Manual Calculation

  • Thread starter Thread starter Wendy
  • Start date Start date
W

Wendy

I have a user who says that her excel spreadsheet keeps
changing 'all by itself' to manual calculation! Is there
any shortcut key have she might be pressing that is doing
this? Or any other suggestions, please?

Wendy
 
Excel picks up this setting from the first workbook you open in that session.

So if you're unlucky enough to open a (common???) workbook that someone saved
with manual calculation, you could be toggling that setting often.

But if you open a workbook that has calculation set to automatic first, then
you'll get automatic calculation until you change it.

So tell the user to remember how to toggle this setting:
tools|options|calculation Tab

Or have them open a workbook that they know has automatic calculation first.
 
Thanks Dave. I thought it was an application setting, but
they insist it keeps chaning by itself!!

Will let then know,

Wendy
 
Well, it is an application setting--after it's set by that first workbook, all
the open workbooks in that excell session will be treated the same.

(Kind of a weird application setting, huh?)
 
Dave Peterson said:
Excel picks up this setting from the first workbook you
open in that session.
Click to expand...

Thanks for clearing up this mystery, Dave.

Now if I could only remember which key forces recalculation
when in manual mode...
 
Slightly *more* accurate, is the fact that *all concurrent* open books will
copy the setting of the first book opened.

That means, if you open a book, work on it, save and close it, or just
simply close it, the next book you open in this same session, *will retain*
it's own settings, no matter what the settings were on that first book that
was opened and then closed.

--


Regards,

RD
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Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit!
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Dave Peterson said:
Excel picks up this setting from the first workbook you
open in that session.
Click to expand...

Thanks for clearing up this mystery, Dave.

Now if I could only remember which key forces recalculation
when in manual mode...
 
RagDyer said:
Slightly *more* accurate, is the fact that *all concurrent* open books will
copy the setting of the first book opened.

That means, if you open a book, work on it, save and close it, or just
simply close it, the next book you open in this same session, *will retain*
it's own settings, no matter what the settings were on that first book that
was opened and then closed.

Regards,

RD
Click to expand...
The next workbook may retain it's own setting, but that doesn't
mean it will act that way. I frequently have problems with opening
or setting a workbook to manual. Even after closing the book or
resetting it to automatic, other books will not recalc even though
I can clearly see automatic recalc is on. I hate features like this that
are kind of a workbook setting, but kind of a program setting. MS
should pick one and go with it. I would prefer a true workbook
level option so that if you have one book that is auto and one that is
manual, each will do what it is set to do at the same time. Excel's
link handling is pretty good. I'm sure they could do some kind of
"partial calc" message if the auto book is linked to the manual book.
kcc
 
The three machines that I have access to;
XL02 on XPpro,
XL2K on Win98,
XL97 on Win98

*ALL* exhibit the same performance that I described.

<"other books will not recalc even though I can clearly see automatic recalc
is on">
I have never experienced anything like this.
Is there a possibility that the sheet *is* calculating, but because it may
be so large or so complicated, that you're not giving it enough time to
complete the calc?

What version do you see this occurring in (not calculating even though auto
is checked)?
 
Your post made me try various scenarios.
Today I'm in XL97 on Win98.
This is what I did find:

Open a Manual WB first, then open an Auto WB.
Any work done on the Auto WB will not autocalc.
Close only the Manual WB.
The Auto WB will still *not* autocalc.
Close the Auto WB, but do *not* save.

Now, in this same session, re-open just the Auto WB.
The Auto WB is now back to it's original Auto setting.

This is what may have led you to say that the Auto WB doesn't autocalc, even
though it's set to Auto.

If you had looked at
<Tools> <Options> <Calculation>
while both the Manual and the Auto WBs were open, you would see "Manual"
checked.
After closing just the Manual WB,
And leaving the Auto WB open,
<Tools> <Options> <Calculation>
would *still* show "Manual" checked,

BUT, and it's a big BUT,
Not saving the Auto WB before closing,
Allowed it to retain it's Auto setting,
So re-opening it, in the same XL session,
With no other WB open,
Made it the dominant, calculation setting WB for the currant session.

This just substantiates what I said at the outset.
 
Ragdyer said:
Your post made me try various scenarios.
Today I'm in XL97 on Win98.
This is what I did find:

Open a Manual WB first, then open an Auto WB.
Any work done on the Auto WB will not autocalc.
Close only the Manual WB.
The Auto WB will still *not* autocalc.
Close the Auto WB, but do *not* save.

Now, in this same session, re-open just the Auto WB.
The Auto WB is now back to it's original Auto setting.

This is what may have led you to say that the Auto WB doesn't autocalc, even
though it's set to Auto.

If you had looked at
<Tools> <Options> <Calculation>
while both the Manual and the Auto WBs were open, you would see "Manual"
checked.
After closing just the Manual WB,
And leaving the Auto WB open,
<Tools> <Options> <Calculation>
would *still* show "Manual" checked,

BUT, and it's a big BUT,
Not saving the Auto WB before closing,
Allowed it to retain it's Auto setting,
So re-opening it, in the same XL session,
With no other WB open,
Made it the dominant, calculation setting WB for the currant session.
Click to expand...
I'm on XP Pro and, I think, Excel 2002. It may be 2000, but I'm not on
that computer at the moment. The manual calc file is large and slow,
but the others are small and fast. The typical situation (which I have not
tested in a controlled way) is to open the manual file first (I think) then
an auto calc file. Both act manual as expected. Then close the manual
file and leave the auto one open. After that I have opened other auto
files and I have switch the "options" to manual and back to auto to try to
make it know it should be auto, but it still acts manual occasionally.
On this PC (XP Home/Excel 2002) I can not duplicate the problem.
I'll check out the work PC tomorrow to try and figure out if it's a
difference in the PC's or more random.
kcc
 
What you described here *does* follow !!!

This *is* the rule:
The first WB open sets the calc mode.
The XL session, "per se", has *nothing* to do with the calc mode.
Closing *all* WBs wipes the slate clean.
The calc mode on the next (first) WB thereafter sets the mode anew,
*UNTIL*, all WBs are closed again!

So, all you have to do, is try and keep track of your WBs, so that you can
open the correct one first, or else close those that you don't want to set
the mode.
 
Odd update. I knew Calc would show up sometimes and
not others, but I think I figured out the condition that causes
the problem. After I have had a manual workbook open,
even after getting auto back on, running a macro causes calc
to show up. The macro does a trace dependence on a
range and does not affect any values. If I type a number in
a blank cell, the book recalcs and the message goes away.
kcc
 
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