Error Alert

Defines the error message that is displayed when invalid data is entered in a cell.

You can also start a macro with an error message. A sample macro is provided at the end of this page.

To access this command...

Choose Data - Validity - Error Alert tab.

Show error message when invalid values are entered.

Displays the error message that you enter in the Contents area when invalid data is entered in a cell. If unmarked, the message is displayed to prevent an invalid entry.

In both cases, if you select "Stop", the invalid entry is deleted and the previous value is re-entered in the cell. The same applies if you close the "Warning" and "Information" dialogue boxes by clicking the Cancel button. If you close the dialogue boxes with the OK button, the invalid entry is not deleted.

Action

Select the action that you want to occur when invalid data is entered in a cell. The "Stop" action rejects the invalid entry and displays a dialogue box that you have to close by clicking OK. The "Warning" and "Information" actions display a dialogue box that can be closed by clicking OK or Cancel. The invalid entry is only rejected when you click Cancel.

Browse

Opens the Macro dialogue box in which you can select the macro that is executed when invalid data is entered in a cell. The macro is executed after the error message is displayed.

Title

Enter the title of the macro or the error message that you want to display when invalid data is entered in a cell.

Error message

Enter the message that you want to display when invalid data is entered in a cell.

Sample macro:

Below is a sample function that can be called when an error occurs. Note that the macro takes in two parameters that are passed on by Office when the function is called:

CellValue: The value entered by the user, as a String.
CellAddress: The address of the cell where the value was entered, as a String prefixed with the sheet name (e.g: "Sheet1.A1").

The function must return a Boolean value. If it returns True, the entered value is kept. If the function returns False, the entered value is erased and the previous value is restored.


    Function ExampleValidity(CellValue as String, CellAddress as String) as Boolean
        Dim msg as String
        Dim iAnswer as Integer
        Dim MB-FLAGS as Integer
        msg = "Invalid value: " & "'" & CellValue & "'"
        msg = msg & " in cell: " & "'" & CellAddress & "'"
        msg = msg & Chr(10) & "Accept anyway?"
        MB-FLAGS = MB-YESNO + MB-ICONEXCLAMATION + MB-DEFBUTTON2
        iAnswer = MsgBox (msg , MB-FLAGS, "Error message")
        ExampleValidity = (iAnswer = IDYES)
    End Function