[RESOLVED] Having a very difficult time using Shell to open up a file

[EndResult]

Alright, I spent 4 hours yesterday trying to figure this out until I past out from being so tired. I have tried to do what I am about to explain in EVERY way I can think of or have found, and it's something simple and I use to be able to do it easily but I completely forgot how to do it. It's been 1 year since I have done any programming and it wasn't much back then.

Anyway, all I am trying to do is simply launch a freaking PDF file. I need it to be in the same path in whatever the folder will be on so i'm using "app.path". My suspicion is that I am messing up the "quotes" in my lines of code.

Here is one of the lines of code I have been working with..here is the last one (I have tried it with different quotes and other things like "()" or using "Call"):

Shell app.path & "\book.pdf", vbnormalfocus

I have tried all of them like

Shell app.path & "\book.pdf", 1

Call Shell (app.path & "\book.pdf")

..Ecetera, and it keeps giving me a runtime 5 error, invalid procedure.

I have looked at other threads on here and tried those methods...I get the same error or I just get nothing. I have also tried shellexcute. Anyway, what am I doing wrong?


edit:

is my code showing? it's not for me, I used the vbcode tags.

[mattlenfest]

Here you go. Very easy to do.

Private Sub Command1_Click()
Shell ("c:\windows\system32\calc.exe")
End Sub

That will load the windows calculator when you click the command1 button

P.S. A quick google yielded me hundreds of variations of this code just so you know :-)

[EndResult]

Hey, I appreciate the effort, but I already know how to do that and have no problems loading things directly, however I can't load things using app.path and I can't load a PDF file.

[EndResult]

And yeah, I have tried for 4 hours using different variations.

[si_the_geek]

Shell is only for executable files, not documents etc. To open (or print etc) a document, use ShellExecute.

For more information and examples, see the article How do I open a file/web-page in its default application? from our Classic VB FAQs (in the FAQ forum)

edit:

is my code showing? it's not for me, I used the vbcode tags.

It wasn't, but I've fixed it for you.

It seems that you made a mistake, presumably you got the pop-up asking for an option, which should be: VB

That will then give you this:
[HIGHLIGHT="VB"] [/HIGHLIGHT]
..and then you can paste your code into the middle.

[jmsrickland]

First of all why are you doing this:

Shell app.path & "\book.pdf", vbnormalfocus

book.pdf is a file, not an application. You need to Shell an application

You need to do something like this:

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

Private Sub Command1_Click()
 ShellExecute 0, "open", App.Path & "\book.pdf", 0, 0, 1
End Sub

[EndResult]

Shell is only for executable files, not documents etc. To open (or print etc) a document, use ShellExecute.

Thank you for that information it was very helpful (about Shell being only for executable), anyway that line of code you showed me did the trick, I got it.

It wasn't, but I've fixed it for you.

It seems that you made a mistake, presumably you got the pop-up asking for an option, which should be: VB

Alright, I don't understand how to use those tags. When I highlight my text and click vbcode...nothing happens.

[EndResult]

First of all why are you doing this:

Shell app.path & "\book.pdf", vbnormalfocus

book.pdf is a file, not an application. You need to Shell an application

You need to do something like this:

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

Private Sub Command1_Click()
 ShellExecute 0, "open", App.Path & "\book.pdf", 0, 0, 1
End Sub

Thanks, I know now, I got it, si the geek just showed me.