Open Multiple PDFs from within excel using VBA

Question

Hi,
I'm using excel 2010 and would like to open pdfs based on filenames I have listed in excel.
I attached a little of my code below which gives an idea of what I'm doing.
First question:
Is there a way to open mutiple files so that they are in one "instance" of adobe?
The way this currently works, is it opens up a whole new window for each file which can make desktop very cluttered.
Second question:
Our pdfs are actually in Sharepoint and so what I am first doing, is converting the URL to point to a mapped directory of the Sharepoint Site.
For this to work, the user must first map the sharepoint directory to a specific drive letter.
I'm wondering if there's a way to pass an actual URL via a shell command so I can skip the mapped drive bit?  When I try it, it doesn't open the file.
Thanks!
My current vba:
'sFileName = full URL of the file in sharepoint
     'Replace URL with Mapped Directory
        sFileName = Replace(sFileName, "http://aamteams.alv.autoliv.int/sites/alvgmbu/", "A:\")
     'Replace slashes in URL
        sFileName = Replace(sFileName, "/", "\")
     'Test if file exists before opening so adobe doesn't hang up on opening
        If Dir(sFileName) = "" Then
            A81_Try_Opening_In_Adobe = False
            Exit Function
        End If
        l_strProg = GetDefaultProgram(sFileName)
        'Execute function to open PDF
        Shell l_strProg & " " & sFileName, vbNormalFocus

Answer 1

Hi Test,
We would like to open directly in adobe for the following reasons:
1.  The users like opening our pdfs in adobe over browsers by a large margin.
2.  If we use a mapped drive and adobe, you can see the filenames in the start bar which is important when you have multiple files.
    If you open in browser (like we do today), you only see the left side of URL
    Left side of URL is always the same so it does no good to see what file your in.
3.  We have had issues where sometimes the pdfs open "blank" until I refresh the browser.
4.  We are also looking for a way to make a local cache of most common files for faster loads.
But maybe I will give shell execute a try if it can find a local copy first in the code.
Then open in browser as last resort.
Using either shell or shell execute, is it possible to open multiple adobe files in the same instance or will we always have to get one instance for every pdf?
Thanks for the help!