Rating: 
Summary: Great learning tool and reference manual
Review: I have several books on Excel VBA and this is by far the best. Actually, it is the only one I use. The explanations are very thorough and example code generally follows to give you a clear-cut picture of what the author is talking about. Plus, the author uses general code examples rather than making them specific to a certain group (i.e. just for businesses, etc...).The best thing about this book is the ability to find "real-life" examples. For instance, I'll be sitting there thinking "I wonder how you....", I look in the book, and voila! the author has exactly what I wanted. It seems the examples came/come from real-life situations that the author may have come across in his experience and wrote them down knowing others would benefit. The language of the book is a mix between a reference manual and the comical writing seen in the "Dummies" books. So it's easy to read, but gets to the point giving you answers you need without making them too technical or too silly. I highly recommend this book for all levels. Great for beginners and great as a reference manual once you have an idea of what you want to do, but can't remember how to do it.
Rating:
Summary: You will use this !
Review: Having this book for even the short time since I bought it has been like having an "instant success kit" that transforms me into an Excel VBA Guru. Its organization, layout, and even simply its appearance make it a pleasure to use and a massively useful companion for developers. Another thing I like about it is that, unlike most books - which are either comic-book level manuals (i.e., glorified pamphlets) for non-technical people, or super-technical tomes of gobbledigook that won't help you do anything until you've mastered at least the first 800 pages - you can actually use this book for any level of expertise you'll need, anywhere from "I just want to get a user form in there for filling in a template" to "I'm gonna knock their socks off by integrating this into their business objects layer with logic-driven pivot table creators" The explanations are coherent, the examples are clear and well-illustrated, and the companion CD has a lot of pre-written code you can plagia... um, learn from in developing your own solutions.
Rating: 
Summary: Might be ok for some users
Review: Charts are not given much coverage. Chart data is not given much coverage. From a programmer's point of view, simple excel vba object graphs and explanations of properties would be more helpful. Some examples come straight from the MSDN Office developer sections. I really wish authors would refrain from the cut and paste of the MSDN. Consumers of this type of material are looking for more than MSDN help files. All that said....
It gets you started.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Book, but Excel portion is lacking
Review: I purchased this book for learning how to call Excel worksheet functions in VB, but I didn't get it. This is a difficult topic as the syntax is strange (This is a frequently asked quation in Google's excel focum). This book devotes too much to VB, not enough to Excel specific functions. Or the Excel part is way out of proportion. Many chapters may be removed to make it concise: chapter 1, 5, 6, 25 - 28, and any references to Lotus1-2-3, Quattro Pro, XLM macro. Replace Part VII by how to interface to 300+ Excel functions. On software reuse, one should always use those tools that are available (and tested). The author seems to favor duplicating Excel functions in VB. On page 293, he wrote on sorting an array, " workaround is to transfer your array to a worksheet range, sort it using Excel's commands, and then return the result to your array. But if speed is essential, it's better to write a sorting routine in VBA."
First, I doubt about the speed claim. Second, even if the speed gain were true, taking the time to write a new (and reliable) sorting routine is hardly justified in practice. Third, what about the other Excel functions you have to use tomorrow ?
Rating:
Summary: Great for users of all levels
Review: I am always a bit skeptical when another computer book that is several inches thick is released. Surprisingly there is useful material throughout this volume. Walkenbach covers Excel programming from start to finish in a way that programmers of all levels will understand. He begins with a bit of Excel history and moves into simple VBA development and eventually covers various "advanced" topics such as pivot tables, charts and user forms. His writing is clear and there are plenty of examples throughout the book. He is even careful to point out version compatibility issues. Experienced programmers will find most of the book skimmable. In about an hour you can pick up most of the VBA syntax and be on your way to developing simple applications. Some space is devoted to software development methodology, but not too much. Walkenback strikes a nice balance between giving new users the information they need to know and not straying off topic.
Rating:
Summary: Excellant Resource
Review: I have found this book to be absolutely fantastic. I am not sure it is for the beginner, but for someone who has a little knowledge of VB it is an excellant refresher. The book is well written and seems to flow in a logical sequence. It is very easy to understand and examples are plentiful. I have been tinkering with macros in Excel for about a year and the book is bringing VBA and Excel together for me. I have have already cut some of the coding in my modules in half by using the techniques found in the book. This book is definitely going to be come one of my major references when it comes to using VBA in Excel. I have certainly gotten my money's worth out of this book and will be looking for other books written by John Walkenbach.
Rating:
Summary: Never say never...
Review: I am a software developer, and I've never liked the computer "big books" published for lay people. Until this one. This book is well-written, well-organized, well-thought-out, and well worth every penny. Instead of complex examples (and I've seen plenty of them), John presents simple, brilliantly clear examples that are distilled down to show the exact point he is trying to make, which makes the book very easy to follow.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful Excel VBA Book
Review: I skimmed all chapters in a day and now when I open VBE, I know what I am doing. Excellent must have reference book.
Rating:
Summary: Best book I've ever read
Review: Accordning to Walkenbach this book is the best he have ever wrote. I will expand that a bit and say - this is the best PC book I've ever read. First of all the book aim for a "typical" moderate/good Excel user, mayby with knowledge about VB(A). I had programmed some VB and know Excel, and felt through the entire book that Walkenbach wrote to "me" (or, at least a user with my skills). Second, the book is written in an easy-to-read language, with good examples and build up in a perfekt way. This book has helped me from knowing little about VBA into my current job where I develop client/server applications in VB/SQL. The book does what it promise: Lead you into a power programmer...
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Practical Excel resource!
Review: Excellent book by a guy who literally lives and breathes with Excel VBA. The result is a book with lots of useful tips.
It's not a generic rehash written by a Hired Gun (93% of the computer books), who learn the subject matter as they compose a book.
Also touches on embedded OLE object programming and editing the code in the workbook programmatically. Hopefully will augment this parts in future editions.
No matter what else you have on Excel VBA, definetly add this one to your arsenal.
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