How to use Application.EnableAnimations in the xlwings API way

The EnableAnimations property of the Application object in Excel controls whether animation effects are displayed during certain operations, such as inserting or deleting rows/columns, or applying filters. This property can be used to enhance performance by disabling animations, especially when automating repetitive tasks via xlwings, as it reduces screen flickering and speeds up macro execution. In xlwings, you can access this property through the app object, which represents the Excel application instance.

Syntax in xlwings:
app.api.EnableAnimations
This property is a Boolean value:

• True: Enables animations (default in Excel).
• False: Disables animations.

It can be both read and written. When setting it, assign True or False directly. Note that changes apply only to the current Excel session and do not persist after closing.

Example Usage:
Below are xlwings code examples demonstrating how to use the EnableAnimations property:

1. Disabling animations to improve performance during data operations:

import xlwings as xw
# Connect to the active Excel instance
app = xw.apps.active
# Disable animations
app.api.EnableAnimations = False
# Perform operations, e.g., inserting rows
sheet = app.books.active.sheets[0]
sheet.api.Rows(1).Insert()
# Re-enable animations after completion
app.api.EnableAnimations = True

This code disables animations before inserting a row, reducing visual distraction and speeding up the action, then restores the default setting.

2. Checking the current animation status:

import xlwings as xw
app = xw.apps.active
current_status = app.api.EnableAnimations
print(f"Animations are enabled: {current_status}")

This reads the property to determine if animations are active, useful for conditional logic in scripts.

3. Using in a context manager for temporary control:

import xlwings as xw
app = xw.apps.active
# Store original setting
original_setting = app.api.EnableAnimations
try:
    app.api.EnableAnimations = False
    # Execute multiple operations
    sheet = app.books.active.sheets[0]
    for i in range(5):
        sheet.api.Cells(i+1, 1).Value = f"Data {i}"
finally:
    # Restore original setting
    app.api.EnableAnimations = original_setting