Help Me Please!

[Tigerfish1977]

Hello my name is James
I work for the local Police Department, and I have been trying to learn VB. I have boughten a few books to help me learn VB, including VB for dummies. I am trying to make a program to launch 4 Word doc's. I have not even got anywhere close to being able to make one yet. So far all I can create is a program that launches and says Hi All !!!. I Am wondering if someone could write a program for us PLEASE!!! all we need the program to do is launch 4 word docs, they can all launch at the same time or 1 at a time dont matter. as long as they launch and can be printed thats all that counts.

If possible cal the program Richland Co. Felony Packet, the name of the 4 Word docs are.
Complaint Charging Offense, Warrant on Complaint, Return, and In the Municipal Court of Shelby, Ohio.

These Word Doc's are in the My Documents Folder.

I am hoping someone can help us out, this would be greatly appriciated. If you need any additional information just let me know.
Thank You All Very Much!!!!

[anhn]

Welcome to the forums.

Is there anyone in Ohio can help this cop , incase later you will be pardoned if you have a problem with police.

Why do you want a VB program just simply open 4 Word documents?

To open them, just go to wherever they are, double click a file and it will be opened in Word.
You can also select all 4 of them then select open with Microsoft Word.

[CDRIVE]

This code will work. Note that I put the ShellTest.doc & ShellTest2.doc in the Office folder because Winword.exe is not a system accessory application like Notepad, so you have to point the Shell function at both Winword and the .doc files. Yes, putting your docs in the Office folder is not convenient. Hopefully someone else has a better solution.

Option Explicit
Dim Path$

Private Sub Form_Load()
   Path$ = "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office"
      ChDir (Path$)
   Shell "Winword.exe ShellTest.doc ShellTest2.doc", 1
End Sub

[CDRIVE]

Well my Friends on the other side of the pond came through again. This code was supplied to me by: Martin Allen of the Martin2K group.
http://www.martin2k.co.uk/forums/ind...=0&#entry65773
I modified his code, just a tad, by putting the doc path in the variable docPath$. His code works great. Just change the doc names and add your other two docs by repeating the relevant code blocks. If your paths are different you will have to change them too!

Option Explicit
Dim wordPath$
Dim docPath$

Private Sub Command4_Click()
Dim quotes As String
      quotes = Chr(34)
         wordPath$ = "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office"
         docPath$ = "C:\Documents and Settings\Owner\My Documents"
      ChDir (wordPath$)
   Shell "Winword.exe " & quotes & docPath$ & "\ShellTest1.doc" & _
   quotes & " " & quotes & docPath$ & "\ShellTest2.doc" & quotes, 1
End Sub

[CDRIVE]

James, I forgot to welcome you to the forum.
Welcome!

[Keithuk]

Well Chris I would never use the Shell function to open any exe with documents or files. Why, because you can't assume that Winword.exe as been installed in Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office and on which drive. Your best option is to use the ShellExecute API. That is also assuming that Office as been installed in the first place. Even with ShellExecute you need Office installed.

[anhn]

No Shell or ShellExecute. Use Word objects and methods.

Sub cmdOpenDocs_Click()
    Dim wdApp  As Object '--Word.Application
    Dim myPath As String
    Dim myDocs(1 To 4) As String
    Dim i As Integer
    
    myPath = "C:\Documents and Settings\USERID\My Documents\"
    myDocs(1) = "Complaint Charging Offense.doc"
    myDocs(2) = "Warrant on Complaint.doc"
    myDocs(3) = "Return.doc"
    myDocs(4) = "In the Municipal Court of Shelby, Ohio.doc"
    
    Set wdApp = CreateObject("Word.Application")
    wdApp.Visible = True
    For i = 1 To 4
        wdApp.Documents.Open myPath & myDocs(i)
    Next
    Set wdApp = Nothing

End Sub

[CDRIVE]

No Shell or ShellExecute. Use Word objects and methods.

Well yes, this also works well. I tried timing which was faster but the difference isn't worth mentioning. Any particular reason that you didn't post this in post 2?

[CDRIVE]

OK Keith, I'll read through the multitude of posts regarding the ShellExecute API. I know there are many members, on both sides of the pond, that prefer it.

[anhn]

Well yes, this also works well. I tried timing which was faster but the difference isn't worth mentioning.

How did you do timing on Shell()? That is not accurate due to:

By default, the Shell function runs other programs asynchronously. This means that a program started with Shell might not finish executing before the statements following the Shell function are executed.

[CDRIVE]

How did you do timing on Shell()?

I did it under strict laboratory conditions. I insured that the room temperature was a solid 25 deg C, clicked the CommandButton and counted one -onethousand....
Hey, like I said... The difference is nearly imperceptible to me.
Thanks for posting the code but I think we seem have lost the TS?! No matter though, as your code is now a part of my growing library.

[AsmIscool]

Just if you are interested James, this can all be done in a Word document so you dont even need a separate program. Ask away if you want to know how to do it.

[Keithuk]

No Shell or ShellExecute. Use Word objects and methods.

Yes but as I've said before you still need Word installed.

[anhn]

Yes but as I've said before you still need Word installed.

Wow! What an advise from a person of 14 years in VB!
No need to mention that. Everyone should know that.
Which way you don't need Word installed?
Or you may say you can use OpenOffice or any program that can read Word documents?

However, I think the cop has gone. He didn't come back after 36 hours. He is too busy with too many criminals.

[Keithuk]

Which way you don't need Word installed?
Or you may say you can use OpenOffice or any program that can read Word documents?

Thats why I would recommend he used ShellExecute API because it doesn't matter what file he is trying to open if there is a reference to the file extension in the registry ShellExecute will use it.

[anhn]

Another "best" advise:
"No one should use any Microsoft Word/Excel/PowerPoint/... Application Objects in VB code because you have no way to know a user has those applications installed or not.
ShellExecute API must be used instead. That is the most powerful function."

[Keithuk]

ShellExecute API must be used instead. That is the most powerful function.

Correct.

[anhn]

I've been programming with VB for 12 years. Started with VB4 16bit Pro, VB5 Pro, VB6 Pro/Enterprise and now VB3 Pro. But I'm no expert, I'm still learning.

From 14 years down to 12 years!?!

Only a "14-down-to-12-years Pro" know how to use "ShellExecute API" in that "Pro" & "Correct" way.

I had only "one month non-Pro" experience, it will take me another 12 or 14 years (minus one month) to work hard with "Pro" so I can know how to use that powerful function.

Thanking you for that "Pro" advice.

[Keithuk]

From 14 years down to 12 years!?!

Thats because on this post.

[CDRIVE]

Anhn, am I missing something here? Why all the venom? Is this a Brit - Aussie thing that a Yank wouldn't understand? You may disagree with Keith but why the incivility?

Gee, do you realize that every sentence is a question, even this one?

[anhn]

Anhn, am I missing something here? Why all the venom? Is this a Brit - Aussie thing that a Yank wouldn't understand?

OK, that's enough for a Pro on signature.
I will learn to love ShellExecute.
Brit English & Aussie English are more closer than Yanky English.

Eh! I forgot that this thread was started by a cop. Sorry Sir (or Sorry Officer, which one is used by a Yank?).

[CDRIVE]

Brit English & Aussie English are more closer than Yanky English.

I was wondering when you would get around to me. Your grammar is exceeded only by your social skills! May I suggest that you consider switching from briefs to boxer shorts?

Eh! I forgot that this thread was started by a cop. Sorry Sir (or Sorry Officer, which one is used by a Yank?).

Well, I call my Uncle Frank and Mike 'Uncle Frank' and 'Uncle Mike'. I call my Cousins Bob, Ralph and Vinnie.. 'Bob', 'Ralph' and 'Vinnie'. Officers that I don't know personally I address as Officer. I realize that this may seem rather archaic to you but I exhibit respect until someone gives me a reason to do otherwise.
Anhn, please sleep on this thought. You just may realize that you're wasting your God given skills in the pursuit of verbal combat, which has no return value.

[anhn]

I was wondering when you would get around to me. Your grammar is exceeded only by your social skills! May I suggest that you consider switching from briefs to boxer shorts?


Well, I call my Uncle Frank and Mike 'Uncle Frank' and 'Uncle Mike'. I call my Cousins Bob, Ralph and Vinnie.. 'Bob', 'Ralph' and 'Vinnie'. Officers that I don't know personally I address as Officer. I realize that this may seem rather archaic to you but I exhibit respect until someone gives me a reason to do otherwise.
Anhn, please sleep on this thought. You just may realize that you're wasting your God given skills in the pursuit of verbal combat, which has no return value.

* Just let you know, English is not my native language even I call myself an Aussie because I am an Australian citizen and I am proud of that.
You can write 5 pages in one hour but it takes me 5 hours to write one page. I've learnt English on the streets and in factories where I worked as a manual worker (I rebuilt my life from empty hands). So for sure my writing always contains a lot of grammar and spelling misktakes.
25 years ago, when I got out of a train station, I asked the man at the ticket box "Good morning sir! Would you please tell me where the toilet is." He replied: "Pardon!". I had to repeat the question 5 times before he could understand what I said. How can I ask for that now? "Hey man, Where's the toilet!"

* An Aussie tennis star, Pat Rafter, once said something like: No where in the world we can talk to our Prime Minister just simply as "Hi John!" (for John Howard, the ex. PM, the current PM is Kevin Rudd).

* I will take your "non-Pro" advice! Keep energy to help others.

[Tigerfish1977]

Thank you all for ur help I am sorry for not getting back sooner, i've been real busy.

the codes listed here are they everything i need to make a full app with. or just the main part of ir?

Thanks again

[CDRIVE]

Are they everything Ineed to make a full app with, or just the main part of it?

That depends? What I gave you in post #4 will take a little effort on your part. On the other hand, the code that Anhn gave you uses all your variable names etc. Either one will work but Anhn's code is more ready to go for you. If your using XP you will have to modify what he marked in red. Actually, you're going to have to verify that the path exists on the machine in question. Do you know how to copy and paste code from the forum to your project?

[CDRIVE]

Since much has been said about the ShellExecute API you might as well have that too. To test this you will have to rename the ShellTest.docs with your file names and you will have to insure that path$ matches yours. Just repeat the ShellExecute lines for the other two docs that you have.

Option Explicit
Private Declare Function ShellExecute Lib "shell32.dll" Alias _
"ShellExecuteA" (ByVal hwnd As Long, ByVal lpOperation _
As String, ByVal lpFile As String, ByVal lpParameters As String, _
ByVal lpDirectory As String, ByVal nShowCmd As Long) As Long
Dim path$
Const SW_MAXIMIZE = 3

Private Sub cmdOpenDocs_Click()
   path$ = "C:\Documents And Settings\Owner\My Documents"
   ShellExecute Me.hwnd, "open", path$ & "\ShellTest1.doc", vbNullString, vbNullString, SW_MAXIMIZE
   ShellExecute Me.hwnd, "open", path$ & "\ShellTest2.doc", vbNullString, vbNullString, SW_MAXIMIZE
End Sub