If you wish to store your data in an Excel spreadsheet and call GeneHunter from Microsoft Excel, GeneHunter requires that a copy of Excel be installed on your computer.

Loading the GeneHunter.XLA

Run the setup program to install GeneHunter onto your hard drive.  The install program does not automatically add GeneHunter to the list of Excel Add-Ins.  You will have to do this manually.

Excel 97 - Excel 2003:

In Excel, open the "Tools" menu from the standard toolbar, and select "Add-Ins".  Scroll the list of Add-Ins for GeneHunter.  To load the .XLA, simply check the box beside GeneHunter.  If GeneHunter is not among the names listed, click on the "Browse" button.  Under the drive, where you installed GeneHunter, select and open the \GENEHUNTER directory.  Double click on GENEHUNT.XLA to load.  Make sure that the box that appears to the left of the GeneHunter Add-In is checked.  To unload the .XLA, uncheck the box beside the GeneHunter Add-In. When successfully installed, GeneHunter appears under the Tools menu in Excel.

Excel 2007:

1. Open up Microsoft Excel.

2. Click on the Office button (top left).

3. Click on the Excel Options button (bottom).

4. In the left pane, click on Add-Ins.

5. In the right pane, click on the Go button.

6. Click on the Browse button, browse to and select GENEHUNT.XLA from the \GENEHUNTER directory.

7. Make sure that the box that appears to the left of the GeneHunter Add-In is checked. Click OK button.

8. When successfully installed, GeneHunter appears under the Add-Ins menu in Excel.

Excel Macro Security Level May Prohibit GeneHunter Add-in Operation

Sometimes, the macro security level in Excel is set too high and prohibits executing macros in workbooks. If this happens, the symptom is that the GeneHunter add-in may display its window upon start, but then becomes non-responsive to any action. The remedy is to lower the macro security level. In Excel 97 - Excel 2003 this can be done through the Tools -> Macro -> Security dialog. In Excel 2007 you first need to unhide the Developer tab by going to the Office button -> Excel Options -> Popular tab and checking the "Show Developer tab in the Ribbon" box. After the Developer tab shows up, click on it and select Macro Security. Try to lower the security setting a notch and see if this restores GeneHunter's normal operation. If not, try to lower the security even more.

A note for users of the Far Eastern versions of Excel

If you are using GeneHunter with a Far Eastern version of Excel (for example the Japanese, Korean, or Chinese versions which do not use standard Excel English menu names) you will need to use a special version of GeneHunter add-in. For Far Eastern version of Excel use GENEHUNT.XLA file installed in your \GeneHunter\FarEast folder.

Loading GeneHunter's Examples into Excel

You must load GeneHunter as an Excel Add-In before you can use the examples.  After loading GENEHUNT.XLA, go to the File menu on your standard toolbar and select "Open".  Under your C drive, select the \GENEHUNTER directory and double click to open.  Double click on GHSAMPLE.XLS to load GeneHunter's examples.

Use Single Worksheets to Speed Processing

The speed of GeneHunter operation in Excel is slower for increasing numbers of formulas in the workbook. If the user’s workbook consists of multiple independent worksheets, each of which has a large number of formulas, then it is advisable to move or copy the worksheet of interest with GeneHunter’s problem into a separate workbook and make this worksheet the only one in that workbook.

The problem occurs because Microsoft Excel checks the whole workbook to see what needs to be recalculated. GeneHunter causes frequent recalculations, so processing is slower if your GeneHunter worksheet is located in a workbook with many other worksheets.

Stopping Evolution

If you are running GeneHunter in Excel and wish to stop evolution, there are two ways to do this: strike the Control (Ctrl) key and the Break key or strike the Escape (Esc) key.  It is usually more effective to strike the Ctl and Break keys.