Background: I'm a tech writer with no programming education or experience other than some minor html and scripting I've picked up on the job. This book enabled me to self-educate myself to a fairly proficient level with VBA in a matter of two months. Out of all the "learn this skill quick" books that I've bought, this one has delivered the most value by far.

A few counterpoints: The reader from Naskayuna says the author spends pages discussing techniques that can be found in any other book. Those pages of discussion are what make this book invaluable to a beginner. Every code example the author gives (I didn't count, but I'd say there are scores) is followed by a thorough, step-by-step explanation of what each line of code means.

For the experienced programmer (apparently this reviewer is one), this probably gets old. But for the inexperienced user it does several things. Your confidence goes up each time you can look at a coded procedure and understand everything that is happening from the first step to the last. Your VBA lessons get driven in by repetition. And you don't spend as much time flipping back trying to locate previous concepts, because the code you are looking at is explained right there. I own another VBA book and have checked out two others from my employer's training library. There is no comparison! This author's approach to explaining sample code is by far the best for VBA novices without a programming background.

The reader from Walnut CA complained that there weren't enough examples and that the first 100 pages offer only an agonizing explanation of all the menu components in the VBA editor. The reviewer is basically right about the first 100 pages, but missed a very important point. My experience differed in that I read some of the introductory stuff up front, then skipped right over most of those 100 pages to dive into the practical, hands-on stuff. Then I just used the first 100 pages or so as a resource when I needed to know more about how something worked. In fact, I think the author actually recommends this strategy early in the book! It worked like a charm for me. Maybe the reviewer didn't get past the first 100 pages, because if there's one thing this book definitely does NOT lack, it is hands-on examples.

Last counterpoint: The first reviewer (March 2000) says there's a lot of stuff you won't see here. I don't think it's possible in a single book to cover all the concepts of a huge topic like VBA and still give plenty of hands-on practice. I liked the balance of conceptual explanations and hands-on practice. I also liked the fact that the author spends a lot of time telling you how to get help beyond the book. He spends pages explaining how best to use the online help. He may not cover everything, but he points you toward plenty of other tools that will fill the gaps.

Some caveats: Learning VBA on your own from a book is somewhat akin to learning a foreign language using only audiotapes and a textbook. It might not be for everybody. I give this book five stars, but it ain't a magic bullet!! This book worked for me because I was already proficient with a particular tool (MS Word) and had some specific goals in mind for what I wanted to accomplish with VBA, and was willing and able to put in a lot of time at the computer to meet those goals. If you don't have a tool and some goals of your own in mind, or don't have the time to devote to learning this stuff, your mileage may vary. But if you've got all that going for you, I don't think you'll find a better starting point than this.