A macro is a small program that you make in Excel that automates tasks.When you record a macro, Excel stores it as a VBA code. You can view this code in the VBA editor. You can understand the code and modify it if you have substantial knowledge of Excel VBA.
Basically, this "thing", the macro, can save you hours of time. You can create macros that do almost anything in Excel and even other Microsoft Office programs. Macros are useful when you want to automate a repetitive, tedious, or complex process.
For example, you can create a macro that searches through all of the data in an Excel Workbook, compiles the important information, and emails that information through Outlook, and you can do all of this with just the click of a button once you make the macro.
Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is part of Microsoft Corporation's (NASDAQ: MSFT) legacy software Visual Basic. VBA is used to write programs for the Windows operating system and runs as an internal programming language in Microsoft Office (MS Office, Office) applications such as Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, Word, and Visio. VBA allows users to customize beyond what is normally available with MS Office host applications.
1. Visual Basic for Applications is a computer programming language developed and owned by Microsoft.
2. With VBA you can create macros to automate repetitive word- and data-processing functions, and generate custom forms, graphs, and reports.
3. VBA functions within MS Office applications; it is not a stand-alone product.
4. VBA is accessed in Excel by hitting Alt + F11 while having an Excel workbook present.
5. VBA leverages objects, variables, properties, projects, logical operators, and modules to make statements recognizable by debugging processes.
VBA is an event-driven tool, which means that you can use it to tell the computer to initiate an action or string of actions. To do this, you build custom macros—short for macroinstructions—by typing commands into an editing module.
A macro is essentially a sequence of characters whose input results in another sequence of characters (its output) that accomplishes specific computing tasks. You do not need to purchase the VBA software because VBA is the version of Visual Basic that ships with Microsoft Office.
VBA is not a stand-alone program. Instead, it allows users to manipulate graphical user interface (GUI) features such as toolbars and menus, dialogue boxes, and forms. You may use VBA to create user-defined functions (UDFs), access Windows application programming interfaces (APIs), and automate specific computer processes and calculations.