Excel 2003 - Broken ActiveX

[ronjon65]

So this has me freaking out. I get "cannot insert object" when trying to add a list box. A google search turns up a solution for other version of Excel, but nothing for 2003. I tried deleting the .exd files and rebooting and that does not fix it.

http://excelmatters.com/tag/cannot-insert-object/

Is there just no fix for 2003? I need to use 2003 for compatibility mode (a lot of businesses still use this version). I guess I can go to a more recent version of Excel, but I really feel comfortable in 2003 and its good for compatibility.

[ronjon65]

I found a workaround. It looks you can copy/paste controls from other sheets. I don't happen have one with a list box though (at least not handy). Any help with that?

[SamT]

View Menu >> ToolsBars >> Control ToolBox. Click the Control on the ToolBox Menu Bar, then Click the sheet where you want it.

[ronjon65]

View Menu >> ToolsBars >> Control ToolBox. Click the Control on the ToolBox Menu Bar, then Click the sheet where you want it.

Maybe I am confused, but have you looked at the provided link? The issue is that a MS broke ActiveX controls with an update (recently). You are stating the normal way to access them, but this won't work for the specified reason. Furthermore, while there are fixes for various version Excel, it appears MS did not provide a fix for 2003.

[SamT]

Have you looked at my signature block at the bottom of my posts? That particular issue did not affect Office XP.

[ronjon65]

I am not sure what I should be looking for? Is there something in the FAQ that discusses the ActiveX issue? I didn't see anything. And with respect to question at hand, I am not sure what XP has to do with 2003? Maybe you are just addressing a potential questions someone may have about XP though? Perhaps 2003 lies right in between unaffected and patched.

[Aflatoon]

Are you sure you got all the .exd files?

If so, uninstalling the patch in question is probably the only option left.

[ronjon65]

Well, I did a search and there were 3 .exd files, which I renamed to "old" versions. I didn't know you could actually uninstall the patch. Maybe I will look into it. I saw on another forum, someone had the same problem with 2003 and never got it to work.

That said, it looks like you can still copy controls from another file, so this is a reasonable workaround. Maybe if someone could generate a file with all the controls and save it down to Excel 2003, that could be used a file to copy from. I have some of the controls in other files, but am missing a few.

[Aflatoon]

You could use the Form controls instead. They're more stable and don't suffer from being broken when MS patches something!

[ronjon65]

But form controls not compatible with some tools that protect the VBA code. They are also more limited in appearance, etc.

[SamT]

Upload a blank Workbook, just to see what happens.