title: Excel VBA, open url without opening browser
body: <p>I am working on a project that requires a certain amount of interactivity between the excel user and a web server. </p>
  
  <p>I know you can use the </p>
  
  <pre><code>    hyperlink.follow 
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>method to open a url within the default browser.</p>
  
  <p>However what I would like to accomplish is to be able to open a url behind the scenes without the page opening in a browser.</p>
  
  <p>Does anyone know how this can be accomplished.</p>
  
  <p>the following constraints apply.</p>
  
  <ol>
  <li>We cannot assume the user has a particular browser installed, ie. chrome, for example, nor can we assume the user has a browser installed at all.</li>
  <li>We cannot assume the users all have the same os. Some may have win7, some may have win10. We just don't know.</li>
  <li>We can assume that the computer is connected to the internet and has an IP address, and that firewalls will not be an issue.</li>
  </ol>