how to detect when Excel macro has terminated?

[sigil]

I'm using the ExcelCom_UDF. One of the script's actions is to run a macro in Excel; this macro takes several seconds to complete, but for various server-related issues, the length of time to run the macro varies widely, anywhere between 2 to 15 seconds usually.

Does AutoIt have a way of detecting that an Excel macro is still running? or is there an Excel function for doing so that I can call through COM?

I guess the code would look like this if there's a COM option:

$oExcel=_ExcelBookOpen($filepath)
$oExcel.run("myMacro")
while $oExcel.isRunning("myMacro")  ;or whatever the property is called
wend
rest_of_the_script()

[picaxe]

Does AutoIt have a way of detecting that an Excel macro is still running? or is there an Excel function for doing so that I can call through COM?

One way is to create a mutex in your excel macro and check for it in your AutoIt code. See these AutoIt and vba threads.

[Juvigy]

Why do you bother with "$oExcel.isRunning("myMacro") ;or whatever the property is called" ?

When you execute the macro with $oExcel.run("myMacro") the control is returned to the AutoIt when the macro finishes.

So if you put a msgbox right after $oExcel.run("myMacro") that is exactly the moment the macro has terminated.

[sigil]

Why do you bother with "$oExcel.isRunning("myMacro") ;or whatever the property is called" ?

When you execute the macro with $oExcel.run("myMacro") the control is returned to the AutoIt when the macro finishes.

So if you put a msgbox right after $oExcel.run("myMacro") that is exactly the moment the macro has terminated.

Actually, since posting this I found out I can't use $oExcel.run("myMacro"). I'm filling in Excel values by doing ControlClick on a button in another application that sends info from a database into an open Excel spreadsheet of a certain filename. So I need to know when the other application has finished filling in the details.

One way I was thinking I could do it is, when I click the other application, the pointer turns into a wait-signal (this application's equivalent of the hourglass) until it's finished porting the data to Excel. Is there a way that I can check to see if the wait-signal is still active?

[Juvigy]

Now this is different.Is there any way you can check if the data has been exported by checking some values in the Excel?

What is the other application - Oracle?SAP?BO?Maybe it has its own object model?

[sigil]

Now this is different.Is there any way you can check if the data has been exported by checking some values in the Excel?

What is the other application - Oracle?SAP?BO?Maybe it has its own object model?

Looks like I might have to continuously poll Excel, check to see if some cells have changed. The other application is some flavor of call center client that I haven't been able to find any support or description of an object model on the web. I think it sends requests to an oracle server on the back end somewhere, but not at a direct user interface level. the company went out of business...