The Visual Basic Editor (VBE) is the environment where all Excel macros are stored and processed. Each workbook you create comes with this interconnected VBE environment free of charge. Even if you never record one macro, the VBE is in the background waiting to be used. When you create a macro, the VBE quietly comes to life ready to process the various procedures and routines you give it.

      In this chapter, you'll take your first look behind the curtain to explore the Visual Basic Editor.

      Working in the Visual Basic Editor

      The Visual Basic Editor is actually a separate application that runs when you open Excel. In order to see this hidden VBE environment, you’ll need to activate it. The quickest way to activate the VBE is to press Alt+F11 when Excel is active. To return to Excel, press Alt+F11 again.

      You can also activate the VBE by using the Visual Basic command found on Excel’s Developer tab.

       Figure 2-1 shows the VBE program with some of the key parts identified. Chances are your VBE program window won’t look exactly like what you see in Figure 2-1. The VBE contains several windows and is highly customizable. You can hide windows, rearrange windows, dock windows, and so on.