The LA Fox Developer Newsletter

Seotember 1999

Automating FoxPro, Visual

FoxPro and COM

By:

Mike Merino

Rocky Mountain Fox User Group

The methodology presented here is based on three articles from

FoxPro Advisor issues: June 1996, page 32; July 1999 pages

22 and 43; and December 1996 page 52. Two articles deal with

using VFP 6.0 to execute Word 95 and the other article deals

with sending email from VFP6.0. If you use Word 97 or 2000,

similar methodologies will work but you need to check the Word

Help files and make a few changes to get it to work properly. An

anomaly in using VFP 6.0 and Word95 is that Word 95 has to

be started and minimized prior to executing these examples,

otherwise there will be a VFP 6.0 error. One final note. Although

my examples will use all Microsoft products, these techniques

can be applied to most Win 95/NT applications. Check their

Help files for COM/Automation.

I. EXAMPLE I Filling in a WORD Form Letter from VFP

1. InVFP

a) Make a table with these fields

cName char (15)

cGroup char(10)

dDate Date

cTime Char(5)

cWorktel c(8)

cpagerc(8)

b) Save as c:\tmp\rmfug.dbf in fox2x format

2. Open WORD version 7 and type in a brief letter as follows

Dear fieldi,

Thank you for your interest in our local fieId2. We meet every

field3 at field4

Hope to see you there.

Czar Merino

then select TOOLS/MAIL MERGE/ Form Letter, and use this

letter as the template (e.g. Use Active Window). Next select

Open Data source c:\tmp\rmfug.dbf and then INSERT MERGE

FIELD into spaces field 1-fleld4 using the first four table fields.

Finally save the document as c:\tmp\inv.doc.

3. Start VFP and create form vfp_wordl .scx using data environ-

ment c:\tmp\rmfug.dbf. Make sure to include these fields on the

form, and also add a button to print the form letter. Here is the

sample code for the button:

*

This code is adapted from

*

FoxPro Advisor June 1996 p 32

*

This automation example uses

*

commands from the WORD BASIC

*

language open the database

SELE rmfug

*

create a word object

WrdObj=createobJect(”word.baslc”) && this statement Is

*

for Word95 only

*

WrdObj=createobject(”word.application”) && this statement is

*

for Word97 only

*

open an empty WORD document window first

WrdObj.FlleNew

*

next open the original document In a second window

WrdObJ.FileOpen(”C:~tmp~inv.doc”)

*

retrieve the number of WORD bookmarks defined In

*

this document

pnCntMarks=WrdObJ.CountBookMarks

Store bookmarks in an array

DIMENSION aMark(pnCntMarks)

FOR pnCount=1 to pnCntMarks

Mark(pnCount)=WrdObj.BookMrkName(pnCount)

ENDFOR

Begin loop through table

*

open a copy of the document in an edit window

WrdObj.FileOpen(”c:~tmp~inv.doc”)

*START (used in example 2)

*

Loop thru all bookmarks

FOR pnCountl to pnCntMarks

pcMrkName=Upper(aMark(pnCount))

a Move to next bonkmark

WrdObj.EditGoTo(pcMrkName)

DO CASE

CASE pcMrkName= “Name”

WrdObj.lnsert(cname)

CASE pcMrkName= “Group”

WrdObj.insert(cGroup)

CASE pcMrkName= “Date”

WrdObj.Insert(dDate)

CASE pcMrkName= “Time”

IF not empty(cTime)

WrdObj.lnsert (cTlme)

ELSE

WrdObj.lnsert(”Show Up Anytime”)

END1F

ENDCASE

ENDFCR

a END (used In example 2)

*

Copy modified document to end of master document

WrdObj.StartOfDocument

WrdObj.EndOfDocument(1)

WrdObj.EditCopy

WrdObj.DocClose(2)

WrdObj.EdltPaste

WrdObj.InsertPageBreak

•

Print the Document

WrdObj.FilePrint

WrdObj.FileSaveAs(’C:~tmp\I1 .doc’)

*

Close WORD

WrdObj.DocClose

(Con’t, page 4)

Page 3