keymap-master v8.15 available!

[Mark Pierson]

The latest version of KM (v8.15) is available.

Changes include:

• Added 'DirecTV v1' & 'v2' remotes.
  (thanks to Mike England)
• Added 'Recent Files' selection drop-down (below command buttons).
• Fixed 'Dishplayer (Old)' error on remotes without it built-in.
• Modified 'fav/scan' button handling code.
• Modified KeyMoveStyle settings and logic.
• Modified button naming and lookup logic.
• Miscellaneous formula and VBA code enhancements.

[pH7_jp1]

Mark,

When I open this version of KM I get the following error:

"Microsoft Excel cannot calculate a formula. There is a circular reference in an open workbood, but the feferences that cause it cannot be listed for you. Try editing the last formula you entered or removing it with the Undo command (Edit menu)."

I am using Excel 97 - SR2 on Windows 2000.

[Mark Pierson]

There is a circular reference in an open workbood, but the feferences that cause it cannot be listed for you.

Those wookbood feferences will do it every time!

Actually, I'm going to have to dig into this a little further. It seems every so often, Excel likes to test my patience. It's becoming increasingly harder to work around the limitations of XL97. What was the last version of KM that worked for you?

Can you try one test for me?:

• Open KM WITHOUT macros enabled (if you're not prompted when opening the file, you'll need to change the Excel security settings first).
  
  Do you still get the circular reference error?
• DO NOT make any changes, and immediately resave KM (File, Save).
• Close KM.
• Open KM WITH macros enabled.
  
  Do you still get the error?

[Mark Pierson]

I'm going to have to dig into this a little further.

I think I found the problem, and have uploaded v8.15a. Please try it and let me know if the error is gone.

[pH7_jp1]

Sorry, V8.15a behaves the same, so here are the answers to your previous questions:

Open KM WITHOUT macros enabled (if you're not prompted when opening the file, you'll need to change the Excel security settings first).

Do you still get the circular reference error?

No, the error is gone.

DO NOT make any changes, and immediately resave KM (File, Save).

Close KM.

Open KM WITH macros enabled.

Do you still get the error?

Yes, but now it says workbook references instead of workbood feferences.

[Mark Pierson]

Sorry, V8.15a behaves the same

Odd... Mike England has tested 8.15a on XL97 for me, and did not get any errors.

Open KM WITHOUT macros enabled (if you're not prompted when opening the file, you'll need to change the Excel security settings first).

Do you still get the circular reference error?

No, the error is gone.

That makes sense since no VBA code is invoked in that scenario.

Open KM WITH macros enabled.

Do you still get the error?

Yes, but now it says workbook references instead of workbood feferences

Well, at least we fixed one problem!

For the moment, I'm stumped. Some more questions while I'm scratching my head :

What was the the last version of KM that worked properly for you?

Do you have any other spreadsheets open when you try KM?

Have you tried opening 8.15a immediately after rebooting the PC (which shouldn't be necessary under W2K, but I'd like test the theory)?

Has Jupiter aligned with Mars?

[Mark Pierson]

Are there any other XL97 users running KM 8.14/8.15/8.15a (with or without errors)?

[pH7_jp1]

What was the the last version of KM that worked properly for you?

It was 8.10, but I hadn't downloaded any version between, so this answer doesn't help much.

Do you have any other spreadsheets open when you try KM?

No.

Have you tried opening 8.15a immediately after rebooting the PC?

I did try it after you asked and it didn't change anything.

Has Jupiter aligned with Mars?

I didn't think to check and it's too cold here in Michigan to open the window to look.

[Mark Pierson]

It was 8.10, but I hadn't downloaded any version between, so this answer doesn't help much.

Well, it does give me a baseline to start with. However, there's been numerous changes/additions since 8.10, so tracking down something specific might not (ok, won't) be easy.

One more thing you can try is ensure that Excel's calculation mode is set to automatic. Close KM if it's open, and go to Tools, Options, Calculation, and make sure the Automatic radio button is selected. Then try opening 8.15a again. Chances are it won't make a difference, so I'm not getting my hopes up.

Has Jupiter aligned with Mars?

I didn't think to check and it's too cold here in Michigan to open the window to look.

Even if it hasn't, I suppose I can try spending the night at a Holiday Inn Express!


For the record, there's a good chance that the circular reference error is not really a circular reference at all (remember, this is MS we're dealing with). It seems that XL97's inferior calculation engine sometimes just dies, and it uses that error because it doesn't really know what the problem is.

The main differences between XL97 and newer versions is that XL97 recalcs EVERYTHING, whether or not it needs to be. Later versions supposedly only recalc cells directly affected by the last cell that was changed (which could be everything if the changes happen to cascade that way). In addition, XL97 can (and usually does) choke on user-defined functions (UDF's).

There was an uncalled UDF in 8.15 (which should have been harmless) that I removed in 8.15a, so the error is obviously being caused by something else.

[pH7_jp1]

One piece of information I should have mentioned sooner is that if I ignore the error, things do seem to work OK. This implies, to me, that calculation is automatic.

Is there somewhere at Yahoo that I can get all the intermediate versions? I would be glad to give them all a try.

[pH7_jp1]

This may be related or a completely independent problem.

My recently used files list had only one KM file in it. I chose that one. When the message was displayed asking if I want to overwrite I chose "No". Now the pull-down for the recently used files displays instead the list of remotes.

If I click on any other cell and then back into F6 again the list will be reset and correct again. Obviously a very minor problem, but I thought I would mention it in case it is could be a clue on the other problem.

[Mark Pierson]

That's more likely a problem with recalculation. If you watch the Excel status bar, it's probably still calculating when you open the drop-down.

I have a few things left to look into, but probably won't get anything uploaded until sometime later today.

[pH7_jp1]

No problem. None of this is preventing me from doing what I want.

Thanks.

[Mark Pierson]

I have to give a big thanks to Mike England who has spent a lot of time today trying to track this down for me. He's been able to duplicate the XL97 problem and has come up with a few workarounds. However, none of them are really acceptable to us at this time. Hopefully, we'll nail it down, and I'll be able to get a new version uploaded soon.

As I mentioned earlier, the error that you're seeing is not really a circular reference like the message says. It's XL97's way of saying "I give up and ain't gonna do no more!". It does appear, as you noted, that KM continues to function properly.

[mikemcgo]

I have Excel 97-SR2, and get the error with KM 8.15a. KM 8.14 worked fine.