WD97: Extraneous Characters Returned with ViewFieldCodes On

• Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SYMPTOMS

When you use the Text property of the Range object to return a text string that contains a field, you may receive unpredictable results. For example, with field codes view turned on, the value returned for a text string that contains the Page field is enclosed in pipe (|) characters, like this:

   | PAGE  \* MERGEFORMAT |

WORKAROUND

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language being demonstrated and the tools used to create and debug procedures. Microsoft support engineers can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific needs. If you have limited programming experience, you may want to contact the Microsoft fee-based consulting line at (800) 936-5200. For more information about the support options available from Microsoft, please see the following page on the World Wide Web:

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

• Turn off field codes view before you run your macro.

• Use the following Visual Basic Macro

  The following macro uses the TextRetrievalMode property to remove the unwanted characters:

     Sub GetFieldTextExample()
        Dim MyRange As Object
        Set MyRange = ActiveDocument.Range(Start:=Selection.Range.Start, _
        End:=Selection.Range.End)
        MyRange.TextRetrievalMode.IncludeFieldCodes = False
        MsgBox MyRange.Text
     End Sub
  
  

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the products listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about TextRetrievalMode, click the Office Assistant while in the Visual Basic Editor, type "TextRetrievalMode," click Search, and then click to view "TextRetrievalMode Property."

NOTE: If the Assistant is hidden, click the Office Assistant button on the Standard toolbar. If the Assistant is not able to answer your query, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q176476
   TITLE     : OFF: Office Assistant Not Answering Visual Basic Questions

   ARTICLE-ID: Q106655
   TITLE     : WD: GetText$ Is Dependent on ViewFieldCodes

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

REFERENCES

For more information about getting help with Visual Basic for Applications, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q163435
   TITLE     : VBA: Programming Resources for Visual Basic for
               Applications