Excel APp in VB.net VS2008

Question

I am creating a excel application in VB.net using VisualStudio 2008.

while adding reference Microsoft.office.interop.excel we have both managed ( On the .NET TAB) and unmanaged (on the COM TAB).

currently i am referencing the COM tab but it is not showing the errors properly.

can i use the excel interop on .NET tab?

which one is the better way to reference and what is the difference between those two?

Answer 1

Yes, do use the .NET interop library to create the namespace 'Microsoft.Office.Interop.Excel'

Then define an application object with

Private app As Microsoft.Office.Interop.Excel.Application

and either a) connect to an a running Excel application with

app = CType(GetObject([Class]:="Excel.Application"), Microsoft.Office.Interop.Excel.Application)

or b) create a new Excel application with

app = CType(CreateObject(ProgId:="Excel.Application"), Microsoft.Office.Interop.Excel.Application)

Good luck!

Answer 2

The .NET version of the Interop library is basically the COM component in a .NET wrapper. It is advisable to use the .NET implementation.