eXLerate Your Scripts

In the late 1990s, when I first began using VBScript scripts to produce Windows NT administration reports for management, I had to work hard just to get the output into a presentable form. What began as echoed output to DOS was eventually transformed from a text file into a more appealing document, such as a Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel file.

To provide consistency in my reports, I soon settled on Excel. I hadn’t yet discovered that I could create Excel spreadsheets using VBScript scripts, but I knew I could embed tabs into my output and import tab-delimited files into Excel. From that point, sorting columns, calculating totals, and even adding charts became relatively easy tasks.

The managers in my organization liked Excel. Some of the more Excel-savvy managers would add pivot tables, graphs, and pie charts to the existing spreadsheet and send them to their managers. They could add their own analysis, fine-tuning, and flair to the overall presentation. So began my deep involvement with scripting and Excel. . . .