How to select a group of shapes and textboxes with a vba macro in excel Mac 2011?

[eratosthene]

Arrow tool or any other allowing to select multiple shapes in a worksheet is missing in excel Mac 2011 version. I frequently use sheets with several hundred shapes and textboxes with connectors that are often overlapped. To select all shapes present in a range of cells (for example to move them), it is now necessary to select each of them manually by Maj-clic that is fastidious or quasi impossible.
So, I need a macro vba accessible via a button in the menu bar and able to:

- draw an empty rectangle along with the mouse pointer trajectory including all the entire shapes and texboxes I want to select (simulating the mouse pointer selected area in older versions)
- identify shapes entirely included into the rectangle but not those partially outside
- select these shapes all together
- delete the rectangle used for selection (but not shapes !)
- return to sheet control with the shapes selected

well, exactly that was very simple in older excel versions via the drawing tools and uncredibly suppressed by microsoft, like an insult to mac users!
I know that it is not so easy to do that, so thank you so much for your help
(mac vba version is now similar to pc vba, so pc users are welcome to help me!)

[David B Smith]

I agree that the loss of the ability to easily drag across multiple shape objects is a serious drawback in the New Office. It seems that every time I develop a new technique for using the drawing features, Microsoft goes ahead and breaks it! In earlier (pre 2007 for example) versions, I was able to snap to grid movement by using the arrow keys and holding down the command key. Then they broke that, so I then needed to use the mouse and command key combination.

The loss of the Drawing toolbar in the most recent incarnation has slowed down my productivity again

[FDibbins]

this may not help that much with individual objects, and i havnt actually tried it in excel (i know it works in powerpoint), but can you group objects together, and then just click on the group to move/size them?

[David B Smith]

Ironically, I am trying to select multiple objects in order to place them into a group. The fact is that often I need to select dozens or hundreds of objects and the loss of the object select tool (as well as the entire Drawing Toolbar for that matter) is seriously disrupting my workflow.

Thanks for the suggestion though!

[FDibbins]

hmm ok i just found this, see if it works for you....

under home tab, far right, find/select, go down to "select objects" select 1 object, then drag a box around the others you want. you can then group them

[David B Smith]

Unfortunately, under my Home tab, I do not have a find/select feature. When a Graphic Item is selected, I have
Home: Format, Layout, Tables, Charts, SmartArt, Formulas, Data, Review, Developer subtabs. The Format subtab selection is what is defaulted to, and there is no Select Object feature allowed.

If no Graphic Item is selected, then I am able to access the Home Tab, but then the choices I have are Edit, Font, Alignment, Number, Format, Cells, Themes (and this is not accessible when a graphic object is selected).

Thanks for the suggestion though.

[FDibbins]

i think you had it the wrong way round. before you select the shape, in the home ribbon, in the "editing" section, go to select/find, then click the "select objects" option...click on an object, then try to grab more?

[David B Smith]

I still am confused about where you are talking: in m,y Home ribbon, I do not have a "Select/Find" in my edit section. See attached screenshot. Sorry for being so dense. Screen shot 2012-06-03 at 6.52.50 PM.png

[FDibbins]

sorry, i cant open .png's, and i dont use mac ...and your not being dense at all

When i click on the home "section", the ribbon i see has these options...

Clipboard...Font...Alignment...Number...Styles...Cells...Editing

under the "editing" option, i have a Sum button, Fill button, Clear button, Sort&Filter Icon and Find&Select Icon.

its the Find&select icon im talking about, but im not sure if its the same under Mac