Help can't update links

[matthewR]

I am trying to make some changes to a PowerPoint presentation that is linked to Excel. When I right click and click "Update Link", I get "The linked file was unavailable and can't be updated". When I double click on the linked area to make the changes, I get, "The source application is busy and can't respond immediately. You can switch to other application and try to resolve the problem". How do you make corrections and update links? The person who originally did the presentation is out of the office and I am not sure how to do this.

[HansV]

Do you have a dialog open in Excel? That could prevent PowerPoint from being able to update links.

[matthewR]

What is a dialog? I had to open the spreadsheet that had the link and then it updated. I thought that you didn't have to have the Excel open. I moved the presentation to the same location as the Excel sheets.

[HansV]

A dialog is a popup window displayed by the application. Examples are the Open dialog and error messages. While a dialog is open, the application cannot respond to requests from other applications such as updating a link.

As a workaround, you can try storing the Excel workbook on a local hard disk instead of on a network disk (if applicable), or get the hotfix from Description of the PowerPoint 2007 hotfix package: February 19, 2008 (assuming that you're using PowerPoint 2007).

[matthewR]

There are over 50 Excel sheets that are linked to this PowerPoint presentation. I don't think there is an open dialog with any of them. Could it be some kind of security thing? I thought I could double click on the area that needed updated and it would take me out to the Excel automatically and I could make the changes and then update the link. I had to open each spreadsheet and make the changes and while the spreadsheet was open, switch back to PowerPoint and update the link. A lot of extra work.

[HansV]

The Open dialog was just an example. What I meant was that if you happen to have any dialog open in Excel when you try to update a link to Excel from PowerPoint, the update may fail. But I don't think that caused your problems.

And yes, you should be able to double-click on a linked Excel table or chart in a PowerPoint slide to edit the table or chart in Excel.
Have you tried the hotfix that I referred to?

[matthewR]

I moved the presentation and excel files to my C drive but I get the same error. It is funny though, sometimes I double click on one of the linked areas and it opens the spreadsheet but when I try it again, I get the error message. I can't seem to get it to do it again. I don't think I have the rights to do anything to Excel so the Hotfix isn't an option unless the powers that be do it and I probably need a dispensation from God.

[HansV]

If moving the files to C: doesn't help, I suspect that the hotfix won't help either, so I wouldn't bother IT (or God) about it.

I'm afraid I don't know what causes the problem. What happens if you delete a linked object, then create it again (Copy in Excel, Paste > Paste Special... > Paste Link in PowerPoint)? Can you edit the new linked object, or does the problem persist?

[matthewR]

It does the same thing. I wonder why it works sometimes. It doesn't work way more than it does.

[HansV]

I'm afraid I'm stumped, sorry.