Why don't recorded macros include the parameters and is there any way round this?

[martink]

I want to do something which is really straightforward in Excel (and I have Excel 97, so it’s been straightforward for 20 years!) but which seems to be impossible with Libreoffice Calc: record a macro and play it back. And a very simple macro too: just hide three columns (so, I record the following actions: select columns B & C, then right-click and “Hide”)
I can record the macro fine, but when I play it back it does nothing: looking at the macro code I can see this:

dispatcher.executeDispatch(document, ".uno:HideColumn", "", 0, Array())

Presumably I could put the appropriate column names somewhere in the parameters there, but I cannot anywhere find some straightforward documentation which tells me what these parameters should look like.
I’ld be grateful if someone could tell me either (preferably) how to get parameters into recorded macros, or (alternatively) where to find some simple documentation that would show me what these parameters should look like.

Incredible that Libreoffice is incapable of doing something simple that Excel could do 20 years ago, no?

[Pansmanser]

This seems to work for me in LO5.2.2 under Ubuntu 16.04. The macro requires no parameters, because the columns are selected.
What version/os?

[mark_t]

Recorded macro does not seem to include selection of columns that were selected while the macro was being recorded. If you record a macro of selecting cells then you can edit that recorded macro to select the two columns and then join the recorded macro with the hide columns macro.

Recording selection of two cells gives the following

sub Main

dim document   as object
dim dispatcher as object

document   = ThisComponent.CurrentController.Frame
dispatcher = createUnoService("com.sun.star.frame.DispatchHelper")

dim args1(0) as new com.sun.star.beans.PropertyValue
args1(0).Name = "ToPoint"
args1(0).Value = "$L$1:$M$1"

dispatcher.executeDispatch(document, ".uno:GoToCell", "", 0, args1())

end sub

Then Edit to change "$L$1:$M$1" to "$L:$M". And Add the line to hide the columns selected as follows:

sub Main

dim document   as object
dim dispatcher as object

document   = ThisComponent.CurrentController.Frame
dispatcher = createUnoService("com.sun.star.frame.DispatchHelper")

dim args1(0) as new com.sun.star.beans.PropertyValue
args1(0).Name = "ToPoint"
args1(0).Value = "$L:$M"

dispatcher.executeDispatch(document, ".uno:GoToCell", "", 0, args1())

dispatcher.executeDispatch(document, ".uno:HideColumn", "", 0, Array())

end sub

Recording macros is not always effective. Excel is better than LibreOffice for this but still the code generated is very inefficient and almost always requires manual edit to make the macro more general in its application. If you intend creating macros I’d recommend taking a look at Andrew Pitonyak’s book, Open Office Macros Explained.

OOME_3_0.pdf

Also maybe refer to his site
Book Site Link

[mark_t]

Note I’m currently using LibreOffice 5.2.2.2 64 bit on Windows 8.1.

[peterwt]

Recording a macro to hide cells works for me and the macro hides the cells. A sample is here Hide.ods

You should be aware though that the cells will not be hidden until you protect the sheet. It states in the Cell Protection Tab in Format Cells that “Cell Protection is only effective after the current sheet has been protected”.

If you run the macro in my sample the cells are not hidden. When you protect the sheet they become hidden.

The macro in my sample was recorded and no modifications made.

[mark_t]

@peterwt: Recording a macro to select cells does work, but recording a macro to select columns does not. Columns need to be selected before columns can be hidden. @martink was trying to created a macro to hide columns which was why I suggested workaround to edit recorded macro to change from cell selection to column selection.

[Wooflibre]

Yup, incredible that LibreOffice does not record in a macro what a PERSON, meaning a human being, WANTS to record in that macro. Why does this not bother the programmers of this program is beyond me.
Is the main point of LibreOffice to keep as many people as possible from using LibreOffice?

Why is it that programmers can no longer think like humans?