Microsoft Says Visual Basic Returning to Office

by , 3:05 AM EDT, May 13th, 2008

Microsoft dropped Visual Basic for Applications with the release of Office 2008 for the Mac, but now plans to bring the macro scripting language back with the next version of its office application suite. Many long-time Office for the Mac users discovered that documents with macros broke after moving to Office 2008.

While Microsoft enhanced AppleScript and Automator support in Office 2008, many VBA macro users found that their documents simply failed to function properly and required rewritten scripts. The limitation also meant that documents that rely on VBA macros were no longer cross-platform compatible.

Company spokespeople commented "Although the Mac BU increased support in Office 2008 with alternate scripting tools such as Automator and AppleScript -- and also worked with MacTech Magazine to create a reference guide, the team recognizes that VBA-language support is important to a select group of customers who rely on sharing macros across platforms."

Craig Eisler, general manager of the Mac BU, added "As we set our course for future versions, we are working closely with customers and will also expand our staff to ensure that Office for Mac remains the most powerful and compatible productivity suite for Mac customers."

Microsoft did not offer a time frame for the release of the next version of Office for the Mac, but considering that the current version was released only a few months ago, it's likely VBA scripters will have to wait at least another year.