Is it possible to sort a table by entry modification date? Specifically, how to access from VBA the last modification time of an object?

Question

I have a MS Word document where I accumulate and frequently modify certain data in a very long table. So I would like to sort the data by latest modification time in the rows. Of course if I add a column where I enter the modification time by hand this would work but I would like to avoid this if possible.

OK as the question has been put on hold with the request to make it more concrete, I am trying to modify it accordingly.

What I specifically want (and then I can do it myself) is this:

Since MS Word has features like change tracking, each modified portion of text must have its last modification time recorded in some form.

My question is then - how can I access this information from within a Visual Basic macro? I mean something like ThisTable.ThisCell.ModificationTime() or ThatTable.CurrentRow.LastModificationSessionTime() or something similar.

Answer 1

This is for an Excel worksheet. Data is entered or modified in column A. The macro automatically enters the date/time in column B. The macro then sorts column A & B by column B, putting the most recent at the top.

Enter the following event macro in the worksheet code area:

Private Sub Worksheet_Change(ByVal Target As Range)
    Dim A As Range
    Dim AB As Range
    Set A = Range("A:A")
    Set AB = Range("A:B")

    If Intersect(Target, A) Is Nothing Then Exit Sub
    If Target.Count > 1 Then Exit Sub
    Application.EnableEvents = False
        Target.Offset(0, 1) = Now
        AB.Sort Key1:=Range("B1"), Order1:=xlDescending, Header:=xlNo, _
            OrderCustom:=1, MatchCase:=False, Orientation:=xlTopToBottom, _
            DataOption1:=xlSortNormal
    Application.EnableEvents = True
End Sub

Because it is worksheet code, it is very easy to install and automatic to use:

1. right-click the tab name near the bottom of the Excel window
2. select View Code - this brings up a VBE window
3. paste the stuff in and close the VBE window

If you have any concerns, first try it on a trial worksheet.

If you save the workbook, the macro will be saved with it. If you are using a version of Excel later then 2003, you must save the file as .xlsm rather than .xlsx

To remove the macro:

1. bring up the VBE windows as above
2. clear the code out
3. close the VBE window

To learn more about macros in general, see:

http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/getstarted.htm

and

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee814735(v=office.14).aspx

To learn more about Event Macros (worksheet code), see:

http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/event.htm

Macros must be enabled for this to work!