Dear Microsoft:
We've been forced to use user-built functions to try to access information
in closed workbooks using referenced cells (INDIRECT.EXT). We do this
because INDIRECT doesn't work on closed workbooks.

Considering most people who use INDIRECT are going to be using it on some
kind of network, Microsoft should think about updating this function to read
from closed spreadsheets. Who wants to take up the bandwidth and local RAM
by opening every sheet needed to update one workbook? INDIRECT.EXT has
limitations when used within other complex functions, so it's not really a
'workable' solution.

"It appears as though INDIRECT.EXT doesn't work in conjunction when used
within specific functions. For example, Peo says it works fine on his
system, yet it doesn't work on ours (even though we have confirmed there are
no policy restrictions that would cause this to fail). Yet, when I use
INDIRECT.EXT this way:
Cell F148:
=IF(ISNUMBER(INDIRECT.EXT(S148)),INDIRECT.EXT(S148 ),"")
Cell S148:
''G:\GS_Secure\REPORTS\Monthly\HiPath\USER_SUMMARY \10\[USER.xls]Sheet1'!$B$3
(two apostrphe's at the beginning)
it works fine.

It appears to become unstable when using it in something complex like
VLookup, but it can be evaluated using a simple IsNumber.

Sure wish PULL worked. Either way, they are both incredibly slow when using
a lot of them in spreadsheets (every time I try to update one, I have to wait
a good 10 seconds for cells to update).

Maybe microsoft can take this into account for their next release."

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