Excel DDE connection to IB platform

[spindr0]

I have a number of Excel spreadsheets for use during trading (approx 100 quotes each). I'm drawing a fair number of quotes in the platform so I can only use one at a time since two puts me over the available data limit.

Some of the sheets load automatically when enabled. Others don't. I tried taking one that loads automatically, renaming it and putting in the symbols from one that doesn't. That didn't solve the problem implying that it's the system rather than the spreadsheet.

So that means that if the link doesn't start automatically, I have to click the CLEAR ALL icon, request a few quotes to get the link started. Then I have to highlight the first symbol and click the REQUEST DATA 100 times untill I get to the last symbol. Once all are linked, they update continuously as long as the sheet remains open.

I've written Excel macros to do this but they don't work. With the macro, the cursor doesn't move down a line to the next symbol. There's some sort of issue embedding an icon click in a macro - IT DOESN'T WORK !!!

Just wondering if the following has any relevance to the above. I've written macros and assigned them to buttons which work when clicked. However, when embedded in a macro, they don't work.

Any suggestions? Be gentle. Excel isn't my nativer language

TIA

 

[total_keops]

Worked with that a couple years ago. I am not quite sure what you are talking about exactly.
I think if you have one file opened, you close it, open a new one, then all links should open no problemo so I guess this is not your problem.
If you have 5 files opened on your computer and you move from one to the other (I dont get what you mean by "enable")I dont think it is supposed to work.
If this is what you want to do and you accept to write some code to update the links then I think it is possible. Maybe you need to call the clear all function before filling all the news requests. I think you can move from one cell to another in the code. Or you could also write the request formulas in the cells by the code with the right syntax and they should update. Look at the formulas of your requests in the Excel sheet and you should catch the pattern.
I can't open my Excel code right now cuz I have some processes running on my laptop that prenvent it for I dont know what reason. But if you have specific questions PM me and maybe I can answer.

 

[spindr0]

Thanks for the reply. I haven't read this board for awhile so I missed it.

Quote from total_keops:

I think if you have one file opened, you close it, open a new one, then all links should open no problemo so I guess this is not your problem.

If you have 5 files opened on your computer and you move from one to the other (I dont get what you mean by "enable")I dont think it is supposed to work.

I'm viewing one open file at a time. When done, closed and a new one opened

If this is what you want to do and you accept to write some code to update the links then I think it is possible. Maybe you need to call the clear all function before filling all the news requests. I think you can move from one cell to another in the code. Or you could also write the request formulas in the cells by the code with the right syntax and they should update. Look at the formulas of your requests in the Excel sheet and you should catch the pattern.

I can't open my Excel code right now cuz I have some processes running on my laptop that prenvent it for I dont know what reason. But if you have specific questions PM me and maybe I can answer.

I do not have AUTOMATIC UPDATE enabled. So when I open a sheet, there's an OPTIONS box and after opening it, I click ENABLE which opens the link. Other than extra clicks, getting this far this is no problem.

When enabled, some of my sheets immediately fill with quotes. No problem. Others don't and I have to click the CLEAR ALL icon, highlight the first symbol and then click the REQUEST MARKET DATA icon x number of times. If I have 100 symbols, I have to click 100 times. I have recorded macros to do this but they don't work because either ICON clicks don't work in macros or macros (assigned to Buttons) don't work in macros. Macros I've written that don't involve these two work just fine.

If sheet A updates immediately but sheet B doesn't when enabled (requiring 100 clicks), I have tried renaming sheet A and putting B's symbols into it under the assumption that there's something wrong with sheet B. That doesn't always fix the problem. So my assumption is that the system is quirky since the same basic sheet works some of the time. Therefore, I need a macro or code that requests data 100 times so I don't waste time clicking.

TIA for any ideas that may solve this.