Lifetime and Scope of variables

[tiredofit]

I am a bit confused with regard to the Lifetime and Scope of variables.


Given this code:

Option Explicit


    Dim a As Integer


Sub FromSheet1()


    Sheet3.Select
    
    a = 1
    
End Sub


Sub FromSheet2()



    Sheet3.Select
    
    a = 2
    
End Sub



Sub GoBack()


    If a = 1 Then Sheet1.Select ' PUT BREAK POINT HERE
    
    If a = 2 Then Sheet2.Select


End Sub

After running Sub FromSheet1 through to End Sub, if I go to the immediate window and type:

? a

I get a blank, which suggests to me the variable a has been cleared out because Sub FromSheet1 has finished running.


But if I subsequently run Sub FromSheet3 and put a break point as indicated, then go to the immediate window, it somehow "remembers" that a = 1.



Is this because the variable a has been declared at the module level?


Thanks

 

[Jeffrey Mahoney]

I don't what version of Excel you are running, but in Excel 2013, I have to use:
Debug.print a
to display a result in the Immediate window.

When I do exactly as you stated above, my result for "a" after I run the "FromSheet2" sub is 2

Jeff

 

[RoryA]

Your variable is scoped to the module, hence not read in the Immediate window unless you are currently running code in that module. If you made it public, you would see ?a produce the correct result even when no code is running.

 

[shg]

Option Explicit

Dim a As Integer

Sub init()
  a = 1
End Sub

Run init, then from the Immediate window,

? module1.a

... changing module1 as appropriate.

 

[tiredofit]

Thanks to all.