Auto Completing ComboBox without API

[MikeJoel]

I made this up with a lot of testing and playing. I didn't want to use API (I am always scared if I use to much API my app won't work on another win version).

AddressBar is my ComboBox.

Private Sub AddressBar_KeyUp(KeyCode As Integer, Shift As Integer)
 
' Set UserTyped as what the user themselves have typed
UserTyped = AddressBar.Text
 
' Action is based on current key press
Select Case KeyCode
 
  ' If the keypress is Left, Right,
  ' Up, Down, PgUp, PgDown
  ' Back and Ctrl, then just exit sub
  Case vbKeyLeft, vbKeyRight, vbKeyUp, vbKeyDown, vbKeyShift, vbKeyEscape, vbkeydel, vbKeyPageUp, vbKeyPageDown, vbKeyBack, vbKeyControl
    Exit Sub
    
  ' Another key was pressed so lets try to fill in
  ' Addressbar if there is a simular address
  Case Else
    ' TopIndex holds the index that is currently at the top
    ' of the combobox (Favorites). Even thought the combobox
    ' does not expand it is automatically scrolling to whatever
    ' is the closest text in it's list to what is typed
    ' in the box. So TopIndex will hold either the first
    ' item in the list or whatever it thinks is the closest
    ' to what is being typed
    '
    ' If TopIndex is greater than 0 the combobox (Favorites)
    ' has found simular text in it's list
    ' OR
    ' If TopIndex is still 0 we want to see if it is becuase the user
    ' is typing something simular to what is in index 0
    If ((AddressBar.TopIndex > 0) Or (InStr(1, AddressBar.List(AddressBar.TopIndex), UserTyped))) Then
      ' Make the Addressbar.Text hold what the user has typed
      ' and what the computer things is like it
      AddressBar.Text = UserTyped & Mid(AddressBar.List(AddressBar.TopIndex), Len(UserTyped) + 1, Len(AddressBar.List(AddressBar.TopIndex)))
      ' Set the starting point of selection to after what
      ' the user typed
      AddressBar.SelStart = Len(UserTyped)
      ' The length of selection is to the end
      AddressBar.SelLength = Len(AddressBar.Text) - Len(UserTyped)
    End If
  
End Select
 
 
End Sub

It checks the ComboBox to see if any item in it compares to what is being typed.
If so it then adds it to the end of what is being typed and selects the text that is being added so the user can continue to type over it.

Of course there are tons of things you can do the add to this but it is a working example.

Let me know if this helps anyone
Mike

[Joacim Andersson]

If you want to share code snippets, please use the code bank

[Quizton]

Great code Mike
can you also do this with listing a recorset out of a table in a db?

[Hack]

Moved to the CodeBank

[MikeJoel]

Sorry (I didn't know there was a codebank).


I am not sure how it would work with a db. It would of course have to be adjusted. It basically uses the fact that the combo box automatically scrolls to the closest item matching what is entered (you just don't see it happening). My code just checks to see if it has scrolled and then copies the indexed text (past the point the user typed) to the end.

So how that would work with a db I don't know.

[mebhas]

i would say, just read from the db and put it into the combobox using the addnext in the form load or some other trigger that will change the contents of the autocomplete.