KeyPreview

This property returns and sets a value that determines whether keyboard events for forms are invoked before keyboard events for controls. The keyboard events are KeyDown, KeyUp, and KeyPress.

Syntax

object.KeyPreview [= Boolean]

Parameters

object

Object expression that evaluates to a Form object.

Boolean

Boolean expression that specifies how events are received, as described in Settings.

Following are the settings for Boolean:

True

The form receives keyboard events first, and then the active control receives the keyboard events.

False (default)

The active control receives keyboard events; the form does not.

Remarks

You can use this property to create a keyboard-handling procedure for a form. For example, when an application uses function keys, you should process the keystrokes at the form level rather than writing code for each control that might receive keystroke events.

If a form has no visible and enabled controls, it automatically receives all keyboard events.

To handle keyboard events only at the form level and not enable controls to receive keyboard events, set KeyAscii to 0 in the form's KeyPress event, and set KeyCode to 0 in the form's KeyDown event.

Some controls intercept keyboard events so that the form cannot receive them. Examples include the ENTER key when focus is on a CommandButton control and arrow keys when focus is on a ListBox control.