WD97: Sample VB Code to Set, Retrieve Summary Information

Last reviewed: February 19, 1998
Article ID: Q158768
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SUMMARY

In Microsoft Word, you can use Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications to access the summary information in the Properties dialog box (on the File menu, click Properties) and then display the information in a message box, insert the information into the active document, or store the values within a variable.

MORE INFORMATION

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   http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/refguide/default.asp

To retrieve or set values on the Summary tab of the Document Properties dialog box, use the following literal string arguments or property constants with either of the two methods below.

Literal String Arguments             Property Constants
------------------------             ------------------
Title                                wdPropertyTitle
Subject                              wdPropertySubject
Author                               wdPropertyAuthor
Manager                              wdPropertyManager
Company                              wdPropertyCompany
Category                             wdPropertyCategory
Keywords                             wdPropertyKeywords
Comments                             wdPropertyComments
Hyperlink base                       wdPropertyHyperlinkbase

Method 1: Use the BuiltInDocumentProperties property

Use the BuiltInDocumentProperties property to set and return summary information for the active document. You can specify which value to set or retrieve by referencing the argument through a built-in constant or a literal string. The following sample code uses the wdPropertyTitle constant to retrieve the title for the active document and the result is displayed in a message box.

   Sub GetSetDocProps()
      If Documents.Count > 0 Then
         Dim dp As Object
         Set dp = ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties
         ' Retrieve and display the active document's
         ' title by using the constant "wdPropertyTitle."
         MsgBox dp(wdPropertyTitle)
      End If
   End Sub

The following sample code use a literal string to define the keywords for the active document:

   Sub SetDocProps()
      If Documents.Count > 0 Then
         Dim dp As Object
         Set dp = ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties
         ' Set KeyWords for the active document by
         ' using a literal string.
         dp("KeyWords") = "Summary Information Example Macro"
         ActiveDocument.Save
      End If
   End Sub

Method 2: Use the Dialogs property to set and return values

Use the Dialogs property to set and return values for the active document's summary information.

Before you return or change a built-in dialog box setting, you need to identify the individual dialog box. To do this, use the Dialogs property and a WdWordDialog constant. The following sample code returns the properties Dialog object that refers to the Summary tab.

   Set myDialog = Dialogs(wdDialogFileSummaryInfo)

You can set or retrieve the following literal string arguments without displaying the Summary tab when a document is open.

      Title
      Subject
      Author
      Manager
      Company
      Category
      Keywords
      Comments
      Hyperlinkbase

The following sample macro retrieves the current value of the Title string, places this value in a variable string, and sets a new value without displaying the Properties dialog box.

   Sub SetSummaryInfo ()
      Dim dp As Object
      Dim sTitle As String
      If Documents.Count > 0 Then
         Set dp = Dialogs(wdDialogFileSummaryInfo)
         ' Retrieve value of "Title" into a variable.
         sTitle  = dp.Title
         ' Set "Title" to a new value.
         dp.Title = "My Title"
         ' Set the value without showing the dialog.
         dp.Execute
         ' Save the changes
         ActiveDocument.Save
      End If
   End Sub

The following sample macro sets a new value for Title and displays the Properties dialog box.

   Sub SetSummaryInfo()
      Dim dp As Object
      If Documents.Count > 0 Then
         Set dp = Dialogs(wdDialogFileSummaryInfo)
         ' Set "Title" to a new value.
         dp.Title = "My Title"
         ' Set the value.
         dp.Execute
         ' Save the changes.
         ActiveDocument.Save
         ' Display the dialog.
         ' Note: Using the Display method will not keep changes
         ' manually entered into the dialog box. To keep changes
         ' manually entered in the dialog box, use the Show method.
         dp.Display
      End If
   End Sub

For more information about displaying, setting, or retrieving values in Word dialog boxes, click Office Assistant, type "Displaying dialog boxes" (without the quotation marks), click Search, and then click Displaying built-in Word dialog boxes.

For information about how to do this in earlier versions of Word, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q85168
   TITLE     : WD: How to Access the Summary Info Dialog Box from a Macro

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q173707
   TITLE     : OFF97: How to Run Sample Code from Knowledge Base Articles


Additional query words: vb vba vbe
Keywords : kbwordvba kbmacroexample word8 word97 kbfaq
Version : 97
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbhowto


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Last reviewed: February 19, 1998
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