MacLochlainns Weblog

Microsoft Excel has many Visual Basic for Application (VBA) features that are seemingly not well understood. One of these features is passing a range value into a VBA procedure (a Sub) or function. The following example demonstrates how to pass a dynamic range to a local multiple dimensional array, and process the uploaded data in a VBA function.

I kept this as simple as possible to demonstrate the how to do this. The variable names were chosen to help read the syntax. Two loops are used to demonstrate (a) how you assign the range values to a multidimensional array, and (b) how you read the array values in your VBA code.

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Function dynamicArray(key As String, table As Range)
 
  ' Define the column starting cell, A maps to 1, B maps to 2, et cetera.
  Dim columnStart As Integer
  Dim columnSize As Integer
 
  ' Define the column starting cell, A maps to 1, B maps to 2, et cetera.
  Dim rowStart As Integer
  Dim rowSize As Integer
 
  ' Create a dynamic multiple dimension array.
  Dim multidimensionArray As Variant
 
  ' Assign the column and row values from the Range data type.
  columnStart = table.Column
  columnSize = table.Columns.Count
  rowStart = table.Row
  rowSize = table.Rows.Count
 
  ' This demonstrates that the range starts in the row and column, and
  ' the length and width of the multiple dimension array.
  MsgBox ("ColStart [" + CStr(columnStart) + "]" + _
          "ColSize [" + CStr(columnSize) + "]" + _
          "RowStart [" + CStr(rowStart) + "]" + _
          "RowSize [" + CStr(rowSize) + "]")
 
  ' Redimension the arrays maximum size.
  ReDim multidimensionArray(columnSize, rowSize)
 
  ' Read through the range and assign it to a local variable.
  For i = 0 To rowSize - 1
    For j = 0 To columnSize - 1
      multidimensionArray(i, j) = CStr(Cells(rowStart + i, columnStart + j))
    Next j
  Next i
 
  ' Read through the local variable range and view the content set.
  For i = 0 To rowSize - 1
    For j = 0 To columnSize - 1
      MsgBox ("Array(" + CStr(i) + "," + CStr(j) + ")[" + CStr(multidimensionArray(i, j)) + "]")
    Next j
  Next i
 
  ' Return a string that confirms the data transferred from a Range to a local variable.
  dynamicArray = "Corrdinate sizes (row, column) (" + CStr(rowSize) + ", " + CStr(columnSize) + ")"
 
End Function

As always, I hope this helps others looking for a way to perform this task natively in Microsoft Excel. As an addendum, I thought the absence of a code example for VB on the MSDN web page was quite interesting.

A colleague asked how a User Defined Function (UDF) could simplify their grading. They were using a VLOOKUP() function and range component that they’d copy into spreadsheets generated from Blackboard.

You typically want a letter grade before you transcribe it into the student record system. What you usually start with is a percentage and a defined range of percentages that map to letter grades. While you can solve that probelm with a VLOOKUP() function, is it the best way. I’d suggest this type of activity is ideally suited to a UDF solution.

The VLOOKUP() function call in cell C2 is:

=VLOOKUP(B2,$E$2:$G$13,MATCH("Letter Grade",$E$1:$G$1,FALSE),TRUE)

A User Defined Function (UDF) can replace the VLOOKUP() function, the nested MATCH() function, and lookup range. You create a record type, like VirtualLookup, which must be defined outside of a subroutine or function. Data types must be defined before any function or subroutine in a module. It’s generally a good idea to make these available in other modules by making them Public.

' Define a record type (must happen outside of a function or sub block.
Type VirtualLookupRecord
  lowerLimit As Double
  upperLimit As Double
  letterGrade As String * 2    ' A variable length string up to 2 characters.
End Type

You leverage that User Defined Type (UDT) when you define the function. In this example, you create a fifteen element array of the record structure. The example defines an array with 1-based numbering index. The default for Microsoft Excel is 0-based numbering. You would define a 0-based numbered array of fifteen elements like this:

Dim VirtualLookup(15) As VirtualLookup

Since the formal parameter of the function is optional, you need an if-block to replace a null value with a zero. Then, you need a loop to read through the array and find where the call parameter value is within the lower and upper grade range values. When it finds a match, it assigns the letter grade to a variable and then breaks out (exits) the loop. If you implement this, don’t forget to comment out the debugging MsgBox() function call.

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' Define a function to convert a percentage into a letter grade.
Function letterGrade(Optional percentage As Double = 0)
 
  ' Define a return variable
  Dim grade As String * 2
 
  ' Define a single dimension array of a UDT (record)
  Dim VirtualLookup(1 To 12) As VirtualLookupRecord
 
  ' Record initialization
  VirtualLookup(1).lowerLimit = 0.93
  VirtualLookup(1).upperLimit = 1#
  VirtualLookup(1).letterGrade = "A"
  VirtualLookup(2).lowerLimit = 0.9
  VirtualLookup(2).upperLimit = 0.93
  VirtualLookup(2).letterGrade = "A-"
  VirtualLookup(3).lowerLimit = 0.87
  VirtualLookup(3).upperLimit = 0.9
  VirtualLookup(3).letterGrade = "B+"
  VirtualLookup(4).lowerLimit = 0.83
  VirtualLookup(4).upperLimit = 0.87
  VirtualLookup(4).letterGrade = "B"
  VirtualLookup(5).lowerLimit = 0.8
  VirtualLookup(5).upperLimit = 0.83
  VirtualLookup(5).letterGrade = "B-"
  VirtualLookup(6).lowerLimit = 0.77
  VirtualLookup(6).upperLimit = 0.8
  VirtualLookup(6).letterGrade = "C+"
  VirtualLookup(7).lowerLimit = 0.74
  VirtualLookup(7).upperLimit = 0.77
  VirtualLookup(7).letterGrade = "C"
  VirtualLookup(8).lowerLimit = 0.7
  VirtualLookup(8).upperLimit = 0.73
  VirtualLookup(8).letterGrade = "C-"
  VirtualLookup(9).lowerLimit = 0.67
  VirtualLookup(9).upperLimit = 0.7
  VirtualLookup(9).letterGrade = "D+"
  VirtualLookup(10).lowerLimit = 0.64
  VirtualLookup(10).upperLimit = 0.67
  VirtualLookup(10).letterGrade = "D"
  VirtualLookup(11).lowerLimit = 0.6
  VirtualLookup(11).upperLimit = 0.63
  VirtualLookup(11).letterGrade = "D-"
  VirtualLookup(12).lowerLimit = 0#
  VirtualLookup(12).upperLimit = 0.6
  VirtualLookup(12).letterGrade = "F"
 
  ' Read through the possible lookup array values.
  For i = 1 To (UBound(VirtualLookup) + 1)
 
    ' Assign a grade if the percentage criterion or criteria match.
    If percentage > VirtualLookup(1).lowerLimit Then
      grade = VirtualLookup(1).letterGrade
      ' Exit the loop.
      Exit For
    ElseIf percentage > 0 And _
           percentage >= VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit And _
           percentage < VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit Then
      grade = VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade
      Exit For
    Else
      grade = "UW"
    End If
 
  Next i
 
  ' A debug message (remark out for deployment).
  MsgBox ("Completed [" + grade + "]")
 
  ' Return the letter grade.
  letterGrade = grade
 
End Function

Somebody asked for a variable array set by the input parameters. That’s a bit more programming and requires understanding the two types of array initialization and the difference between 0-based and 1-based numbering systems. Since this program assigns a constructed Array type to a Variant data type variable, 0-based arrays are consistently used in the example. That’s a change from the foregoing example.

Here is a function that lets you set the hundredth limits to something other than the traditional .x3 and .x7. It substitutes default values if you attempt to enter something greater than a tenth for either limit.

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' Define a function to convert a percentage into a letter grade.
Function letterGrade(Optional percentage As Double = 0, _
                     Optional minusTenth As Double = 0.03, _
                     Optional plusTenth As Double = 0.07)
 
  ' Define a variable length string variable.
  Dim grade As String * 2
 
  ' Define local variables.
  Dim minusInverse As Double
  Dim plusInverse As Double
  Dim tenth As Double
 
  ' Assign value to counter.
  Dim counter As Double
 
  ' Define a single dimension array of a UDT (record).
  Dim LetterGrades As Variant
  Dim VirtualLookup(0 To 11) As VirtualLookupRecord
 
  ' Fix incorrect numeric data entry of lower bound.
  If minusTenth >= 0.1 Then
    minusTenth = 0.03
  End If
 
  ' Fix incorrect numeric data entry of upper bound.
  If plusTenth >= 0.1 Then
    plusTenth = 0.07
  End If
 
  ' Assign values to local variables.
  counter = 1#
  minusInverse = 0.1 - minusTenth
  plusInverse = 0.1 - plusTenth
  tenth = 0.1
 
  ' Initialize letter array.
  LetterGrades = Array("A", "A-", "B+", "B", "B-", "C+", "C", "C-", "D+", "D", "D-", "F")
 
  ' Use the array of letter grades to dynamically assign lower and upper bounds.
  For i = 0 To UBound(LetterGrades)
 
    ' There are three models for grades.
    ' -------------------------------------------------------------------
    '  [If]    =[A]     Has two possible values, a + or unadorned.
    '  [ElseIf]=[B,C,D] Have three possible values, a +, -, or unadorned.
    '  [ElseIf]=[F]     Has only an unadorned.
    ' -------------------------------------------------------------------
    If Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = "A" Then
 
      ' The grade is one character for an unadorned grade.
      If Len(LetterGrades(i)) = 1 Then
        VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = counter - minusInverse
        VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter
        VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
 
      ' The grade is more than one character and second character a minus.
      ElseIf Len(LetterGrades(i)) > 1 And Mid(LetterGrades(i), 2, 1) = "-" Then
        VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = counter - tenth
        VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter - minusInverse
        VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
      End If
 
    ElseIf Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = "B" Or _
           Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = "C" Or _
           Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = "D" Then
 
      ' The grade is one character for an unadorned grade.
      If Len(LetterGrades(i)) = 1 Then
        VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = counter - minusInverse
        VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter - plusInverse
        VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
 
      ' The grade is more than one character.
      ElseIf Len(LetterGrades(i)) > 1 Then
 
        ' The second character is a plus.
        If Mid(LetterGrades(i), 2, 1) = "+" Then
          VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = counter - plusInverse
          VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter
          VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
 
        ' The second character is a minus.
        ElseIf Mid(LetterGrades(i), 2, 1) = "-" Then
          VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = counter - tenth
          VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter - minusInverse
          VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
        End If
 
      End If
 
    ElseIf Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = "F" Then
 
      VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit = 0#
      VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit = counter
      VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade = LetterGrades(i)
 
    End If
 
    ' Debug message demonstrating the changed values of the dynamically
    ' constructed array (remark out for deployment).
    ' MsgBox (" Counter [" + CStr(counter) + _
    '         "] Index [" + CStr(i) + _
    '         "] Grade [" + CStr(LetterGrades(i)) + _
    '         "] LLimit [" + CStr(VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit) + _
    '         "] ULimit [" + CStr(VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit) + "]")
    
    ' Increment the tenth value when letter grades change, like A to B, et cetera.
    If LetterGrades(i) = LetterGrades(UBound(LetterGrades)) Then
 
      ' Force a loop exit to avoid reading past the last index value.
      Exit For
 
    ElseIf Not Left(LetterGrades(i), 1) = Left(LetterGrades(i + 1), 1) Then
 
      ' Decrement the tenth placeholder.
      counter = counter - tenth
 
    End If
 
  Next i
 
  ' Read through the possible lookup array values.
  For i = 0 To UBound(VirtualLookup)
 
    ' Assign a grade if the percentage criterion or criteria match, and
    ' force loop exits until the last element of the array is read.
    ' -------------------------------------------------------------------
    '  [If]     Assumes an A is always the first letter.
    '  [ElseIf] Handles all numbers greater than zero.
    '  [Else]   Assumes a zero or null indicate an unofficial withdrawal.
    ' -------------------------------------------------------------------
    If percentage > VirtualLookup(0).lowerLimit Then
 
      ' Assign grade, alsways the first element of the array.
      grade = VirtualLookup(0).letterGrade
 
      ' Force a loop exit when match found.
      Exit For
 
    ElseIf percentage > 0 And _
           percentage >= VirtualLookup(i).lowerLimit And _
           percentage < VirtualLookup(i).upperLimit Then
 
      ' Assign grade.
      grade = VirtualLookup(i).letterGrade
 
      ' Force a loop exit.
      Exit For
 
    Else
 
      ' Assign grade.
      grade = "UW"
 
    End If
 
  Next i
 
  ' A debug message (remark out for deployment).
  ' MsgBox ("Completed [" + grade + "]")
 
  ' Return the letter grade.
  letterGrade = grade
 
End Function

I hope this helps folks that have to perform grading activities in Excel.

Microsoft Excel supports macros but it also supports library functions, known as User Defined Functions (UDF). Library functions are less risky than macros because they must return a value to a cell. This is a quick tutorial, mostly for my students, but as usual for anybody who’s interested.

Microsoft Excel User Defined Functions (UDFs) are different than standard VBA macros. They’re behavior is restricted. You can’t access other cells in a workbook, and may only return a value (also known as an expression) to the cell that uses the formula. That having been said, they can dramatically hide the complexity of mega-formulas and remove them from the editing control of users.

Here are the steps to configure your Excel 2007 environment to work with Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) and UDFs. They show you how to display the developer ribbon, open a module for editing, save VBA code into a library (*.xlam file), and add the library file as an “Add-in” library to your Excel 2007 installation. The name of the library will be the same as the Workbook where you created it.

1. Displaying Excel’s Developer Tab

2. Click the Developer ribbon tab. Click the left most icon to launch the Visual Basic Editor screen.

3. Open a Module in the Visual Basic Editor by clicking the Insert menu item and choosing the Module element.

4. Copy the following function definition into the open Module. The name of the UDF will be the case-sensistive name of the function in the VBA module. That means you’ll now have a newSerialDate function in your list of functions when you click the insert function button.

=monthEnd(cell_reference)

Public Function newSerialDate(dateIn)
 
  ' Define local variables.
  Dim day As String
  Dim month As String
  Dim year As String
  Dim startPosition As Integer
  Dim endPosition As Integer
  Dim length As Integer
 
  ' Initialize local variables and parse the month from the left.
  startPosition = 1
  endPosition = InStr(startPosition, dateIn, "/")
  month = Left(dateIn, endPosition - 1)
 
  ' This is a debugging tool to track variables during execution.
  MsgBox ("Month [" + month + "]")
 
  ' Shift the start position and parse the day from the middle.
  startPosition = endPosition + 1
  endPosition = InStr(startPosition, dateIn, "/")
  day = Mid(dateIn, startPosition, endPosition - startPosition)
 
  ' This is a debugging tool to track variables during execution.
  MsgBox ("Day [" + day + "]")
 
  ' Get the remainder of the string.
  startPosition = endPosition
  length = Len(dateIn) - startPosition
  year = Right(dateIn, length)
 
  ' This is a debugging tool to track variables during execution.
  MsgBox ("Year [" + year + "]")
 
  ' Return a value from a User Defined Function (UDF) by using
  ' the function name as the return variable.
  newSerialDate = DateSerial(year, month, day)
 
End Function

Function newSerialDate(dateIn As Double)
  newSerialDate = dateIn
End Function

Function newSerialDate(dateIn)
  newSerialDate = DateValue(dateIn)
End Function

5. Create the following spreadsheet, the formula values are noted below the screen shot. You should be able to copy and past them into the spreadsheet. After you’ve created the spreadsheet, entering a new date in cell A1 causes the UDF to run. When the UDF runs “as-is”, you’ll see message dialog boxes that show values set during runtime.

6. You can now save this as an Add In library but comment out those debug MsgBox() function calls. Click the Office Button and click SaveAs in the menu, then accept Excel Workbook initially. When you get to the SaveAs dialog, choose Excel Add-In as the file type. Below is a screen capture of the drop down selection box.

7. Open a new Excel Workbook. Click the Excel Options button. Click the Add-Ins tab. Inside the right side pane, make sure the Manage drop down says Excel Add-ins before you click the Go button.

8. Check the Samplefunction check box as shown below. Samplefunction is the name of the Workbook that contains the module, and it is saved as an *.xlam file. Click the OK button to add the library. You’ve now created, and added an Add-In library to your new spreadsheet. It will create a SampleFunction.xlam file in the users directory.

The file is found by default in:

C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\AddIns

As always, I hope this is helpful to a few folks.

As I’ve mentioned before, I try to support Oracle, MySQL, and SQL Server in my database classes. When I downloaded SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition, I just downloaded the Database with Management Tools. That’s the one on the first page and shown on the left.

It appears what I really wanted was the Database with Advanced Services because I found basic features weren’t available in the Database with Management Tools version. So, you should click the Other Installation Options link. On that page you can choose between the various options.

For example, you can’t use an IF statement or local variable assignment. Also, the available data types are a subset of the mainline product. You can’t use a VARCHAR but must use the NVARCHAR. Many features of the Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio are removed too. A brief forum discussion shows that these types of problem exist in other versions too.

I thought a couple quick examples of raised exceptions would be helpful. They’re listed below.

Missing IF Syntax:

IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_NAME = 'CORE_SYSTEM_USER')
  DROP TABLE CORE_SYSTEM_USER
GO

Generated error message:

Major Error 0x80040E14, Minor Error 25501
> IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_NAME = 'CORE_SYSTEM_USER')
  DROP TABLE CORE_SYSTEM_USER
There was an error parsing the query. [ Token line number = 1,Token line offset = 1,Token IN error = IF ]

Local variable assignment Syntax:

DECLARE @table_name nvarchar(30)
 
@table_name = SELECT table_name FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_NAME = 'CORE_SYSTEM_USER'
GO

Generated error message:

Major Error 0x80040E14, Minor Error 25501
> DECLARE @table_name nvarchar(30)
 
@table_name = SELECT table_name FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_NAME = 'CORE_SYSTEM_USER'
There was an error parsing the query. [ Token line number = 1,Token line offset = 1,Token IN error = DECLARE ]

After I clear out the install and retry it with the other, I’ll update this as to whether or not these are available in the Database with Advanced Services SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition.

I popped for QuickTime Pro for Windows 7 ($29.99). The reason for doing so, was to create native screen capture that would integrate with Mac Adobe Premiere Pro, CS4. That’s because my Camtasia output didn’t work due to a compression mismatch.

Unfortunately, QuickTime Pro on Windows 7 doesn’t support screen capture. Quite a difference between what the product does on a Mac OS X versus a Windows 7 OS. I thought only Microsoft shorted users on the other platform, like Microsoft Excel 2007 versus Microsoft Excel 2008 (a far inferior product). Oops, I was wrong! Apple does it too.

Ruairi asked how you could disable automatic start of the Oracle Service for Oracle 11g on Windows 7 (a comment here). Ruairi also provided a nice Windows shell script that you can copy for starting and stopping the Oracle Service in his last comment.

The simplest way is to launch a command shell because I don’t want to provide all the navigation variations for different Windows versions.

Basically, you do that by clicking the Windows Start button and type cmd word in the run entry box. This launches a command session. Type the following from the prompt. It launches the Windows Services console in all relevant versions:

C:\> services.msc

Now you’ll see the Windows Services console. Navigate to the Oracle Service and right click on it. You choose Properties.

That will bring you to this screen. Click on the drop down for the Startup type and choose Manual. Click the OK button to complete the step. That’s it, the next time you start the machine the Oracle database won’t start automatically. You should do the same to the other Oracle Services.

If you don’t have a lot of memory and it’s a development machine, this makes a lot of sense.

This is probably defensive because I’ve had to answer the question about two dozen times since the iPad product announcement. The question is naturally, what do yo think about the iPad?

My perspective is biased by the fact that I’ve been using both DOS/Windows PCs and Macs since the 1980s. They each have merits but in short, unlike the media, I have a bias toward Apple products. In fact, I’m an old NeXT system administrator (software gone from the scene because as rumors have it, Steve wouldn’t think of letting the company become ONLY a software company).

I think the idea of the iPad for eBooks is awesome, the features are terrific. It clearly is a better opportunity for my digital movies but a bit awkward because of its size.

I can’t travel with an iPad by itself because it doesn’t support Microsoft Excel, Word, or Visio. That means I’d have to have my MacBook Pro and iPad. Ouch, the security folks will go nuts at the airport, and my bags are now heavier by about 2 pounds. The iPad is 1.5 pounds but the charger has weight too.

I understand all the logic for the device but there’s an underlying assumption in placing everything on the web. Some data can’t be on the web because of legal limits. This goes to my sticking point. Apple’s Office Suite isn’t as robust as Microsoft’s Office Suite. Keynote is easier to use and easily preferred over PowerPoint, but Numbers isn’t even close to Excel (here Apple fails). The problem with Pages is that many companies have templates built around Word and there’s no easy migration back and forth.

Perhaps Apple will reach out to Power Excel users and invest in Numbers to bring it into this millennium; and maybe they’ll also fix the portability between Word and Pages too. For example, one company I work with insists that I use Word 2003 because they’ve never updated their templates to Word 2007 (easy to do through VMWare Fusion). Then, all that’s needed is a rock solid replacement for Visio on Mac OS X.

I think that I might buy one to experiment with, just so I’m current with the product and new features. I’ve also got some product ideas that I’d like to explore but I don’t think this is a home-run like the iPod and iPhone without vitualization software to enable Windows. As an afterthought, maybe the announcement this summer will be “you can have it all now” when they port most features to the core OS X operating system. That would induce me to upgrade my MacBook Pro, wouldn’t it get you to do so too?

Holiday Gift from Microsoft

Windows 7 ships. Then, we find it’s really Windows Vista+ (code base 6.1). Now, Microsoft give us a late year present, the Microsoft Black Screen of Death. What better excuse to rush out and buy a MacBook Pro?

Holiday Gift from Apple

Buying a MacBook Pro makes sense if you don’t already have one. Owning one, I’m hesitant to upgrade my MacBook Pro because the battery in the new one requires a service call when the battery wears out. An expensive item because the battery life is generally poor after 1,000 recharge cycles and that number of recharges may or may not occur before your Applecare service contract runs out.

Battery life/replacement is one of the reasons why I’ve stayed on my old MacBook Pro (purchased 16 months ago). The other reason is that I plan on getting by with a MacBook Pro for 4 to 5 years not Apple’s apparent plannned obsolescence of 3 years. While I’m in the gripe mode, the new Apple Cinema Display is attractive but not compatible with older MacBook Pro or MacBook computers. Also, the Altona DVI to Mini Display Port has mixed reviews out there and Apple seems disinterested in helping owners of older machines use the new Cinema screens. There aren’t any other alternatives to the Altona product (at least that I’ve found). I almost feel that somebody at Apple watched the movie Robots too often because it seems my 16 month old MacBook Pro is an outmode and there isn’t an upgrade option (only a new purchase).

Installed Zend Community Edition on Windows 7 64-bit. It worked easily. You just need to remember to install the JSDK 32-bit version for the Java Bridge. Clear notation about phpMyAdmin and MySQL being separate downloads has been added to the new Zend Community Edition Server (4.0.6), and it clearly does support Windows 7.

If you plan on installing MySQL and Oracle, I would recommend you install MySQL after you install Oracle and the Zend Community Server. However, it doesn’t matter because both ways work.

That completes my WAMP (Windows, Apache, MySQL, Perl, PHP, or Python) and OPAW (Oracle, Perl, PHP, or Python, Apache, Windows) installations. Actually, I’m not sure there is an OPAW acronym for a LAMP stack running Oracle on a Windows platform. OPAL is the acronym for a LAMP stack running an Oracle database, but I’ve never seen one before for Windows. Therefore, I created one.

My two cents worth …

I’d vote for clearer guidance on these acronyms. After all, they’re only purpose appears to be how to market variants of LAMP. The variants that I’ve seen for LAMP (Linux) are: MAMP (Mac OS X), SCAMP (Santa Cruz Operation), SAMP (Solaris), OAMP (OpenBSD, and WAMP (Windows) for MySQL database versions. The key seems to be swapping the first letter. I’ve only seen OPAL (Linux) officially for a LAMP stack that uses an Oracle database on a Linux platform. While my OPAW leverages what I perceive as a possible pattern, it may be wrong. Does anybody know what the right way to label these is?

I finally got around to installing Oracle 11g on Windows 7 Professional Edition, 64-bit. The only catch was that the Oracle 11g (11.1.0.7) installer validates only against Windows 5.0, 5.1, 5.2 or 6.0. Windows 7 is actually Windows Code Base 6.1, as seen in this screen shot after successful installation:

With that knowledge, first you should download the software from Oracle’s web site. You should unzip the contents into another directory. I used a C:\Stage directory. Inside that you’ll find the database directory, and it should look like this:

1. Click on the setup icon to launch the installer. You should then see the following screen shot. Enter a password for the SYS and SYSTEM users (if you’re coming to Oracle from a MySQL background they’re like the root user in MySQL). When you’ve entered a matching password in both fields, the Install button becomes active. Click the Install button to proceed.

2. In this screen, you’re prompted for your Email and MetaLink Password. If this is a test database (a throw away instance without any real data), you can uncheck the box for automatic security updates. You should enter a password even for test databases. Click the Next button to proceed.

3. You’ll only see this failure if you’re installing Oracle 11g (11.1.0.7) on a Windows 7 operating system, which is actually version 6.1 according to their code control numbering. You simply check the Checking operating system requirements … and Checking service pack requirements … to override the prerequisite checks. Another error that you may encounter is related to networking. It is a warning and occurs when you’re operating system uses DHCP to get its IP address. You really should configure the operating system with a static IP address. You can set a static IP address in Windows 7 with these instructions.

The checked boxes now say User Verified, which means we’re all really powerful, aren’t we? Click the Next button to proceed.

4. At this point, you’ll get a Windows System Alert asking you to unblock the installer’s javaw.exe program. You must grant the access or forget about installing Oracle 11g. Click the Allow access button to proceed.

5. The dialog tells you what will be installed. Click the Install button to proceed.

6. This is the installation progress dialog. It’s running while the Oracle Installer lays down the operating system files for the database management system. It takes about 8 to 9 minutes, so stretch your legs if you want to take a break. When it’s 100% complete, click the Next button to continue.

7. After the installation, you’ll see the first of the Configuration Assistants, which is the Oracle Net Configuration Assistant (unfortunately, I didn’t capture that screen shot but I provided a temporary substitute until I re-install it). Provided everything happens successfully, it’ll move to the next step without your intervention.

8. This one is exactly where it belongs. It means you have approximately a 5 to 6 minute break while a sample database instance is cloned for you. The cloning process copies a sample compressed database from the installation staging area to your local operating system.

9. The last Configuration Assistant is the Oracle Configuration Manager Configuration. It’s a short process, it configures the cloned sample database against your installation names and passwords. When it completes it enables the Next button. Click the Next button to complete the installation.

10. You’ve finally reached almost the end of the installation. Click the Exit button on this dialog to proceed to the “are you sure” dialog box.

You’ve successfully installed Oracle 11g on Windows 7.