how to distribute it to the users. WSH is something quite different. It runs VBScript, which is a different language from VBA. VBA is the same language as Visual Basic 6 and uses the same IDE.

dragonwriter 5y ago

> Terribly misleading title. No, its not. > Packages to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files have been around for a long time. Xlwings (1) has been around for a while, itself, and more to the point (2) isn’t just a “package to allow Python to create/manipulate Excel files”. It includes an Excel add-in to allow embedding Python in Excel, using it for purposes similar to VBA. > Like MeinBlutIsBlau, I thought this was going to be Microsoft finally ditching VBA for Python as its macro language. Well, it allows users to do that without Microsoft doing it, so that's closer to accurate than the description implied by your dismissal.

pjmlp 5y ago

If you don't want to use VBA, you don't have to. There is lambda and JavaScript support. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/lambda-the-ultimatae-excel-worksheet-function/ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/lambda-the-ult... https://exceljet.net/excel-functions/excel-lambda-function https://exceljet.net/excel-functions/excel-lambda-function https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dev/add-ins/reference/overview/excel-add-ins-reference-overview https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dev/add-ins/referenc...

WalterGR 5y ago

> Microsoft finally ditching VBA for Python as its macro language. Can't you use any language that 'integrates with' Microsoft Scripting Host? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Script_Host https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Script_Host

ptx 5y ago
You can use any language that supports COM by creating an Excel add-in. But then you have to figure out how to distribute it to the users. WSH is something quite different. It runs VBScript, which is a different language from VBA. VBA is the same language as Visual Basic 6 and uses the same IDE.