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Lr225 Language Ref BasicScript

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Lr225 Language Ref BasicScript

Uploaded by

Pablo Raindo García

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Available Formats

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BasicScript 2.

25
Language Reference

Summit Software
Confidential

September 25, 1996

Information in this document is subject to change without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission
of Summit Software Company.

Copyright © 1992–1996 Summit Software Company. All rights reserved.

BasicScript is a registered trademark of Summit Software Company. All other

trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
iii

Contents

Introduction ...........................................................................................................................1

Language Summary ..............................................................................................................3

Convention Description

Note: In BasicScript, you cannot end a statement with a

comma, even if the parameters are optional:
MsgBox "Hello",,"Message" 'OK
MsgBox "Hello",, 'Not valid
{Input | Binary} Braces indicate that you must choose one of the enclosed
items, which are separated by a vertical bar.
... Ellipses indicate that the preceding expression can be
repeated any number of times.
' Comment An apostrophe (') indicates the start of a comment.

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A runtime error is generated if the result overflows its legal range.

When either or both expressions are Variant, then the following additional rules apply:
• If either expression is Null, then the result is Null.
• Empty is treated as an Integer of value 0.
• If the type of the result is an Integer variant that overflows, then the result is a
Long variant.
• If the type of the result is a Long, Single, or Date variant that overflows, then the
result is a Double variant.

Syntax 2
If expression is numeric, then the type of the result is the same type as expression, with
the following exception:
• If expression is Boolean, then the result is Integer.

Note: In 2's complement arithmetic, unary minus may result in an overflow with
Integer and Long variables when the value of expression is the largest negative
number representable for that data type. For example, the following generates an
overflow error:
Sub Main()
Dim a As Integer
a = -32768
a = -a 'Generates overflow here.
End Sub
When negating variants, overflow will never occur because the result will be
automatically promoted: integers to longs and longs to doubles.

Example 'This example assigns values to two numeric variables and

'their difference to a third variable, then displays the
'result.
Sub Main()
i% = 100
j# = 22.55
k# = i% - j#
MsgBox "The difference is: " & k#
End Sub

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#Const (directive) 27

#Const (directive)
Syntax #Const constname = expression

Description Defines a preprocessor constant for use in the #If...Then...#Else statement.

Comments Internally, all preprocessor constants are of type Variant. Thus, the expression
parameter can be any type.
Variables defined using #Const can only be used within the #If...Then...#Else statement
and other #Const statements. Use the Const statement to define constants that can be
used within your code.
Example #Const SUBPLATFORM = "NT"
#Const MANUFACTURER = "Windows"
#Const TYPE = "Workstation"
#Const PLATFORM = MANUFACTURER & " " & SUBPLATFORM & " " & TYPE
Sub Main()
#If PLATFORM = "Windows NT Workstation" Then
MsgBox "Running under Windows NT Workstation"
#End If
End Sub
See Also #If...Then...#Else (directive); Const (statement).
Platform(s) All.

#If...Then...#Else (directive)
Syntax #If expression Then
[statements]
[#ElseIf expression Then
[statements]]
[#Else
[statements]]
#End If

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42 BasicScript Language Reference

And (operator)
Syntax result = expression1 And expression2
Description Performs a logical or binary conjunction on two expressions.
Comments If both expressions are either Boolean, Boolean variants, or Null variants, then a logical
conjunction is performed as follows:
If expression1 is and expression2 is then the result is

True True True

Foo 10
Foo "Hello, world."

Example 'This example calls the FindWindow to determine whether Program

'Manager is running. This example will only run under Windows and
'Win32 platforms.
'This example uses the Any keyword to pass a NULL pointer, which
'is accepted by the FindWindow function.
Declare Function FindWindow16 Lib "user" Alias _
"FindWindow" (ByVal Class As Any,ByVal Title As Any) As
Integer
Declare Function FindWindow32 Lib "user32" Alias _
"FindWindowA" (ByVal Class As Any,ByVal Title As Any) As Long
Sub Main()
Dim hWnd As Variant
If [Link] = ebWin16 Then
hWnd = FindWindow16("PROGMAN",0&)
ElseIf [Link] = ebWin32 Then
hWnd = FindWindow32("PROGMAN",0&)
Else
hWnd = 0
End If
If hWnd <> 0 Then
MsgBox "Program Manager is running, window handle is " _
& hWnd
End If
End Sub

Description Activates an application given its name or task ID.

Description Returns an Integer specifying the state of the specified top-level window.
Comments The AppGetState function returns any of the following values:
If the window is Then AppGetState returns Value
Maximized ebMinimized 1
Minimized ebMaximized 2
Restored ebRestored 3
The title parameter is a String containing the name of the desired application. If it is
omitted, then the AppGetState function returns the name of the active application.
Alternatively, you can specify the ID of the task as returned by the Shell function.
Example 'This example saves the state of Program Manager, changes it,
'then restores it to its original setting.
Sub Main()
If AppFind$("Program Manager") = "" Then
MsgBox "Can't find Program Manager."
Exit Sub
End If
AppActivate "Program Manager"'Activate Program Manager.
state = AppGetState'Save its state.
AppMinimize 'Minimize it.
MsgBox "Program Manager is minimized. Select OK to restore
it."
AppActivate "Program Manager"
AppSetState state 'Restore it.
End Sub

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52 BasicScript Language Reference

Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.

Platform Notes Windows, Win32: Under Windows, the title parameter is the exact string appearing in
the title bar of the named application's main window. If no application is found whose
title exactly matches title, then a second search is performed for applications whose title
string begins with title. If more than one application is found that matches title, then the
first application encountered is used.
Under Windows 95, applications adhere to a convention where the caption contains the
name of the file before the name of the application. For example, under NT, the caption
for Notepad is "Notepad - (Untitled)", whereas under Windows 95, the caption is
"Untitled - Notepad". You must keep this in mind when specifying the title parameter.

AppHide (statement)
Syntax AppHide [title | taskID]

Description Hides the named application.

Comments If the named application is already hidden, the AppHide statement will have no effect.
The title parameter is a String containing the name of the desired application. If it is
omitted, then the AppHide statement hides the active application.
Alternatively, you can specify the ID of the task as returned by the Shell function.
AppHide generates a runtime error if the named application is not enabled, as is the
case if that application is displaying a modal dialog box.
Example 'This example hides Program Manager.
Sub Main()
'See whether Program Manager is running.
If AppFind$("Program Manager") = "" Then Exit Sub
AppHide "Program Manager"
MsgBox "Program Manager is hidden. Press OK to show it again."
AppShow "Program Manager"
End Sub

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AppList (statement) 53

Under Windows 95, applications adhere to a convention where the caption contains the
name of the file before the name of the application. For example, under NT, the caption
for Notepad is "Notepad - (Untitled)", whereas under Windows 95, the caption is
"Untitled - Notepad". You must keep this in mind when specifying the title parameter.

AppList (statement)
Syntax AppList AppNames$()

Description Fills an array with the names of all open applications.

Comments The AppNames$ parameter must specify either a zero- or one-dimensioned dynamic
String array or a one-dimensional fixed String array. If the array is dynamic, then it will
be redimensioned to match the number of open applications. For fixed arrays, AppList
first erases each array element, then begins assigning application names to the elements
in the array. If there are fewer elements than will fit in the array, then the remaining
elements are unused. BasicScript returns a runtime error if the array is too small to hold
the new elements.
After calling this function, you can use LBound and UBound to determine the new size
of the array.
Example 'This example minimizes all applications on the desktop.
Sub Main()
Dim apps$()
AppList apps
'Check to see whether any applications were found.
If ArrayDims(apps) = 0 Then Exit Sub
For i = LBound(apps) To UBound(apps)
AppMinimize apps(i)
Next i
End Sub
See Also WinList (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the name of an application is considered to be the exact
text that appears in the title bar of the application's main window.

AppMaximize (statement)
Syntax AppMaximize [title | taskID]

Description Maximizes the named application.

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End Sub
See Also AppMaximize (statement); AppMinimize (statement); AppMove (statement); AppSize
(statement); AppClose (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: Under Windows, the title parameter is the exact string appearing in
the title bar of the named application's main window. If no application is found whose
title exactly matches title, then a second search is performed for applications whose title
string begins with title. If more than one application is found that matches title, then the
first application encountered is used.
Under Windows 95, applications adhere to a convention where the caption contains the
name of the file before the name of the application. For example, under NT, the caption
for Notepad is "Notepad - (Untitled)", whereas under Windows 95, the caption is
"Untitled - Notepad". You must keep this in mind when specifying the title parameter.
AppRestore will have an effect only if the main window of the named application is
either maximized or minimized.
AppRestore will have no effect if the named window is hidden.
AppRestore generates a runtime error if the named application is not enabled, as is the
case if that application is currently displaying a modal dialog box.

AppSetState (statement)
Syntax AppSetState newstate [,title | taskID ]

Description Maximizes, minimizes, or restores the named application, depending on the value of
newstate.
Comments The AppSetState statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
newstate An Integer specifying the new state of the window.
title A String containing the name of the application to change. If
omitted, then the active application is used.
taskID A number specifying the task ID of the application to be
activated. Acceptable task IDs are returned by the Shell
function.
The newstate parameter can be any of the following values:
Constant Value Description
ebMinimized 1 The named application is minimized.

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58 BasicScript Language Reference

Constant Value Description

ebMaximized 2 The named application is maximized.

ebRestored 3 The named application is restored.
Example See AppGetState (function).
See Also AppGetState (function); AppMinimize (statement); AppMaximize (statement);
AppRestore (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: Under Windows, the title parameter is the exact string appearing in
the title bar of the named application's main window. If no application is found whose
title exactly matches title, then a second search is performed for applications whose title
string begins with title. If more than one application is found that matches title, then the
first application encountered is used.
Under Windows 95, applications adhere to a convention where the caption contains the
name of the file before the name of the application. For example, under NT, the caption
for Notepad is "Notepad - (Untitled)", whereas under Windows 95, the caption is
"Untitled - Notepad". You must keep this in mind when specifying the title parameter.

AppShow (statement)
Syntax AppShow [title | taskID]

Description Makes the named application visible.

Comments The title parameter is a String containing the name of the application to show. If this
parameter is omitted, then the active application is shown.
Alternatively, you can specify the ID of the task as returned by the Shell function.
Example See AppHide (statement).
See Also AppHide (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: If the named application is already visible, AppShow will have no
effect.
The title parameter is the exact string appearing in the title bar of the named
application's main window. If no application is found whose title exactly matches title,
then a second search is performed for applications whose title string begins with title. If
more than one application is found that matches title, then the first application
encountered is used.

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AppSize (statement) 59

AppSize (statement)
Syntax AppSize width,height [,title | taskID]

Description Sets the width and height of the named application.

Comments The AppSize statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the new size of the
application.
title String containing the name of the application to resize.
If this parameter is omitted, then the active application is
use.
taskID A number specifying the task ID of the application to be
activated. Acceptable task IDs are returned by the Shell
function.
Example 'This example enlarges the active application by 10 pixels in
'both the vertical and horizontal directions.
Sub Main()
Dim w%,h%
AppGetPosition 0,0,w%,h%'Get current width/height.
x% = x% + [Link] * 10'Add 10 pixels.
y% = y% + [Link] * 10'Add 10 pixels.
AppSize w%,h% 'Change to new size.
End Sub

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60 BasicScript Language Reference

AppType (function)
Syntax AppType [(title | taskID)]

Description Returns an Integer indicating the executable file type of the named application:
Returns If the file type is:

ebDos DOS executable

ebWindows Windows executable
Comments The title parameter is a String containing the name of the application. If this parameter
is omitted, then the active application is used.
Alternatively, you can specify the ID of the task as returned by the Shell function.
Example 'This example creates an array of strings containing the names
'of all the running Windows applications. It uses the AppType
'command to determine whether an application is a Windows
'application or a DOS application.
Sub Main()
Dim apps$(),wapps$()
AppList apps'Retrieve a list of all Windows and DOS apps.
If ArrayDims(apps) = 0 Then
MsgBox "There are no running applications."
Exit Sub
End If
'Create an array to hold only the Windows apps.
ReDim wapps$(UBound(apps))
n = 0'Copy the Windows apps from one array to the target array.
For i = LBound(apps) to UBound(apps)
If AppType(apps(i)) = ebWindows Then
wapps(n) = apps(i)

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ArrayDims (function) 61

n = n + 1
End If
Next i
If n = 0 Then'Make sure at least one Windows app was found.
MsgBox "There are no running Windows applications."
Exit Sub
End If
ReDim Preserve wapps(n - 1) 'Resize to hold the exact number.
'Let the user pick one.
index% = SelectBox("Apps","Select an application:",wapps)
End Sub

Description Returns an Integer containing the number of dimensions of a given array.

Comments This function can be used to determine whether a given array contains any elements or if
the array is initially created with no dimensions and then redimensioned by another
function, such as the FileList function, as shown in the following example.
Example 'This example allocates an empty (null-dimensioned) array; fills
'the array with a list of filenames, which resizes the array;
'then tests the array dimension and displays an appropriate
'message.
Sub Main()
Dim f$()
FileList f$,"c:\*.bat"
If ArrayDims(f$) = 0 Then
MsgBox "The array is empty."
Else
MsgBox "The array size is: " & (UBound(f$) - UBound(f$) + 1)

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62 BasicScript Language Reference

End If
End Sub
See Also LBound (function);UBound (function); Arrays (topic).
Platform(s) All.

Arrays (topic)

Declaring Array Variables

Arrays in BasicScript are declared using any of the following statements:
Dim
Public
Private
For example:
Dim a(10) As Integer
Public LastNames(1 to 5,-2 to 7) As Variant
Private
Arrays of any data type can be created, including Integer, Long, Single, Double,
Boolean, Date, Variant, Object, user-defined structures, and data objects.
The lower and upper bounds of each array dimension must be within the following
range:
-32768 <= bound <= 32767
Arrays can have up to 60 dimensions.
Arrays can be declared as either fixed or dynamic, as described below.

Fixed Arrays
The dimensions of fixed arrays cannot be adjusted at execution time. Once declared, a
fixed array will always require the same amount of storage. Fixed arrays can be declared
with the Dim, Private, or Public statement by supplying explicit dimensions. The
following example declares a fixed array of eleven strings (assuming the option base is
0):
Dim a(10) As String
Fixed arrays can be used as members of user-defined data types. The following example
shows a structure containing fixed-length arrays:
Type Foo
rect(4) As Integer
colors(10) As Integer
End Type

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Arrays (topic) 63

Only fixed arrays can appear within structures.

Dynamic Arrays
Dynamic arrays are declared without explicit dimensions, as shown below:
Public Ages() As Integer
Dynamic arrays can be resized at execution time using the Redim statement:
Redim Ages$(100)
Subsequent to their initial declaration, dynamic arrays can be redimensioned any
number of times. When redimensioning an array, the old array is first erased unless you
use the Preserve keyword, as shown below:
Redim Preserve Ages$(100)
Dynamic arrays cannot be members of user-defined data types.

Passing Arrays
Arrays are always passed by reference. When you pass an array, you can specify the
array name by itself, or with parentheses as shown below:
Dim a(10) As String
FileList a 'Both of these are OK
FileList a()

Querying Arrays
The following table describes the functions used to retrieve information about arrays.
Use this function To
LBound Retrieve the lower bound of an array. A runtime is generated if
the array has no dimensions.
UBound Retrieve the upper bond of an array. A runtime error is
generated if the array has no dimensions.
ArrayDims Retrieve the number of dimensions of an array. This function
returns 0 if the array has no dimensions.

Operations on Arrays
The following table describes the function that operate on arrays:
Use the command To

ArraySort Sort an array of integers, longs, singles, doubles, currency,

Booleans, dates, or variants.
FileList Fill an array with a list of files in a given directory.
DiskDrives Fill an array with a list of valid drive letters.
AppList Fill an array with a list of running applications.

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64 BasicScript Language Reference

Use the command To

WinList Fill an array with a list of top-level windows.

SelectBox Display the contents of an array in a list box.
PopupMenu Display the contents of an array in a popup menu.
ReadInSection Fill an array with the item names from a section in an INI
file.
FileDirs Fill an array with a list of subdirectories.
Erase Erase all the elements of an array.
ReDim Establish the bounds and dimensions of an array.
Dim Declare an array.

ArraySort (statement)
Syntax ArraySort array()

Description Sorts a single-dimensioned array in ascending order.

Comments If a string array is specified, then the routine sorts alphabetically in ascending order
using case-sensitive string comparisons. If a numeric array is specified, the ArraySort
statement sorts smaller numbers to the lowest array index locations.
BasicScript generates a runtime error if you specify an array with more than one
dimension.
When sorting an array of variants, the following rules apply:
• A runtime error is generated if any element of the array is an object.
• String is greater than any numeric type.
• Null is less than String and all numeric types.
• Empty is treated as a number with the value 0.
• String comparison is case-sensitive (this function is not affected by the Option
Compare setting).
Example 'This example dimensions an array and fills it with filenames
'using FileList, then sorts the array and displays it in a
'select box.
Sub Main()
Dim f$()
FileList f$,"c:\*.*"
ArraySort f$
r% = SelectBox("Files","Choose one:",f$)

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Asc, AscB, AscW(functions) 65

End Sub
See Also ArrayDims (function); LBound (function);UBound (function).
Platform(s) All.

Asc, AscB, AscW(functions)

Syntax Asc(string)
AscB(string)
AscW(string)
Description Returns an Integer containing the numeric code for the first character of string.
Comments This function returns the character value of the first character of string. On single-byte
systems, this function returns a number between 0 and 255, whereas on MBCS systems,
this function returns a number between -32768 and 32767. On wide platforms, this
function returns the MBCS character code after converting the wide character to MBCS.
To return the value of the first byte of a string, use the AscB function. This function is
used when you need the value of the first byte of a string known to contain byte data
rather than character data. On single-byte systems, the AscB function is identical to the
Asc function.
On platforms where BasicScript uses wide string internally (such as Win32), the AscW
function returns the character value native to that platform. For example, on Win32
platforms, this function returns the UNICODE character code. On single-byte and
MBCS platforms, the AscW function is equivalent to the Asc function.
The following table summarizes the values returned by these functions:
Function String Format Returns

Asc Value of the first byte of string (between 0 and 255)

Description Returns the angle (in radians) whose tangent is number.

Comments Some helpful conversions:
• Pi (3.1415926536) radians = 180 degrees.
• 1 radian = 57.2957795131 degrees.
• 1 degree = .0174532925 radians.
Example 'This example finds the angle whose tangent is 1 (45 degrees)
'and displays the result.
Sub Main()
a# = Atn(1.00)

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Description Returns a String specifying the directory containing BasicScript.

Comments This method is used to find the directory in which the BasicScript files are located.
Example 'This example assigns the home directory to HD and displays it.
Sub Main()
hd$ = [Link]$
MsgBox "The BasicScript home directory is: " & hd$
End Sub
See Also [Link]$ (property).
Platform(s) All.

[Link]$ (property)
Syntax [Link]$

Description Returns a String containing the locale under which BasicScript is running.
Comments The locale helps you identify information about your environment, such as the date
formats, time format, and other country-sensitive information.

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[Link]$ (property) 73

The following table describes the returned value from [Link]$ on various
platforms:
Platform Return value from [Link]$
Win32 Returns a string in the format:
abbrevlang,langid,nativelang,englang
abbrevlang: Three-letter name of the language. This name is
formed by taking the two-letter language abbreviation as
found in the ISO Standard 639 and adding a third letter, as
appropriate, to indicate the sublanguage. This is the same as
that name found in the sLanguage item in the intl section of
the Windows 3.1 [Link] file.
langid: Language ID as defined by the operating system.
nativelang: Native name of the language.
englang: Full english name of the language as defined by ISO
standard 639.
Windows Returns a string in the format:
abbrevlang,country
country: Native name of the country.
abbrevlang: Three-letter name of the language. This name is
formed by taking the two-letter language abbreviation as
found in the ISO Standard 639 and adding a third letter, as
appropriate, to indicate the sublanguage. This is the same as
that name found in the sLanguage item in the intl section of
the Windows 3.1 [Link] file.
Netware Returns a string in the following format:
countrycode [,countryname]
countrycode: Country code based on the telephone country
code (1 = US, 2 = Canada, and so on).
countryname: Name of the country (such as "USA"). The
name of country is only provided for NetWare version 4.0 or
later.

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74 BasicScript Language Reference

Platform Return value from [Link]$

Description Returns a String containing the version of BasicScript.

Comments This function returns the major and minor version numbers in the format
[Link], as in "2.00.30."
Example 'This example displays the current version of BasicScript.
Sub Main()
MsgBox "Version " & [Link]$ _
& " of BasicScript is running"
End Sub

Platform(s) All.

Beep (statement)
Syntax Beep

Description Makes a single system beep.

Example 'This example causes the system to beep five times and displays
'a reminder message.
Sub Main()
For i = 1 To 5
Beep
Sleep(200)
Next i
MsgBox "You have an upcoming appointment!"
End Sub

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Begin Dialog (statement) 81

Begin Dialog (statement)

Syntax Begin Dialog DialogName [x],[y],width,height,title$ [,[.DlgProc]
[,[PicName$] [,style]]]
Dialog Statements
End Dialog
Description Defines a dialog box template for use with the Dialog statement and function.
Comments A dialog box template is constructed by placing any of the following statements
between the Begin Dialog and End Dialog statements (no other statements besides
comments can appear within a dialog box template):
Picture PictureButton OptionButton

OptionGroup CancelButton Text

TextBox GroupBox DropListBox

ListBox ComboBox CheckBox

PushButton OKButton

The Begin Dialog statement requires the following parameters:

Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the upper left
corner of the dialog box relative to the parent window. These
coordinates are in dialog units.
If either coordinate is unspecified, then the dialog box will be
centered in that direction on the parent window.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the width and height of the
dialog box (in dialog units).
DialogName Name of the dialog box template. Once a dialog box template
has been created, a variable can be dimensioned using this
name.
title$ String containing the name to appear in the title bar of the
dialog box. If this parameter specifies a zero-length string, then
the name "BasicScript" is used.

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Parameter Description

.DlgProc Name of the dialog function. The routine specified by .DlgProc

will be called by BasicScript when certain actions occur during
processing of the dialog box. (See DlgProc [prototype] for
additional information about dialog functions.)
If this parameter is omitted, then BasicScript processes the
dialog box using the default dialog box processing behavior.
PicName$ String specifying the name of a DLL containing pictures. This
DLL is used as the origin for pictures when the picture type is
10. If this parameter is omitted, then no picture library will be
used.
style Specifies extra styles for the dialog. It can be any of the
following values:
0- Dialog does not contain a title or close box.
1 - Dialog contains a title and no close box.
2 (or omitted) - Dialog contains both the title and close box.
BasicScript generates an error if the dialog box template contains no controls.
A dialog box template must have at least one PushButton, OKButton, or
CancelButton statement. Otherwise, there will be no way to close the dialog box.
Dialog units are defined as 1/4 the width of the font in the horizontal direction and 1/8
the height of the font in the vertical direction.
Any number of user dialog boxes can be created, but each one must be created using a
different name as the DialogName. Only one user dialog box may be invoked at any
time.

Expression Evaluation within the Dialog Box Template

The Begin Dialog statement creates the template for the dialog box. Any expression or
variable name that appears within any of the statements in the dialog box template is not
evaluated until a variable is dimensioned of type DialogName. The following example
shows this behavior:
MyTitle$ = "Hello, World"
Begin Dialog MyTemplate 16,32,116,64,MyTitle$
OKButton 12,40,40,14
End Dialog
MyTitle$ = "Sample Dialog"
Dim Dummy As MyTemplate
rc% = Dialog(Dummy)
The above example creates a dialog box with the title "Sample Dialog".

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Boolean (data type) 83

Expressions within dialog box templates cannot reference external subroutines or

functions.
All controls within a dialog box use the same font. The fonts used for the text and text
box controls can be changed explicitly by setting the font parameters in the Text and
TextBox statements. A maximum of 128 fonts can be used within a single dialog box,
although the practical limitation may be less.
Example 'This example creates an exit dialog box.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog QuitDialogTemplate 16,32,116,64,"Quit"
Text 4,8,108,8,"Are you sure you want to exit?"
CheckBox 32,24,63,8,"Save Changes",.SaveChanges
OKButton 12,40,40,14
CancelButton 60,40,40,14
End Dialog
Dim QuitDialog As QuitDialogTemplate
rc% = Dialog(QuitDialog)
End Sub
See Also CancelButton (statement); CheckBox (statement); ComboBox (statement); Dialog
(function); Dialog (statement); DropListBox (statement); GroupBox (statement);
ListBox (statement); OKButton (statement); OptionButton (statement); OptionGroup
(statement); Picture (statement); PushButton (statement); Text (statement); TextBox
(statement); DlgProc (function); HelpButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

Boolean (data type)

Syntax Boolean

Description A data type capable of representing the logical values True and False.
Comments Boolean variables are used to hold a binary value—either True or False. Variables can
be declared as Boolean using the Dim, Public, or Private statement.
Variants can hold Boolean values when assigned the results of comparisons or the
constants True or False.
Internally, a Boolean variable is a 2-byte value holding –1 (for True) or 0 (for False).
Any type of data can be assigned to Boolean variables. When assigning, non-0 values
are converted to True, and 0 values are converted to False. When converting strings to
Boolean, BasicScript recognizes localized versions of the strings "True" and "False",
converting these to the True and False respectively.
When appearing as a structure member, Boolean members require 2 bytes of storage.

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When used within binary or random files, 2 bytes of storage are required.
When passed to external routines, Boolean values are sign-extended to the size of an
integer on that platform (either 16 or 32 bits) before pushing onto the stack.
There is no type-declaration character for Boolean variables.
Boolean variables that have not yet been assigned are given an initial value of False.
See Also Currency (data type);Date (data type); Integer (data type); Long (data type); Object
(data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); DefType
(statement); CBool (function).
Platform(s) All.

ButtonEnabled (function)
Syntax ButtonEnabled(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified button within the current window is enabled; returns False
otherwise.
Comments The ButtonEnabled function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the push button.
id Integer specifying the ID of the push button.
When a button is enabled, it can be clicked using the SelectButton statement.

Note: The ButtonEnabled function is used to determine whether a push button is

enabled in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgEnable function to retrieve
the enabled state of a push button in a dynamic dialog box.

Example 'This code fragment checks to see whether a button is enabled

'before clicking it.
Sub Main()
If ButtonEnabled("Browse...") Then
SelectButton "Browse..."
Else
MsgBox "Can't browse right now."
End If
End Sub
See Also ButtonExists (function); SelectButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

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ButtonExists (function) 85

ButtonExists (function)
Syntax ButtonExists(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified button exists within the current window; returns False
otherwise.
Comments The ButtonExists function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the push button.
id Integer specifying the ID of the push button.

Note: The ButtonExists function is used to determine whether a push button exists
in another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent function for use with
dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This code fragment selects the More button if it exists. If it

'does not exist, then this code fragment does nothing.
Sub Main()
If ButtonExists("More >>") Then
SelectButton "More >>"'Display more stuff.
End If
End Sub
See Also ButtonEnabled (function); SelectButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

ByRef (keyword)
Syntax ...,ByRef parameter,...

Description Used within the Sub...End Sub, Function...End Function, or Declare statement to
specify that a given parameter can be modified by the called routine.
Comments Passing a parameter by reference means that the caller can modify that variable's value.
Unlike the ByVal keyword, the ByRef keyword cannot be used when passing a
parameter. The absence of the ByVal keyword is sufficient to force a parameter to be
passed by reference:
MySub ByVal i 'Pass i by value.
MySub ByRef i 'Illegal (will not compile).
MySub i 'Pass i by reference.
Example Sub Test(ByRef a As Variant)

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a = 14
End Sub
Sub Main()
b = 12
Test b
MsgBox "The ByRef value is: " & b'Displays 14.
End Sub
See Also () (keyword); ByVal (keyword).
Platform(s) All.

ByVal (keyword)
Syntax ...ByVal parameter...

Description Forces a parameter to be passed by value rather than by reference.

Comments The ByVal keyword can appear before any parameter passed to any function, statement,
or method to force that parameter to be passed by value. Passing a parameter by value
means that the caller cannot modify that variable's value.
Enclosing a variable within parentheses has the same effect as the ByVal keyword:
Foo ByVal i 'Forces i to be passed by value.
Foo(i) 'Forces i to be passed by value.
When calling external statements and functions (i.e., routines defined using the Declare
statement), the ByVal keyword forces the parameter to be passed by value regardless of
the declaration of that parameter in the Declare statement. The following example
shows the effect of the ByVal keyword used to passed an Integer to an external routine:
Declare Sub Foo Lib "MyLib" (ByRef i As Integer)
i% = 6
Foo ByVal i% 'Pass a 2-byte Integer.
Foo i% 'Pass a 4-byte pointer to an Integer.
Since the Foo routine expects to receive a pointer to an Integer, the first call to Foo will
have unpredictable results.
Example 'This example demonstrates the use of the ByVal keyword.
Sub Foo(a As Integer)
a = a + 1
End Sub
Sub Main()
Dim i As Integer
i = 10
Foo i
MsgBox "The ByVal value is: " & i
'Displays 11 (Foo changed the value).

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ByVal (keyword) 87

Foo ByVal i
MsgBox "The ByVal value is still: " & i
'Displays 11 (Foo did not change the value).
End Sub

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Call (statement)
Syntax Call subroutine_name [(arguments)]

Description Transfers control to the given subroutine, optionally passing the specified arguments.
Comments Using this statement is equivalent to:
subroutine_name [arguments]
Use of the Call statement is optional. The Call statement can only be used to execute
subroutines; functions cannot be executed with this statement. The subroutine to which
control is transferred by the Call statement must be declared outside of the Main
procedure, as shown in the following example.
Examples 'This example demonstrates the use of the Call statement to pass
'control to another function.
Sub Example_Call(s$)
'This subroutine is declared externally to Main and displays
'the text passed in the parameter s$.
MsgBox "Call: " & s$
End Sub
Sub Main()
'This example assigns a string variable to display, then
'calls subroutine Example_Call, passing parameter S$ to be
'displayed in a message box within the subroutine.
s$ = "DAVE"
Example_Call s$
Call Example_Call("SUSAN")
End Sub

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CBool (function) 89

The CancelButton statement requires the following parameters:

Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control
in dialog units.
.Identifier Optional parameter specifying the name by which this control
can be referenced by statements in a dialog function (such as
DlgFocus and DlgEnable). If this parameter is omitted, then
the word "Cancel" is used.
A dialog box must contain at least one OKButton, CancelButton, or PushButton
statement; otherwise, the dialog box cannot be dismissed.
Example 'This example creates a dialog box with OK and Cancel buttons.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog SampleDialogTemplate 37,32,48,52,"Sample"
OKButton 4,12,40,14,.OK
CancelButton 4,32,40,14,.Cancel
End Dialog
Dim SampleDialog As SampleDialogTemplate
r% = Dialog(SampleDialog)
If r% = 0 Then MsgBox "Cancel was pressed!"
End Sub

See Also CheckBox (statement); ComboBox (statement); Dialog (function); Dialog (statement);
DropListBox (statement); GroupBox (statement); ListBox (statement); OKButton
(statement); OptionButton (statement); OptionGroup (statement); Picture
(statement); PushButton (statement); Text (statement); TextBox (statement); Begin
Dialog (statement); PictureButton (statement); HelpButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

CBool (function)
Syntax CBool(expression)

Description Converts expression to True or False, returning a Boolean value.

Comments The expression parameter is any expression that can be converted to a Boolean. A
runtime error is generated if expression is Null.
All numeric data types are convertible to Boolean. If expression is zero, then the CBool
returns False; otherwise, CBool returns True. Empty is treated as False.

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If expression is a String, then CBool first attempts to convert it to a number, then

converts the number to a Boolean. A runtime error is generated if expression cannot be
converted to a number.
A runtime error is generated if expression cannot be converted to a Boolean.
Example 'This example uses CBool to determine whether a string is
'numeric or just plain text.
Sub Main()
Dim IsNumericOrDate As Boolean
s$ = "34224.54"
IsNumericOrDate = CBool(IsNumeric(s$) Or IsDate(s$))
If IsNumericOrDate = True Then
MsgBox s$ & " is either a valid date or number!"
Else
MsgBox s$ & " is not a valid date or number!"
End If
End Sub
See Also CCur (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CDbl (function); CInt (function);
CLng (function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); Boolean (data type).
Platform(s) All.

CCur (function)
Syntax CCur(expression)

Description Converts any expression to a Currency.

Comments This function accepts any expression convertible to a Currency, including strings. A
runtime error is generated if expression is Null or a String not convertible to a number.
Empty is treated as 0.
When passed a numeric expression, this function has the same effect as assigning the
numeric expression number to a Currency.
When used with variants, this function guarantees that the variant will be assigned a
Currency (VarType 6).
Example 'This example displays the value of a String converted into a
'Currency value.
Sub Main()
i$ = "100.44"
MsgBox "The currency value is: " & CCur(i$)
End Sub

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CDate, CVDate (functions) 91

See Also CBool (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CDbl (function); CInt (function);
CLng (function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); Currency (data type).
Platform(s) All.

CDate, CVDate (functions)

Syntax CDate(expression)
CVDate(expression)

Description Converts expression to a date, returning a Date value.

Comments The expression parameter is any expression that can be converted to a Date. A runtime
error is generated if expression is Null.
If expression is a String, an attempt is made to convert it to a Date using the current
country settings. If expression does not represent a valid date, then an attempt is made to
convert expression to a number. A runtime error is generated if expression cannot be
represented as a date.
These functions are sensitive to the date and time formats of your computer.
The CDate and CVDate functions are identical.
Example 'This example takes two dates and computes the difference
'between them.
Sub Main()
Dim date1 As Date
Dim date2 As Date
Dim diff As Date
date1 = CDate(#1/1/1994#)
date2 = CDate("February 1, 1994")
diff = DateDiff("d",date1,date2)
MsgBox "The date difference is " & CInt(diff) & " days."
End Sub

See Also CCur (function); CBool (function); CDbl (function); CInt (function); CLng
(function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr (function);
Date (data type).
Platform(s) All.

CDbl (function)
Syntax CDbl(expression)

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Description Converts any expression to a Double.

Comments This function accepts any expression convertible to a Double, including strings. A
runtime error is generated if expression is Null. Empty is treated as 0.0.
When passed a numeric expression, this function has the same effect as assigning the
numeric expression number to a Double.
When used with variants, this function guarantees that the variant will be assigned a
Double (VarType 5).
Example 'This example displays the result of two numbers as a Double.
Sub Main()
i% = 100
j! = 123.44
MsgBox "The double value is: " & CDbl(i% * j!)
End Sub

See Also CCur (function); CBool (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CInt (function);
CLng (function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); Double (data type).
Platform(s) All.

ChDir (statement)
Syntax ChDir path

Description Changes the current directory of the specified drive to path.

Comments This routine will not change the current drive. (See ChDrive [statement].)
Example 'This example saves the current directory, then changes to the
'root directory, displays the old and new directories, restores
'the old directory, and displays it.
Const crlf = $(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
save$ = CurDir$
ChDir ([Link]$)
MsgBox "Old: " & save$ & crlf & "New: " & CurDir$
ChDir (save$)
MsgBox "Directory restored to: " & CurDir$
End Sub

See Also ChDrive (statement); CurDir, CurDir$ (functions); Dir, Dir$ (functions); MkDir
(statement); RmDir (statement); DirList (statement).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes UNIX: UNIX platforms do not support drive letters.

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ChDrive (statement) 93

Platform Notes NetWare: NetWare (and other operating systems) may not support the use of dots to
indicate the current and parent directories unless configured to do so.
NetWare does not support drive letters. Directory specifications under NetWare use the
following format:
volume:[dir\ [dir\]... ][Link]
The volume specification can be up to 14 characters.
Windows, Win32: BasicScript tracks and remembers the current directory for all drives
in the system for that process.
Macintosh: The Macintosh does not support drive letters.
The Macintosh uses the colon (":") as the path separator. A double colon ("::") specifies
the parent directory.

ChDrive (statement)
Syntax ChDrive drive

Description Changes the default drive to the specified drive.

Comments Only the first character of drive is used.
Also, drive is not case-sensitive.
If drive is empty, then the current drive is not changed.
Example 'This example saves the current directory in CD, then extracts
'the current drive letter and saves it in Save$. If the current
'drive is D, then it is changed to C; otherwise, it is changed
'to D. Then the saved drive is restored and displayed.
Const crlf$ = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
cd$ = CurDir$
save$ = Mid$(CurDir$,1,1)
If save$ = "D" Then
ChDrive("C")
Else
ChDrive("D")
End If
MsgBox "Old: " & save$ & crlf & "New: " & CurDir$
ChDrive (save$)
MsgBox "Directory restored to: " & CurDir$
End Sub

See Also ChDir (statement); CurDir, CurDir$ (functions); Dir, Dir$ (functions); MkDir
(statement); RmDir (statement); DiskDrives (statement).

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Platform(s) Windows, Win32, NetWare. OS/2.

Platform Notes UNIX, Macintosh: UNIX platforms and the Macintosh do not support drive letters.
NetWare: Since NetWare does not support drive letters, the drive parameter specifies a
volume name (up to 14 characters).

CheckBox (statement)
Syntax CheckBox x, y, width, height, title$, .Identifier

Description Defines a check box within a dialog box template.

Comments Check box controls are either on or off, depending on the value of .Identifier.
This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The CheckBox statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description

x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in

dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control in
dialog units.
title$ String containing the text that appears within the check box.
This text may contain an ampersand character to denote an
accelerator letter, such as "&Font" for Font (indicating that the
Font control may be selected by pressing the F accelerator key).
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements in a
dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable). This
parameter also creates an integer variable whose value
corresponds to the state of the check box (1 = checked; 0 =
unchecked). This variable can be accessed using the syntax:
[Link].
When the dialog box is first created, the value referenced by .Identifier is used to set the
initial state of the check box. When the dialog box is dismissed, the final state of the
check box is placed into this variable. By default, the .Identifier variable contains 0,
meaning that the check box is unchecked.
Example 'This example displays a dialog box with two check boxes in
'different states.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog SaveOptionsTemplate 36,32,151,52,"Save"
GroupBox 4,4,84,40,"GroupBox"

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CheckBoxEnabled (function) 95

CheckBox 12,16,67,8,"Include heading",.IncludeHeading

CheckBox 12,28,73,8,"Expand keywords",.ExpandKeywords
OKButton 104,8,40,14,.OK
CancelButton 104,28,40,14,.Cancel
End Dialog
Dim SaveOptions As SaveOptionsTemplate
[Link] = 1'Check box initially on.
[Link] = 0'Check box initially off.
r% = Dialog(SaveOptions)
If r% = -1 Then
MsgBox "OK was pressed."
End If
End Sub
See Also CancelButton (statement); Dialog (function); Dialog (statement); DropListBox
(statement); GroupBox (statement); ListBox (statement); OKButton (statement);
OptionButton (statement); OptionGroup (statement); Picture (statement);
PushButton (statement); Text (statement); TextBox (statement); Begin Dialog
(statement), PictureButton (statement); HelpButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2, Macintosh, UNIX.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32, OS/2: On Windows, Win32, and OS/2 platforms, accelerators are
underlined, and the accelerator combination Alt+letter is used.
Macintosh: On the Macintosh, accelerators are normal in appearance, and the
accelerator combination Command+letter is used..

CheckBoxEnabled (function)
Syntax CheckBoxEnabled(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified check box within the current window is enabled; returns
False otherwise.
Comments The CheckBoxEnabled function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the check box.
id Integer specifying the ID of the check box.
When a check box is enabled, its state can be set using the SetCheckBox statement.

Note: The CheckBoxEnabled function is used to determine whether a check box is

enabled in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgEnable function within
dynamic dialog boxes.

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Example 'This code checks to see whether a check box is enabled.

Sub Main()
If CheckBoxEnabled("Portrait") Then
SetCheckBox "Portrait",1
End If
End Sub
See Also CheckBoxExists (function); GetCheckBox (function); SetCheckBox (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

CheckBoxExists (function)
Syntax CheckBoxExists(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified check box exists within the current window; returns False
otherwise.
Comments The CheckBoxExists function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the check box.
id Integer specifying the ID of the check box.

Note: The CheckBoxExists function is used to determine whether a check box

exists in another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent function for use
with dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This code fragment checks to ensure that the Portrait check
'box is selectable before selecting it.
Sub Main()
If CheckBoxExists("Portrait") Then
If CheckBoxEnabled("Portrait") Then
SetCheckBox "Portrait",1
End If
End If
End Sub

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Chr, Chr$, ChrB, ChrB$, ChrW, ChrW$ (functions) 97

Description Returns the expression at the specified index position.

Comments The index parameter specifies which expression is to be returned. If index is 1, then
expression1 is returned; if index is 2, then expression2 is returned, and so on. If index is
less than 1 or greater than the number of supplied expressions, then Null is returned.
The index parameter is rounded down to the nearest whole number.
The Choose function returns the expression without converting its type. Each
expression is evaluated before returning the selected one.
Example 'This example assigns a variable of indeterminate type to a.
Sub Main()
Dim a As Variant
Dim c As Integer
c% = 2
a = Choose(c%,"Hello, world",#1/1/94#,5.5,False)
'Display the date passed as parameter 2.
MsgBox "Item " & c% & " is '" & a & "'"
End Sub
See Also Switch (function); IIf (function); If...Then...Else (statement); Select...Case
(statement).
Platform(s) All.

Chr, Chr$, ChrB, ChrB$, ChrW, ChrW$ (functions)

Syntax Chr[$](charcode)
ChrB[$](charcode)
ChrW[$](charcode)
Description Returns the character whose value is charcoode.
Comments The Chr$, ChrB$, and ChrW$ functions return a String, whereas the Chr, ChrB, and
ChrW functions return a String variant.
These functions behave differently depending on the string format used by BasicScript.
These differences are summarized in the following table:
String
Function Format Description of charcode Returns

Chr SBCS Value between 0 and 255 A 1-byte character string.

Chr$
MBCS Value of an MBCS A 1-byte or 2-byte MBCS
character between -32768 character string depending on
and 32767 charcode.

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String
Function Format Description of charcode Returns
Wide Value of an MBCS A 2-byte character string.
character between -32768
and 32767
ChrB SBCS Value between 0 and 255 A 1-byte character string.
ChrB$
MBCS Value between 0 and 255 A 1-byte character string.
Wide Value between 0 and 255 A 1-byte character string.
ChrW SBCS Value between 0 and 255 A 1-byte character string (same
as the Chr and Chr$ functions)
ChrW$
MBCS Value of an MBCS A 1-byte or 2-byte MBCS
character between -32768 character string depending on
and 32767 charcode.
Wide Value of a wide character A 2-byte character string.
between -32768 and 32767
The Chr$ function can be used within constant declarations, as in the following
example:
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Some common uses of this function are:
Chr$(9) Tab

Chr$(13) + Chr$(10) End-of-line (carriage return, linefeed)

Chr$(26) End-of-file

Chr$(0) Null

Examples Sub Main()

'Concatenates carriage return (13) and line feed (10) to
'CRLF$, then displays a multiple-line message using CRLF$ to
'separate lines.
crlf$ = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
MsgBox "First line." & crlf$ & "Second line."
'Fills an array with the ASCII characters for ABC and
'displays their corresponding characters.
Dim a%(2)
For i = 0 To 2
a%(i) = (65 + i)
Next i

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CInt (function) 99

MsgBox "The first three elements of the array are: " _

& Chr$(a%(0)) & Chr$(a%(1)) & Chr$(a%(2))
End Sub

Description Converts expression to an Integer.

Comments This function accepts any expression convertible to an Integer, including strings. A
runtime error is generated if expression is Null. Empty is treated as 0.
The passed numeric expression must be within the valid range for integers:
-32768 <= expression <= 32767
A runtime error results if the passed expression is not within the above range.
When passed a numeric expression, this function has the same effect as assigning a
numeric expression to an Integer. Note that integer variables are rounded before
conversion.
When used with variants, this function guarantees that the expression is converted to an
Integer variant (VarType 2).
Example 'This example demonstrates the various results of integer
'manipulation with CInt.
Sub Main()
'(1) Assigns i# to 100.55 and displays its integer
'representation (101).
i# = 100.55
MsgBox "The value of CInt(i) = " & CInt(i#)
'(2) Sets j# to 100.22 and displays the CInt representation
'(100).
j# = 100.22
MsgBox "The value of CInt(j) = " & CInt(j#)
'(3) Assigns k% (integer) to the CInt sum of j# and k% and
'displays k% (201).
k% = CInt(i# + j#)
MsgBox "The integer sum of 100.55 and 100.22 is: " & k%
'(4) Reassigns i# to 50.35 and recalculates k%, then
'displays the result (note rounding).
i# = 50.35
k% = CInt(i# + j#)
MsgBox "The integer sum of 50.35 and 100.22 is: " & k%

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End Sub
See Also CCur (function); CBool (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CDbl (function);
CLng (function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); Integer (data type).
Platform(s) All.

Clipboard$ (function)
Syntax Clipboard$[()]

Description Returns a String containing the contents of the Clipboard.

Comments If the Clipboard doesn't contain text or the Clipboard is empty, then a zero-length string
is returned.
Example 'This example puts text on the Clipboard, displays it, clears
'the Clipboard, and displays the Clipboard again.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)

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Example 'This example displays the results for various conversions of i

'and j (note rounding).
Sub Main()
i% = 100
j& = 123.666
MsgBox "The result is: " & CLng(i% * j&)'Displays 12367.
MsgBox "The variant type is: " & Vartype(CLng(i%))
End Sub

See Also CCur (function); CBool (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CDbl (function);
CInt (function); CSng (function); CStr (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); Long (data type).
Platform(s) All.

Close (statement)
Syntax Close [[#] filenumber [,[#] filenumber]...]

Description Closes the specified files.

Comments If no arguments are specified, then all files are closed.
Example 'This example opens four files and closes them in various
'combinations.
Sub Main()
Open "test1" For Output As #1
Open "test2" For Output As #2
Open "test3" For Random As #3
Open "test4" For Binary As #4
MsgBox "The next available file number is :" & FreeFile()
Close #1 'Closes file 1 only.
Close #2, #3'Closes files 2 and 3.
Close 'Closes all remaining files(4).
MsgBox "The next available file number is :" & FreeFile()
End Sub
See Also Open (statement); Reset (statement); End (statement).
Platform(s) All.

ComboBox (statement)
Syntax ComboBox x,y,width,height,ArrayVariable,.Identifier

Description This statement defines a combo box within a dialog box template.

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Comments When the dialog box is invoked, the combo box will be filled with the elements from the
specified array variable.
This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The ComboBox statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description

x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in

dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog
box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control
in dialog units.
ArrayVariable Single-dimensioned array used to initialize the elements of
the combo box. If this array has no dimensions, then the
combo box will be initialized with no elements. A runtime
error results if the specified array contains more than one
dimension.
ArrayVariable can specify an array of any fundamental data
type (structures are not allowed). Null and Empty values are
treated as zero-length strings.
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements
in a dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable). This
parameter also creates a string variable whose value
corresponds to the content of the edit field of the combo box.
This variable can be accessed using the syntax:
[Link].
When the dialog box is invoked, the elements from ArrayVariable are placed into the
combo box. The .Identifier variable defines the initial content of the edit field of the
combo box. When the dialog box is dismissed, the .Identifier variable is updated to
contain the current value of the edit field.
Example 'This example creates a dialog box that allows the user to
'select a day of the week.
Sub Main()
Dim days$(6)
days$(0) = "Monday"
days$(1) = "Tuesday"
days$(2) = "Wednesday"
days$(3) = "Thursday"
days$(4) = "Friday"
days$(5) = "Saturday"
days$(6) = "Sunday"
Begin Dialog DaysDialogTemplate 16,32,124,96,"Days"

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106 BasicScript Language Reference

OKButton 76,8,40,14,.OK
Text 8,10,39,8,"&Weekdays:"
ComboBox 8,20,60,72,days$,.Days
End Dialog
Dim DaysDialog As DaysDialogTemplate
[Link] = "Tuesday"
r% = Dialog(DaysDialog)
MsgBox "You selected: " & [Link]
End Sub

name$ String containing the name of the combo box.

The name of a combo box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a combo box. A runtime error is
generated if a combo box with that name cannot be found within
the active window.
id Integer specifying the ID of the combo box.
A runtime error is generated if the specified combo box does not exist.

Note: The ComboBoxEnabled function is used to determine whether a combo box

is enabled in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgEnable function in
dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This example checks to see whether a combo box is active. If it

'is, then it inserts some text into it.
Sub Main()
If ComboBoxEnabled("Filename:") Then

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SelectComboBoxItem "Filename:","[Link]"
End If
If ComboBoxEnabled(365) Then
SelectComboBoxItem 365,3'Select the third item.
End If
End Sub
See Also ComboBoxExists (function); GetComboBoxItem$ (function);
GetComboBoxItemCount (function); SelectComboBoxItem (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

ComboBoxExists (function)
Syntax ComboBoxExists(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified combo box exists within the current window or dialog
box; returns False otherwise.
Comments The ComboBoxExists function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description

name$ String containing the name of the combo box.

Note: The ComboBoxExists function is used to determine whether a combo box

exists in another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent function for use
with dynamic dialog boxes.

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Constants (topic) 113

Constants (topic)
Constants are variables that cannot change value during script execution. The following
constants are predefined by BasicScript.
Application State Constants (Used with AppSetState and AppGetState)
Constant Value Description

ebMinimized 1 The application is minimized.

ebMaximized 2 The application is maximized.

ebRestored 3 The application is restored.

BasicScript Constants
Constant Value Description

True -1 Boolean value True.

False 0 Boolean value False.

Empty Empty Variant of type 0, indicating that the variant is

uninitialized.

Nothing 0 Value indicating that an object variable no longer

references a valid object.

Null Null Variant of type 1, indicating that the variant

contains no data.

Character Constants
Constant Value Description

ebBack Chr$(8) String containing a backspace.

ebCr Chr$(13) String containing a carriage return.

ebCrLf Chr$(13) & Chr$(10) String containing a carriage-return

linefeed pair.

ebFormFeed Chr$(11) String containing a form feed.

ebLf Chr$(10) String containing a line feed.

ebNullChar Chr$(0) String containing a single null

character.

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114 BasicScript Language Reference

Character Constants
Constant Value Description

ebNullString 0 Special string value used to pass null

pointers to external routines.

ebTab Chr$(9) String containing a tab.

ebVerticalTab Chr$(12) String containing a vertical tab.

Clipboard Constants (Used with [Link], [Link], and

[Link])
Constant Value Description

ebCFText 1 Text.

ebCFBitmap 2 Bitmap.

ebCFMetafile 3 Metafile.

ebCFDIB 8 Device-independent bitmap.

ebCFPalette 9 Palette.

ebCFUnicode 13 Unicode text.

Compiler Constants
Constant Value

AIX True if development environment is AIX.

HPUX True if development environment is HPUX.

Irix True if development environment is Irix.

LINUX True if development environment is LINUX.

Macintosh True if development environment is Macintosh (680x0 or

PowerPC).

MacPPC True if development environment is PowerMac.

Mac68K True if development environment is 68K Macintosh.

Netware True if development environment is NetWare.

OS2 True if development environment is OS/2.

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Compiler Constants (Continued)

Constant Value

OSF1 True if development environment is OSF/1.

SCO True if development environment is SCO.

Solaris True if development environment is Solaris.

SunOS True if development environment is SunOS.

UNIX True if development environment is any UNIX platform.

UnixWare True if development environment is UnixWare.

VMS True if development environment is VMS.

Win16 True if development environment is 16-bit Windows.

Win32 True if development environment is 32-bit Windows.

Empty Empty

False False

Null Null

True True

Date Constants (Used with WeekDay, Format, DateAdd, DateDiff)

Constant Value Description

ebUseSunday 0 Use the date setting as specified by the current

locale.

ebSunday 1 Sunday.

ebMonday 2 Monday.

ebTuesday 3 Tuesday.

ebWednesday 4 Wednesday.

ebThursday 5 Thursday.

ebFriday 6 Friday.

ebSaturday 7 Saturday.

ebFirstJan1 1 Start with week in which January 1 occurs.

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Date Constants (Used with WeekDay, Format, DateAdd, DateDiff) (Continued)

Constant Value Description

ebFirstFourDays 2 Start with first week with at least four days in the
new year.

ebFirstFullWeek 3 Start with first full week of the year.

File Constants (Used with Dir, Dir$, FileList, SetAttr, GetAttr, FileAttr)
Constant Value Description

ebNormal 0 Read-only, archive, subdir, and none.

ebReadOnly 1 Read-only files.

ebHidden 2 Hidden files.

ebSystem 4 System files.

ebVolume 8 Volume labels.

ebDirectory 16 Subdirectory.

ebArchive 32 Files that have changed since the last backup.

ebNone 64 Files with no attributes.

File Type Constants (Used with AppType and FileType)

Constant Value Description

ebDOS 1 A DOS executable file.

ebWindows 2 A Windows executable file.

Font Constants (Used with Text and TextBox)

Constant Value Description

ebRegular 1 Normal font (i.e., neither bold nor italic).

ebItalic 2 Italic font.

ebBold 4 Bold font.

ebBoldItalic 6 Bold-italic font.

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Constants (topic) 117

IMEStat Constants (Returned by the IMEStat Function)

Constant Value Description

ebIMENoOp 0 IME not installed.

ebIMEOn 1 IME on.

ebIMEOff 2 IME off.

ebIMEDisabled 3 IME disabled.

ebIMEHiragana 4 Hiragana double-byte character.

ebIMEKatakanaDbl 5 Katakana double-byte characters.

ebIMEKatakanaSng 6 Katakana single-byte characters.

ebIMEAlphaDbl 7 Alphanumeric double-byte characters.

ebIMEAlphaSng 8 Alphanumeric single-byte characters.

Math Constants
Constant Value Description

PI 3.1415... Value of PI.

MsgBox Constants
Constant Value Description

ebOKOnly 0 Displays only the OK button.

ebOKCancel 1 Displays OK and Cancel buttons.

ebAbortRetryIgnore 2 Displays Abort, Retry, and Ignore buttons.

ebYesNoCancel 3 Displays Yes, No, and Cancel buttons.

ebYesNo 4 Displays Yes and No buttons.

ebRetryCancel 5 Displays Cancel and Retry buttons.

ebCritical 16 Displays the stop icon.

ebQuestion 32 Displays the question icon.

ebExclamation 48 Displays the exclamation icon.

ebInformation 64 Displays the information icon.

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MsgBox Constants (Continued)

Constant Value Description

ebApplicationModal 0 The current application is suspended until the

dialog box is closed.

ebDefaultButton1 0 First button is the default button.

ebDefaultButton2 256 Second button is the default button.

ebDefaultButton3 512 Third button is the default button.

Microsoft Windows NT Workstation
Microsoft Windows NT Server
Microsoft Win32s running under Windows 3.1

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Platform Constants (Returned by [Link]) (Continued)

Constant Value Description

ebSolaris 3 Sun Solaris 2.x

ebSunOS 4 SunOS

ebHPUX 5 HP-UX

ebIrix 7 Silicon Graphics IRIX

ebAIX 8 IBM AIX

ebNetware 9 Novell Netware

ebMacintosh 10 Apple Macintosh

ebOS2 11 IBM OS/2

ebSCO 13 SCO UNIX

ebUnixWare 14 Novell UnixWare

ebOSF1 15 OSF/1

ebVMS 16 VMS

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Shell Constants (Used with the Shell Function) (Continued)

Constant Value Description

ebNormalFocus 1 Application is displayed at the default

position and has the focus.

ebMinimizedFocus 2 Application is initially minimized and has the

focus.

ebMaximizedFocus 3 Application is maximized and has the focus.

ebNormalNoFocus 4 Application is displayed at the default

position and does not have the focus.

ebMinimizedNoFocus 6 Application is minimized and does not have

the focus.

String Conversion Constants (Used with the StrConv Function)

Constant Value Description

ebUpperCase 1 Converts string to uppercase.

ebLowerCase 2 Converts string to lowercase.

ebProperCase 3 Capitalizes the first letter of each word.

ebWide 4 Converts narrow characters to wide characters.

ebNarrow 8 Converts wide characters to narrow characters.

ebKatakana 16 Converts Hiragana characters to Katakana

characters.

ebHiragana 32 Converts Katakana characters to Hiragana

characters.

ebUnicode 64 Converts string from MBCS to UNICODE.

ebFromUnicode 128 Converts string from UNICODE to MBCS.

Variant Constants (Returned by the VarType Function)

Constant Value Description

ebEmpty 0 Variant has not been initialized.

ebNull 1 Variant contains no valid data.

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Cos (function) 121

Variant Constants (Returned by the VarType Function) (Continued)

Constant Value Description

ebInteger 2 Variant contains an Integer.

ebLong 3 Variant contains a Long.

ebSingle 4 Variant contains a Single.

ebDouble 5 Variant contains a Double.

ebCurrency 6 Variant contains a Currency.

ebDate 7 Variant contains a Date.

ebString 8 Variant contains a String.

ebObject 9 Variant contains an Object.

ebError 10 Variant contains an Error.

ebBoolean 11 Variant contains a Boolean.

ebVariant 12 Variant contains an array of Variants.

ebDataObject 13 Variant contains a data object.

ebArray 8192 Added to any of the other types to indicate an

array of that type.

You can define your own constants using the Const statement.
Preprocessor constants are defined using #Const.

Cos (function)
Syntax Cos(number)

Description Returns a Double representing the cosine of number.

Comments The number parameter is a Double specifying an angle in radians.
Example 'This example assigns the cosine of pi/4 radians (45 degrees)
'to C# and displays its value.
Sub Main()
c# = Cos(3.14159 / 4)
MsgBox "The cosine of 45 degrees is: " & c#
End Sub

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Cross-Platform Scripting (topic) 123

'Create Visio object.

Set doc = [Link]("")'Create a new document.
Set page = [Link](1) 'Get first page.
Set shape = [Link](1,1,4,4)
[Link] = "Hello, world." 'Set text within shape.
End Sub
See Also GetObject (function); Object (data type).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh.

Cross-Platform Scripting (topic)

This section discusses different techniques that can be used to ensure that a given script
runs on all platforms that support BasicScript.

Querying the Platform

A script can query the platform in order to take appropriate actions for that platform.
This is done using the [Link] property. The following example uses this method to
display a message to the user:
Sub Main()
If [Link] = ebWindows Then
MsgBox "This is a message."
Else
Print "This is a message."
End If
End Sub

Querying the Capabilities of a Platform

Some capabilities of the current platform can be determined using the [Link]
method. This method takes a number indicating which capability is being queried and
returns either True or False depending on whether that capability is or is not supported
on the current platform. The following example uses this technique to read hidden files:
Sub Main()
If [Link](3) Then
f$ = Dir$("*",ebHidden) 'Hidden files supported.
Else
f$ = Dir$("*") 'Hidden files not
'supported.
End If
'Print all the files.
While f$ <> ""

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124 BasicScript Language Reference

x = x + 1
MsgBox "Matching file " & x & " is: " & f$
f$ = Dir$
Wend
End Sub

Byte Ordering with Files

One of the main differences between platforms is byte ordering. On some platforms, the
processor requires that the bytes that make up a given data item be reversed from their
expected ordering.
Byte ordering becomes problematic if binary data is transferred from one platform to
another. This can only occur when writing data to files. For this reason, it is strongly
recommended that files that are to be transported to a different platform with different
byte ordering be sequential (i.e., do not use Binary and Random files).
If a Binary or Random file needs to be transported to another platform, you will have to
take into consideration the following:
1. You must either decide on a byte ordering for your file or write information to the
file indicating its byte ordering so that it can be queried by the script that is to read
the file.
2. When reading a file on a platform in which the byte ordering matches, nothing
further needs to be done. If the byte ordering is different, then the bytes of each data
item read from a file need to be reversed. This is a difficult proposition.

Byte Ordering with Structures

Due to byte ordering differences between platforms, structure copying using the LSet
statement produces different results. Consider the following example:
Type TwoInts
first As Integer
second As Integer
End Type
Type OneLong
first As Long
End Type
Sub Main()
Dim l As OneLong
Dim i As TwoInts
[Link] = 4
LSet i = l
MsgBox "First integer: " & [Link]
MsgBox "Second integer: " & [Link]

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End Sub
On Intel-based platforms, bytes are stored in memory with the most significant byte first
(known as little-endian format). Thus, the above example displays two dialog boxes, the
first one displaying the number 4 and the second displaying the number 0.
On UNIX and Macintosh platforms, bytes are stored in memory with the least
significant byte first (known as big-endian format). Thus, the above example displays
two dialog boxes, the first one displaying the number 0 and the second displaying the
number 4.
Scripts that rely on binary images of data must take the byte ordering of the current
platform into account.

Reading and Writing to Text Files

Different platforms use different characters to represent end-of-line in a file. For
example, under Windows, a carriage-return/linefeed pair is used. Under UNIX, a line
feed by itself is used. On the Macintosh, a carriage return is used.
BasicScript takes this into account when reading text files. The following combinations
are recognized and interpreted as end-of-line:
Carriage return Chr(13)

Carriage return/line feed Chr(13) + Chr(10)

Line feed Chr(10)

When writing to text files, BasicScript uses the end-of-line appropriate to that platform.
You can retrieve the same end-of-line used by BasicScript using the [Link]$
property:
crlf = [Link]$
Print #1,"Line 1." & crlf & "Line 2."

Alignment
A major difference between platforms supported by BasicScript is the forced alignment
of data. BasicScript handles most alignment issues itself.

Portability of Compiled Code

Scripts compiled under BasicScript can be executed without recompilation on any
platform supported by BasicScript.

Unsupported Language Elements

CStr (function)
Syntax CStr(expression)

Description Converts expression to a String.

Comments Unlike Str$ or Str, the string returned by CStr will not contain a leading space if the
expression is positive. Further, the CStr function correctly recognizes thousands and
decimal separators for your locale.
Different data types are converted to String in accordance with the following rules:
Data Type CStr Returns

Any numeric type A string containing the number without the leading space
for positive values
Date A string converted to a date using the short date format
Boolean A string containing either "True" or "False"
Null variant A runtime error
Empty variant A zero-length string
Example 'This example displays the value of a Double converted to a
'String.
Sub Main()
s# = 123.456
MsgBox "The string value is: " & CStr(s#)
End Sub
See Also CCur (function); CBool (function); CDate, CVDate (functions); CDbl (function);
CInt (function); CLng (function); CSng (function); CVar (function); CVErr
(function); String (data type); Str, Str$ (functions).

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CurDir, CurDir$ (functions) 129

Platform(s) All.

CurDir, CurDir$ (functions)

Syntax CurDir[$][(drive)]

Description Returns the current directory on the specified drive. If no drive is specified or drive is
zero-length, then the current directory on the current drive is returned.
Comments CurDir$ returns a String, whereas CurDir returns a String variant.
BasicScript generates a runtime error if drive is invalid.
Example 'This example saves the current directory, changes to the next
'higher directory, and displays the change; then restores the
'original directory and displays the change. Note: The dot
'designators will not work with all platforms.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
save$ = CurDir$
ChDir ("..")
MsgBox "Old directory: " & save$ & crlf & "New directory: " _
& CurDir$
ChDir (save$)
MsgBox "Directory restored to: " & CurDir$
End Sub

See Also ChDir (statement); ChDrive (statement); Dir, Dir$ (functions); MkDir (statement);
RmDir (statement).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes UNIX: On UNIX platforms, the drive parameter is ignored. Since UNIX platforms do
not support drive letters, the current directory is always returned.
NetWare: Since NetWare does not support drive letters, the drive parameter specifies a
volume name (up to 14 characters). The returned value will have the following format:
volume:[dir[\dir]...]

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Date (data type)

Syntax Date

Description A data type capable of holding date and time values.

Comments Date variables are used to hold dates within the following range:
January 1, 100 00:00:00 <= date <= December 31, 9999 23:59:59
-6574340 <= date <= 2958465.99998843
Internally, dates are stored as 8-byte IEEE double values. The integer part holds the
number of days since December 31, 1899, and the fractional part holds the number of
seconds as a fraction of the day. For example, the number 32874.5 represents January 1,
1990 at 12:00:00.
When appearing within a structure, dates require 8 bytes of storage. Similarly, when
used with binary or random files, 8 bytes of storage are required.
There is no type-declaration character for Date.
Date variables that haven't been assigned are given an initial value of 0 (i.e., December
31, 1899).

Date Literals
Literal dates are specified using number signs, as shown below:
Dim d As Date
d = #January 1, 1990#
The interpretation of the date string (i.e., January 1, 1990 in the above example) occurs
at runtime, using the current country settings. This is a problem when interpreting dates
such as 1/2/1990. If the date format is M/D/Y, then this date is January 2, 1990. If the
date format is D/M/Y, then this date is February 1, 1990. To remove any ambiguity
when interpreting dates, use the universal date format:
date_variable = #YY/MM/DD HH:MM:SS#
The following example specifies the date June 3, 1965, using the universal date format:
Dim d As Date
d = #1965/6/3 10:23:45#

See Also Currency (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type); Long (data type);
Object (data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean
(data type); DefType (statement); CDate, CVDate (functions).
Platform(s) All.

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Date, Date$ (functions)

Syntax Date[$][()]

Description Returns the current system date.

Comments The Date$ function returns the date using the short date format. The Date function
returns the date as a Date variant.
Use the Date/Date$ statements to set the system date.

Note: In prior versions of BasicScript, the Date$ function returned the date using a
fixed date format. The date is now returned using the current short date format
(defined by the operating system), which may differ from the previous fixed format.

Example 'This example saves the current date to Cdate$, then changes
'the date and displays the result. It then changes the date
'back to the saved date and displays the result.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
TheDate$ = Date$()
Date$ = "01/01/95"
MsgBox "Saved date is: " & TheDate$ & crlf _
& "Changed date is: " & Date$()
Date$ = TheDate$
MsgBox "Restored date to: " & TheDate$
End Sub

See Also CDate, CVDate (functions); Time, Time$ (functions); Date, Date$ (statements); Now
(function); Format, Format$ (functions); DateSerial (function); DateValue
(function).
Platform(s) All.

Date, Date$ (statements)

DateDiff (function)
Syntax DateDiff(interval, date1, date2 [, [firstdayofweek] [,firstweekofyear]])

Description Returns a Date variant representing the number of given time intervals between date1
and date2.
Comments The following describes the named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
interval String expression indicating the specific time interval you
wish to find the difference between. An error is generated if
interval is Null.
date1 Any expression convertible to a Date. An example of a valid
date/time string would be "January 1, 1994".
date2 Any expression convertible to a Date. An example of a valid
date/time string would be "January 1, 1994".
firstdayofweek Indicates the first day of the week. If omitted, then sunday is
assumed (i.e., the constant ebSunday described below).
firstweekofyear Indicates the first week of the year. If omitted, then the first
week of the year is considered to be that containing January 1
(i.e., the constant ebFirstJan1 as described bellow).

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The following lists the valid time interval strings and the meanings of each. The
Format$ function uses the same expressions.
Time Interval
"y" Day of the year
"yyyy" Year
"d" Day
"m" Month
"q" Quarter
"ww" Week
"h" Hour
"n" Minute
"s" Second
"w" Weekday
To find the number of days between two dates, you may use either day or day of the
year, as they are both equivalent ("d", "y").
The time interval weekday ("w") will return the number of weekdays occurring between
date1 and date2, counting the first occurrence but not the last. However, if the time
interval is week ("ww"), the function will return the number of calendar weeks between
date1 and date2, counting the number of Sundays. If date1 falls on a Sunday, then that
day is counted, but if date2 falls on a Sunday, it is not counted.
The firstdayofweek parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofweek.

ebSunday 1 Sunday (the default)
ebMonday 2 Monday
ebTuesday 3 Tuesday
ebWednesday 4 Wednesday
ebThursday 5 Thursday
ebFriday 6 Friday
ebSaturday 7 Saturday
The firstdayofyear parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofyear.

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Constant Value Description

ebFirstJan1 1 The first week of the year is that in which January 1

occurs (the default).
ebFirstFourDays 2 The first week of the year is that containing at least
four days in the year.
ebFirstFullWeek 3 The first week of the year is the first full week of the
year.
The DateDiff function will return a negative date/time value if date1 is a date later in
time than date2. If date1 or date2 are Null, then Null is returned.
Example 'This example gets today's date and adds ten days to it. It
'then calculates the difference between the two dates in days
'and weeks and displays the result.
Sub Main()
today$ = Format(Date$,"Short Date")
NextWeek = Format(DateAdd("d", 14, today$),"Short Date")
DifDays# = DateDiff("d", today$, NextWeek)
DifWeek# = DateDiff("w", today$, NextWeek)
s$ = "The difference between " & today$ & " and " & NextWeek
s$ = s$ & " is: " & DifDays# & " days or " _
& DifWeek# & " weeks"
MsgBox s$
End Sub
See Also DateAdd (function).
Platform(s) All.

DatePart (function)
Syntax DatePart(interval, date [, [firstdayofweek] [,firstweekofyear]])

Description Returns an Integer representing a specific part of a date/time expression.

Comments The DatePart function decomposes the specified date and returns a given date/time
element. The following table describes the named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
interval String expression that indicates the specific time interval you
wish to identify within the given date.
date Any expression convertible to a Date. An example of a valid
date/time string would be "January 1, 1995".
firstdayofweek Indicates the first day of the week. If omitted, then sunday is
assumed (i.e., the constant ebSunday described below).

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Named Parameter Description

firstweekofyear Indicates the first week of the year. If omitted, then the first
week of the year is considered to be that containing January 1
(i.e., the constant ebFirstJan1 as described bellow).
The following table lists the valid time interval strings and the meanings of each. The
Format$ function uses the same expressions.
Time Interval
"y" Day of the year
"yyyy" Year
"d" Day
"m" Month
"q" Quarter
"ww" Week
"h" Hour
"n" Minute
"s" Second
"w" Weekday
The firstdayofweek parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofweek.

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofyear.

ebFirstJan1 1 The first week of the year is that in which January 1
occurs (the default).

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140 BasicScript Language Reference

Constant Value Description

ebFirstFourDays 2 The first week of the year is that containing at least

four days in the year.
ebFirstFullWeek 3 The first week of the year is the first full week of the
year.
Example 'This example displays the parts of the current date.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
today$ = Date$
qtr = DatePart("q",today$)
yr = DatePart("yyyy",today$)
mo = DatePart("m",today$)
wk = DatePart("ww",today$)
da = DatePart("d",today$)
s$ = "Quarter: " & qtr & crlf
s$ = s$ & "Year: " & yr & crlf
s$ = s$ & "Month: " & mo & crlf
s$ = s$ & "Week: " & wk & crlf
s$ = s$ & "Day: " & da & crlf
MsgBox s$
End Sub

See Also Day (function); Minute (function); Second (function); Month (function); Year
(function); Hour (function); Weekday (function); Format, Format$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.

DateSerial (function)
Syntax DateSerial(year, month, day)

Description Returns a Date variant representing the specified date.

Comments The DateSerial function takes the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description

year Integer between 100 and 9999

month Integer between 1 and 12
day Integer between 1 and 31
Example 'This example converts a date to a real number representing the
'serial date in days since December 30, 1899 (which is day 0).
Sub Main()
tdate# = DateSerial(1993,08,22)

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DateValue (function) 141

MsgBox "The DateSerial value for August 22, 1993, is: " _
& tdate#
End Sub

See Also DateValue (function); TimeSerial (function); TimeValue (function); CDate, CVDate
(functions).
Platform(s) All.

DateValue (function)
Syntax DateValue(date)

Description Returns a Date variant representing the date contained in the specified string argument.
Example 'This example returns the day of the month for today's date.
Sub Main()
tdate$ = Date$
tday = DateValue(tdate$)
MsgBox tdate & " date value is: " & tday$
End Sub
See Also TimeSerial (function); TimeValue (function); DateSerial (function).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, date specifications vary depending on the international
settings contained in the "intl" section of the [Link] file. The date items must follow the
ordering determined by the current date format settings in use by Windows..

Day (function)
Syntax Day(date)

Description Returns the day of the month specified by date.

Comments The value returned is an Integer between 0 and 31 inclusive.
The date parameter is any expression that converts to a Date.
Example 'This example gets the current date and then displays it.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
CurDate = Now()
MsgBox "Today is day " & Day(CurDate) & " of the month." _
& crlf & "Tomorrow is day " & Day(CurDate + 1)
End Sub

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See Also Minute (function); Second (function); Month (function); Year (function); Hour
(function); Weekday (function); DatePart (function).
Platform(s) All.

DDB (function)
Syntax DDB(cost, salvage, life, period [,factor])

Description Calculates the depreciation of an asset for a specified period of time using the
double-declining balance method.
Comments The double-declining balance method calculates the depreciation of an asset at an
accelerated rate. The depreciation is at its highest in the first period and becomes
progressively lower in each additional period. DDB uses the following formula to
calculate the depreciation:
DDB =((Cost-Total_depreciation_from_all_other_periods) * 2)/Life
The DDB function uses the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description

cost Double representing the initial cost of the asset

salvage Double representing the estimated value of the asset at the end
of its predicted useful life
life Double representing the predicted length of the asset's useful
life
period Double representing the period for which you wish to calculate
the depreciation
factor Depreciation factor determining the rate the balance declines. If
this parameter is missing, then 2 is assumed (double-declining
method).
The life and period parameters must be expressed using the same units. For example, if
life is expressed in months, then period must also be expressed in months.
Example 'This example calculates the depreciation for capital equipment
'that cost $10,000, has a service life of ten years, and is
'worth $2,000 as scrap. The dialog box displays the depreciation
'for each of the first four years.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
s$ = "Depreciation Table" & crlf & crlf
For yy = 1 To 4
CurDep# = DDB(10000.0,2000.0,10,yy)
s$ = s$ & "Year " & yy & " : " & CurDep# & crlf

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DDEExecute (statement) 143

Next yy
MsgBox s$
End Sub

Description Executes a command in another application.

Comments The DDEExecute statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
channel Integer containing the DDE channel number returned from
DDEInitiate. An error will result if channel is invalid.
command$ String containing the command to be executed. The format of
command$ depends on the receiving application.
If the receiving application does not execute the instructions, BasicScript generates a
runtime error.
Example 'This example selects a cell in an Excel spreadsheet.
Sub Main()
q$ = Chr(34)
ch% = DDEInitiate("Excel","c:\sheets\[Link]")
cmd$ = "Select(" & q$ & "R1C1:R8C1" & q$ & ")"
DDEExecute ch%,cmd$
DDETerminate ch%
End Sub
See Also DDEInitiate (function); DDEPoke (statement); DDERequest, DDERequest$
(functions); DDESend (statement); DDETerminate (statement); DDETerminateAll
(statement); DDETimeout (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the DDEML library is required for DDE support. This
library is loaded when the first DDEInitiate statement is encountered and remains
loaded until the BasicScript system is terminated. Thus, the DDEML library is required
only if DDE statements are used within a script.

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144 BasicScript Language Reference

DDEInitiate (function)
Syntax DDEInitiate(application$, topic$)

Description Initializes a DDE link to another application and returns a unique number subsequently
used to refer to the open DDE channel.
Comments The DDEInitiate statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
application$ String containing the name of the application (the server) with
which a DDE conversation will be established.
topic$ String containing the name of the topic for the conversation.
The possible values for this parameter are described in the
documentation for the server application.
This function returns 0 if BasicScript cannot establish the link. This will occur under
any of the following circumstances:
• The specified application is not running.
• The topic was invalid for that application.
• Memory or system resources are insufficient to establish the DDE link.
Example 'This example selects a range of cells in an Excel spreadsheet.
Sub Main()
q$ = Chr(34)
ch% = DDEInitiate("Excel","c:\sheets\[Link]")
cmd$ = "Select(" & q$ & "R1C1:R8C1" & q$ & ")"
DDEExecute ch%,cmd$
DDETerminate ch%
End Sub
See Also DDEExecute (statement); DDEPoke (statement); DDERequest, DDERequest$
(functions); DDESend (function); DDETerminate (statement); DDETerminateAll
(statement); DDETimeout (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the DDEML library is required for DDE support. This
library is loaded when the first DDEInitiate statement is encountered and remains
loaded until the BasicScript system is terminated. Thus, the DDEML library is required
only if DDE statements are used within a script.

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DDEPoke (statement)
Syntax DDEPoke channel, DataItem, value

Description Sets the value of a data item in the receiving application associated with an open DDE
link.
Comments The DDEPoke statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
channel Integer containing the DDE channel number returned from
DDEInitiate. An error will result if channel is invalid.
DataItem Data item to be set. This parameter can be any expression
convertible to a String. The format depends on the server.
value The new value for the data item. This parameter can be any
expression convertible to a String. The format depends on the
server. A runtime error is generated if value is Null.
Example 'This example pokes a value into an Excel spreadsheet.
Sub Main()
ch% = DDEInitiate("Excel","c:\sheets\[Link]")
DDEPoke ch%,"R1C1","980"
DDETerminate ch%
End Sub
See Also DDEExecute (statement); DDEInitiate (function); DDERequest, DDERequest$
(functions); DDESend (function); DDETerminate (statement); DDETerminateAll
(statement); DDETimeout (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the DDEML library is required for DDE support. This
library is loaded when the first DDEInitiate statement is encountered and remains
loaded until the BasicScript system is terminated. Thus, the DDEML library is required
only if DDE statements are used within a script.

DDERequest, DDERequest$ (functions)

Syntax DDERequest[$](channel,DataItem$)

Description Returns the value of the given data item in the receiving application associated with the
open DDE channel.
Comments DDERequest$ returns a String, whereas DDERequest returns a String variant.

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The DDERequest/DDERequest$ functions take the following parameters:

Parameter Description
channel Integer containing the DDE channel number returned from
DDEInitiate. An error will result if channel is invalid.
DataItem$ String containing the name of the data item to request. The
format for this parameter depends on the server.
The format for the returned value depends on the server.
Example 'This example gets a value from an Excel spreadsheet.
Sub Main()
ch% = DDEInitiate("Excel","c:\excel\[Link]")
s$ = DDERequest$(ch%,"R1C1")
DDETerminate ch%
MsgBox s$
End Sub
See Also DDEExecute (statement); DDEInitiate (function); DDEPoke (statement); DDESend
(function); DDETerminate (statement); DDETerminateAll (statement);
DDETimeout (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the DDEML library is required for DDE support. This
library is loaded when the first DDEInitiate statement is encountered and remains
loaded until the BasicScript system is terminated. Thus, the DDEML library is required
only if DDE statements are used within a script.

DDESend (statement)
Syntax DDESend application$, topic$, DataItem, value

Description Initiates a DDE conversation with the server as specified by application$ and topic$ and
sends that server a new value for the specified item.
Comments The DDESend statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description

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150 BasicScript Language Reference

The Declare statement uses the following parameters:

Parameter Description
name Any valid BasicScript name. When you declare functions, you
can include a type-declaration character to indicate the return
type.
This name is specified as a normal BasicScript keyword—i.e., it
does not appear within quotes.
TypeChar An optional type-declaration character used when defining the
type of data returned from functions. It can be any of the
following characters: #, !, $, @, %, or &. For external functions,
the @ character is not allowed.
Type-declaration characters can only appear with function
declarations, and take the place of the As type clause.
Note: Currency data cannot be returned from external
functions. Thus, the @ type-declaration character cannot be
used when declaring external functions.
Decl Optional keyword indicating that the external subroutine or
function uses the C calling convention. With C routines,
arguments are pushed right to left on the stack and the caller
performs stack cleanup.
Pascal Optional keyword indicating that this external subroutine or
function uses the Pascal calling convention. With Pascal
routines, arguments are pushed left to right on the stack and the
called function performs stack cleanup.
System Optional keyword indicating that the external subroutine or
function uses the System calling convention. With System
routines, arguments are pushed right to left on the stack, the
caller performs stack cleanup, and the number of arguments is
specified in the AL register.
StdCall Optional keyword indicating that the external subroutine or
function uses the StdCall calling convention. With StdCall
routines, arguments are pushed right to left on the stack and the
called function performs stack cleanup.
LibName$ Must be specified if the routine is external. This parameter
specifies the name of the library or code resource containing the
external routine and must appear within quotes.
The LibName$ parameter can include an optional path
specifying the exact location of the library or code resource.

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Declare (statement) 151

Parameter Description
AliasName$ Alias name that must be given to provide the name of the
routine if the name parameter is not the routine's real name. For
example, the following two statements declare the same routine:
Declare Function GetCurrentTime Lib "user"
() As Integer
Declare Function GetTime Lib "user" Alias
"GetCurrentTime" _
As Integer
Use an alias when the name of an external routine conflicts with
the name of a BasicScript internal routine or when the external
routine name contains invalid characters.
The AliasName$ parameter must appear within quotes.
type Indicates the return type for functions.
For external functions, the valid return types are: Integer,
Long, String, Single, Double, Date, Boolean, and data objects.
Note: Currency, Variant, fixed-length strings, arrays,
user-defined types, and OLE Automation objects cannot be
returned by external functions.
Optional Keyword indicating that the parameter is optional. All optional
parameters must be of type Variant. Furthermore, all
parameters that follow the first optional parameter must also be
optional.
If this keyword is omitted, then the parameter being defined is
required when calling this subroutine or function.
ByVal Optional keyword indicating that the caller will pass the
parameter by value. Parameters passed by value cannot be
changed by the called routine.
ByRef Optional keyword indicating that the caller will pass the
parameter by reference. Parameters passed by reference can be
changed by the called routine. If neither ByVal or ByRef are
specified, then ByRef is assumed.

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152 BasicScript Language Reference

Parameter Description
ParameterName Name of the parameter, which must follow BasicScript naming
conventions:
1. Must start with a letter.
2. May contain letters, digits, and the underscore character
(_). Punctuation and type-declaration characters are not
allowed. The exclamation point (!) can appear within the
name as long as it is not the last character, in which case it
is interpreted as a type-declaration character.
3. Must not exceed 80 characters in length.
Additionally, ParameterName can end with an optional
type-declaration character specifying the type of that parameter
(i.e., any of the following characters: %, &, !, #, @).
() Indicates that the parameter is an array.
ParameterType Specifies the type of the parameter (e.g., Integer, String,
Variant, and so on). The As ParameterType clause should only
be included if ParameterName does not contain a
type-declaraction character.
In addition to the default BasicScript data types,
ParameterType can specify any user-defined structure, data
object, or OLE Automation object. If the data type of the
parameter is not known in advance, then the Any keyword can
be used. This forces the BasicScript compiler to relax type
checking, allowing any data type to be passed in place of the
given argument.
Declare Sub Convert Lib "mylib" (a As Any)
The Any data type can only be used when passing parameters to
external routines.

Passing Parameters
By default, BasicScript passes arguments by reference. Many external routines require a
value rather than a reference to a value. The ByVal keyword does this. For example, this
C routine
void MessageBeep(int);
would be declared as follows:
Declare Sub MessageBeep Lib "user" (ByVal n As Integer)
As an example of passing parameters by reference, consider the following C routine
which requires a pointer to an integer as the third parameter:
int SystemParametersInfo(int,int,int *,int);

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Declare (statement) 153

This routine would be declared as follows (notice the ByRef keyword in the third
parameter):
Declare Function SystemParametersInfo Lib "user" (ByVal _
action As Integer, ByVal uParam As Integer,ByRef pInfo _
As Integer, ByVal updateINI As Integer) As Integer
Strings can be passed by reference or by value. When they are passed by reference, a
pointer to a pointer to a null-terminated string is passed. When they are passed by value,
BasicScript passes a pointer to a null-terminated string (i.e., a C string).
When passing a string by reference, the external routine can change the pointer or
modify the contents of the existing. If an external routine modifies a passed string
variable (regardless of whether the string was passed by reference or by value), then
there must be sufficient space within the string to hold the returned characters. This can
be accomplished using the Space function, as shown in the following example which
calls a Windows 16-bit DLL:
Declare Sub GetWindowsDirectory Lib "kernel" (ByVal _
dirname$, ByVal length%)
Sub Main()
Dim s As String
s = Space(128)
GetWindowsDirectory s,128
End Sub
Another alternative to ensure that a string has sufficient space is to declare the string
with a fixed length:
Declare Sub GetWindowsDirectory Lib "kernel" (ByVal _
dirname$, ByVal length%)
Sub Main
Dim s As String * 128
GetWindowsDirectory s,len(s)
End Sub

Calling Conventions with External Routines

For external routines, the argument list must exactly match that of the referenced
routine. When calling an external subroutine or function, BasicScript needs to be told
how that routine expects to receive its parameters and who is responsible for cleanup of
the stack.

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154 BasicScript Language Reference

The following table describes BasicScript’s calling conventions and how these translate
to those supported by C.
BasicScript C Calling
Calling Convention Convention Characteristics
StdCall _stdcall Arguments are pushed right to left.
The called function performs stack
cleanup.
Pascal pascal Arguments are pushed left to right.
The called function performs stack
cleanup
System _System Arguments are pushed right to left.
The caller performs stack cleanup.
The number of arguments is specified in
the ax 1 register.
CDecl cdec1 Arguments are pushed right to left.
The caller performs stack cleanup.
The following table shows which calling conventions are supported on which platform,
and indicates what the default calling convention is when no explicit calling convention
is specified in the Declare statement.
Platform Supported Calling Conventions Default Calling Convention
Windows Pascal, CDecl Pascal
Win32/Intel Pascal, CDecl, StdCall StdCall
Win32/PPC CDecl CDecl
Macintosh On the 68K, the Macintosh supports On the 68K, the default
only the CDecl calling convention. calling convention is CDecl.
The PowerMac supports a single On the 68K, a runtime error
calling convention that evaluates occurs if any explicit calling
parameters left to right. No special convention keyword is
calling convention keywords are specified.
required.
OS/2 System, Pascal, CDecl System
NetWare CDecl, Pascal CDecl
UNIX CDecl CDecl

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Passing Null Pointers

For external routines defined to receive strings by value, BasicScript passes uninitialized
strings as null pointers (a pointer whose value is 0). The constant ebNullString can be
used to force a null pointer to be passed as shown below:
Declare Sub Foo Lib "sample" (ByVal lpName As Any)
Sub Main()
Foo ebNullString 'pass a null pointer
End Sub
Another way to pass a null pointer is to declare the parameter that is to receive the null
pointer as type Any, then pass a long value 0 by value:
Declare Sub Foo Lib "sample" (ByVal lpName As Any)
Sub Main()
Foo ByVal 0& 'Pass a null pointer.
End Sub

Passing Data to External Routines

The following table shows how the different data types are passed to external routines:
Data type Is passed as

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158 BasicScript Language Reference

Calling External Routines in Multi-Threaded Environments

In multi-threaded environments (such as Win32), BasicScript makes a copy of all data
passed to external routines. This allows other simultaneously executing scripts to
continue executing before the external routine returns.
Care must be exercised when passing a the same by-reference variable twice to external
routines. When returning from such calls, BasicScript must update the real data from the
copies made prior to calling the external function. Since the same variable was passed
twice, you will be unable to determine which variable will be updated.
Example Declare Function IsLoaded% Lib "Kernel" _
Alias "GetModuleHandle" (ByVal name$)
Declare Function GetProfileString Lib "Kernel" _
(ByVal SName$,ByVal KName$,_
ByVal Def$,ByVal Ret$,ByVal Size%) As Integer
Sub Main()
SName$ = "Intl"'[Link] section name.
KName$ = "sCountry"'[Link] country setting.
ret$ = String$(255, 0)'Initialize return string.
If GetProfileString(SName$,KName$,"",ret$,Len(ret$)) Then
MsgBox "Your country setting is: " & ret$
Else
MsgBox "There is no country setting in your [Link] file."
End If
If IsLoaded("Progman") Then
MsgBox "Progman is loaded."
Else
MsgBox "Progman is not loaded."
End If
End Sub

See Also Call (statement); Sub...End Sub (statement); Function...End Function (statement).
Platform(s) All platforms support Declare for forward referencing.
The following platforms currently support the use of Declare for referencing external
routines: Windows, Win32/Intel, Win32/PPC, Macintosh, OS/2, NetWare, and some
UNIX platforms. See below for details.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, external routines are contained in DLLs. The libraries
containing the routines are loaded when the routine is called for the first time (i.e., not
when the script is loaded). This allows a script to reference external DLLs that
potentially do not exist.
All the Windows API routines are contained in DLLs, such as "user", "kernel", and
"gdi". The file extension ".exe" is implied if another extension is not given.
If the LibName$ parameter does not contain an explicit path to the DLL, the following
search will be performed for the DLL (in this order):

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1. The current directory

2. The Windows directory
3. The Windows system directory
4. The directory containing BasicScript
5. All directories listed in the path environment variable
If the first character of AliasName$ is #, then the remainder of the characters specify the
ordinal number of the routine to be called. For example, the following two statements
are equivalent (under Windows, GetCurrentTime is defined as ordinal 15 in the
[Link] module):
Declare Function GetTime Lib "user" Alias "GetCurrentTime" ()
As Integer
Declare Function GetTime Lib "user" Alias "#15" () As Integer
Under Windows, the names of external routines declared using the CDecl keyword are
usually preceded with an underscore character. When BasicScript searches for your
external routine by name, it first attempts to load the routine exactly as specified. If
unsuccessful, BasicScript makes a second attempt by prepending an underscore
character to the specified name. If both attempts fail, then BasicScript generates a
runtime error. Under Windows, external routines declared using the Pascal keyword are
case insensitive, whereas external routines declared using the CDecl keyword are case
sensitive.
Windows has a limitation that prevents Double, Single, and Date values from being
returned from routines declared with the CDecl keyword. Routines that return data of
these types should be declared Pascal.
BasicScript does not perform an increment on OLE automation objects before passing
them to external routines.
Platform Notes Win32: Under Win32, eternal routines are contained in DLLs. The libraries containing
the routines are loaded when the routine is called for the first time (i.e., not when the
script is loaded). This allows a script to reference external DLLs that potentially do not
exist.

Note: You cannot execute routines contained in 16-bit Windows DLLs from the
32-bit version of BasicScript.

All the Win32 API routines are contained in DLLs, such as "user32", "kernel32", and
"gdi32". The file extension ".exe" is implied if another extension is not given.
The Pascal and StdCall calling conventions are identical on Win32 platforms.
Furthermore, on this platform, the arguments are passed using C ordering regardless of
the calling convention—right to left on the stack.

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If the LibName$ parameter does not contain an explicit path to the DLL, the following
search will be performed for the DLL (in this order):
1. The directory containing BasicScript
2. The current directory
3. The Windows system directory
4. The Windows directory
5. All directories listed in the path environment variable
If the first character of AliasName$ is #, then the remainder of the characters specify the
ordinal number of the routine to be called. For example, the following two statements
are equivalent (under Win32, GetCurrentTime is defined as GetTickCount, ordinal
300, in [Link]):
Declare Function GetTime Lib "[Link]" Alias
"GetTickCount" () As Long
Declare Function GetTime Lib "[Link]" Alias "#300" () As
Long
Under Win32, name and AliasName$ are case-sensitive.
Under Win32, all string passed by value are converted to MBCS strings. Similarly, any
string returned from an external routine is assumes to be a null-terminated MBCS
string.
BasicScript does not perform an increment on OLE automation objects before passing
them to external routines. When returned from an external function, BasicScript
assumes that the properties and methods of the OLE automation object are UNICODE
and that the object uses the default system locale.

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Declare (statement) 161

Platform Notes NetWare: Under NetWare, external routines are contained within NLMs. If no file
extension is specified in LibName$, then ".nlm" is assumed.
Since the standard C library is implemented as an NLM under NetWare, it is possible to
call many C routines directly from BasicScript. For example, the following code calls
Printf with a String and an Integer:
Declare Sub Printf Lib "[Link]" (ByVal F$,ByVal s$,ByVal i%)
Sub Main()
Printf "Hello, ","world.",10
End Sub
If LibName$ does not contain an explicit path, then NetWare looks in the system
directory. The NLM specified by LibName$ is loaded when the first call to an external
in that module is accessed, thus allowing execution of scripts containing calls to NLMs
that do not exist. (If the NLM is already loaded, then no work is done.)
Under NetWare, the name and AliasName$ parameters are case-sensitive.
Platform Notes Macintosh: On the Macintosh, external routines are contained in code fragments as
specified by the LibName$ parameter. BasicScript uses the following rules for locating
your code fragment:
1. If LibName$ contains an explicit path, that code fragment will be loaded.
2. If no path is specified in LibName$, then BasicScript will look in the folder
containing BasicScript, then the System folder.
3. If both of the above fail, then BasicScript will search for a code fragment whose
CFRG resource name is the same as LibName$. The search is performed in the
folder containing BasicScript, then the System folder.
The name is compared case-sensitive.
The name, AliasName$, and LibName$ parameters are case-sensitive.
For more information on the calling conventions for code fragments, Apple publishes
the following books:
1. Inside Macintosh: PowerPC System Software
2. Building CFM-68K Runtime Programs for Macintosh Computers
Platform Notes OS/2: If the LibName$ parameter does not contain an explicit path to the DLL, the
following search will be performed for the DLL (in this order):
1. The current directory.
2. All directories listed in the path environment variable.

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The Declare statement under OS/2 supports calling both 16-bit and 32-bit routines. The
following table shows how this relates to the supported calling conventions:
Calling Convention Supports 16-Bit Calls Supports 32-Bit Calls
System No Yes
Pascal Yes Yes
CDec1 Yes No

Note: BasicScript does not support passing of Single and Double values to external
16-bit subroutines or functions. These data types are also not supported as return
values from external 16-bit functions.

If the first character of AliasName$ is #, then the remainder of the characters specify the
ordinal number of the routine to be called. The following example shows an ordinal
used to access the DosQueryCurrentDisk function contained in the [Link]
module:
Declare Function System DosQueryCurrentDisk Lib "[Link]"
Alias "#275" _
(ByRef Drive As Long,ByRef Map As Long) As Integer
Under OS/2, the name and AliasName$ parameters are case-sensitive.

Note: All external routines contained in the [Link] module require the use of an
ordinal.

Platform Notes UNIX: The Declare statement can be used to reference routines contained in shared
libraries on the following UNIX platforms: HP-UX, Solaris.
If LibPath$ does not contain an explicit path, then a search is made for the shared
library in each path in the colon separated list as specified by the following environment
variable:
Platform Environment Variable
HP-UX SHLIB_PATH
Solaris LD_LIBRARY_PATH
The following example shows how to call the printf function on the HP-UX platform:
Declare Sub PrintString Lib "/lib/[Link]" Alias "_printf" _
(ByVal FormatString As String,ByVal s As String)
Sub Main
PrintString "Hello, ","world."
End Sub

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DefType (statement) 163

A special note when passing Single values to external routines on HP-UX: When
passing Single values to external routines compiled in ANSI mode, the parameter in the
Declare statement should be specified as Double. External routines compiled in K&R
mode should have float parameters defined as Single as normal. This is due to calling
convention differences between these two standards: In ANSI mode, floats are
promoted to double prior to passing.

DefType (statement)
Syntax DefInt letterrange
DefLng letterrange
DefStr letterrange
DefSng letterrange
DefDbl letterrange
DefCur letterrange
DefObj letterrange
DefVar letterrange
DefBool letterrange
DefDate letterrange
Description Establishes the default type assigned to undeclared or untyped variables.
Comments The DefType statement controls automatic type declaration of variables. Normally, if a
variable is encountered that hasn't yet been declared with the Dim, Public, or Private
statement or does not appear with an explicit type-declaration character, then that
variable is declared implicitly as a variant (DefVar A–Z). This can be changed using the
DefType statement to specify starting letter ranges for Type other than integer. The
letterrange parameter is used to specify starting letters. Thus, any variable that begins
with a specified character will be declared using the specified Type.
The syntax for letterrange is:
letter [-letter] [,letter [-letter]]...
DefType variable types are superseded by an explicit type declarationusing either a
type-declaration character or the Dim, Public, or Private statement.
The DefType statement only affects how BasicScript compiles scripts and has no effect
at runtime.
The DefType statement can only appear outside all Sub and Function declarations.
The following table describes the data types referenced by the different variations of the
DefType statement:
Statement Data Type

DefInt Integer
DefLng Long

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Statement Data Type

DefStr String
DefSng Single
DefDbl Double
DefCur Currency
DefObj Object
DefVar Variant
DefBool Boolean
DefDate Date
Example DefStr a-l
DefLng m-r
DefSng s-u
DefDbl v-w
DefInt x-z
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
a = 100.52
m = 100.52
s = 100.52
v = 100.52
x = 100.52
message = "The values are:"
message = message & "(String) a: " & a
message = message & "(Long) m: " & m
message = message & "(Single) s: " & s
message = message & "(Double) v: " & v
message = message & "(Integer) x: " & x
MsgBox message
End Sub

See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Long (data type); Object
(data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean (data
type); Integer (data type).
Platform(s) All.

DeleteSetting (statement)
Syntax DeleteSetting appname [,section [,key]]

Description Deletes a setting from the registry.

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DeleteSetting (statement) 165

Comments You can control the behavior of DeleteSetting by omitting parameters. If you specify
all three parameters, then DeleteSetting deletes your specified setting. If you omit key,
then DeleteSetting deletes all of the keys from section. If both section and key are
omitted, then DeleteSetting removes that application’s entry from the system registry.
The following table describes the named parameters to the DeleteSetting statement:
Named Parameter Description
appname String expression indicating the name of the application
whose setting will be deleted.
section String expression indicating the name of the section whose
setting will be deleted.
key String expression indicating the name of the setting to be
deleted from the registry.
Example 'The following example adds two entries to the Windows registry
'if run under Win32 or to [Link] on other platforms,
'using the SaveSetting statement. It then uses DeleteSetting
'first to remove the Startup section, then to remove
'the NewApp key altogether.

Sub Main()
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup", _
key := "Height", setting := 200
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup", _
key := "Width", setting := 320

DeleteSetting "NewApp", "Startup"'Remove Startup section

DeleteSetting "NewApp" 'Remove NewApp key
End Sub

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166 BasicScript Language Reference

[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link]

Description Reorganizes the minimized applications on the desktop.

Example Sub Main()
[Link]
End Sub
See Also [Link] (method); [Link] (method).
Platform(s) Windows.

[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link]

Description Cascades all non-minimized windows.

Example 'This example cascades all the windows on the desktop. It first
'restores any minimized applications so that they are included
'in the cascade.
Sub Main()
Dim apps$()
AppList apps$
For i = LBound(apps) To UBound(apps)
AppRestore apps(i)
Next i
[Link]
End Sub

Description Changes the system colors to one of a predefined color set.

Example 'This example allows the user to select any of the available
'Windows color schemes.
Sub Main()
'Get color schemes from Windows
Dim names$()

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[Link] (method) 167

ReadINISection "color schemes",names$,"[Link]"

SelectAgain:'Allow user to select color scheme
item = SelectBox("Set Colors","Available Color Sets:",names$)
If item <> -1 Then
[Link] names$(item)
Goto SelectAgain
End If
End Sub
See Also [Link] (method).
Platform(s) Windows.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the names of the color sets are contained in the [Link]
file.

[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link] filename$, isTile

Description Changes the desktop wallpaper to the bitmap specified by filename$.

Comments The wallpaper will be tiled if isTile is True; otherwise, the bitmap will be centered on
the desktop.
To remove the wallpaper, set the filename$ parameter to "", as in the following
example:
[Link] "",True

Example 'This example reads a list of .BMP files from the Windows
'directory and allows the user to select any of these as
'wallpaper.
Sub Main()
Dim list$()
' Create the prefix for the bitmap filenames
d$ = [Link]$
If Right(d$,1) <> "\" Then d$ = d$ & "\"
f$ = d$ & "*.BMP"
FileList list$,f$'Get list of bitmaps from Windows directory
'Were there any bitmaps?
If ArrayDims(list$) = 0 Then
MsgBox "There aren't any bitmaps in the Windows directory"
Exit Sub
End If
'Add "(none)".
ReDim Preserve list$ (UBound(list$) + 1)
list$(UBound(list$)) = "(none)"
SelectAgain:'Allow user to select item

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168 BasicScript Language Reference

item = SelectBox("Set Wallpaper","Available Wallpaper:",list$)

Select Case item
Case -1
End
Case UBound(list$)
[Link] "",True
Goto SelectAgain
Case Else
[Link] d$ & list$(item),True
Goto SelectAgain
End Select
End Sub

1 Client area of the active application

2 Entire window of the active application

3 Client area of the active window

4 Entire window of the active window

Before the snapshot is taken, each application is updated. This ensures that any
application that is in the middle of drawing will have a chance to finish before the
snapshot is taken.
There is a slight delay if the specified window is large.
Example 'This example takes a snapshot of Program Manager and pastes
'the resulting bitmap into Windows Paintbrush.
Sub Main()
AppActivate "Program Manager"'Activate Program Manager.

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[Link] (method) 169

[Link] 2'Place snapshot into Clipboard.

id = Shell("pbrush")'Run Paintbrush.
Menu "[Link]"'Paste snapshot into Paintbrush.
End Sub

Platform(s) Windows.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, pictures are placed into the Clipboard in bitmap format.

[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link]

Description Tiles all non-minimized windows.

Example 'This example tiles all the windows on the desktop. It first
'restores any minimized applications so that they are included
'in the tile.
Sub Main()
Dim apps$()
AppList apps$
For i = LBound(apps) To UBound(apps)
AppRestore apps(i)
Next i
[Link]
End Sub
See Also [Link] (method); [Link] (method).
Platform(s) Windows.

Dialog (function)
Syntax Dialog(DialogVariable [,[DefaultButton] [,Timeout]])

Description Displays the dialog box associated with DialogVariable, returning an Integer indicating
which button was clicked.
Comments The Dialog function returns any of the following values:
–1 The OK button was clicked.

0 The Cancel button was clicked.

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>0 A push button was clicked. The returned number represents

which button was clicked based on its order in the dialog box
template (1 is the first push button, 2 is the second push button,
and so on).

The Dialog function accepts the following parameters:

Parameter Description
DialogVariable Name of a variable that has previously been dimensioned as a
user dialog box. This is accomplished using the Dim statement:
Dim MyDialog As MyTemplate
All dialog variables are local to the Sub or Function in which
they are defined. Private and public dialog variables are not
allowed.
DefaultButton An Integer specifying which button is to act as the default
button in the dialog box. The value of DefaultButton can be any
of the following
–1 This value indicates that the OK button, if
present, should be used as the default.
0 This value indicates that the Cancel button, if
present, should be used as the default.
>0 This value indicates that the Nth button
should be used as the default. This number is
the index of a push button within the dialog
box template.
If DefaultButton is not specified, then –1 is used. If the number
specified by DefaultButton does not correspond to an existing
button, then there will be no default button.
The default button appears with a thick border and is selected
when the user presses Enter on a control other than a push
button.
Timeout An Integer specifying the number of milliseconds to display
the dialog box before automatically dismissing it. If Timeout is
not specified or is equal to 0, then the dialog box will be
displayed until dismissed by the user.
If a dialog box has been dismissed due to a timeout, the Dialog
function returns 0.
A runtime error is generated if the dialog template specified by DialogVariable does
not contain at least one of the following statements:

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Dialog (statement) 171

PushButton CancelButton
OKButton PictureButton
Example 'This example displays an abort/retry/ignore disk error dialog
'box.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog DiskErrorTemplate 16,32,152,48,"Disk Error"
Text 8,8,100,8,"The disk drive door is open."
PushButton 8,24,40,14,"Abort",.Abort
PushButton 56,24,40,14,"Retry",.Retry
PushButton 104,24,40,14,"Ignore",.Ignore
End Dialog
Dim DiskError As DiskErrorTemplate
r% = Dialog(DiskError,3,0)
MsgBox "You selected button: " & r%
End Sub
See Also CancelButton (statement); CheckBox (statement); ComboBox (statement); Dialog
(statement); DropListBox (statement); GroupBox (statement); ListBox (statement);
OKButton (statement); OptionButton (statement); OptionGroup (statement); Picture
(statement); PushButton (statement); Text (statement); TextBox (statement); Begin
Dialog (statement); PictureButton (statement); HelpButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

Dialog (statement)
Syntax Dialog DialogVariable [,[DefaultButton] [,Timeout]]

Description Same as the Dialog function, except that the Dialog statement does not return a value.
(See Dialog [function].)
Example 'This example displays an abort/retry/ignore disk error dialog
'box.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog DiskErrorTemplate 16,32,152,48,"Disk Error"
Text 8,8,100,8,"The disk drive door is open."
PushButton 8,24,40,14,"Abort",.Abort
PushButton 56,24,40,14,"Retry",.Retry
PushButton 104,24,40,14,"Ignore",.Ignore
End Dialog
Dim DiskError As DiskErrorTemplate
Dialog DiskError,3,0
End Sub

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Dialogs (topic)
Dialogs are supported on the following platforms: Windows, Win32, OS/2, UNIX, and
Macintosh. The following table describes the default font use by BasicScript to display
all runtime dialogs:
Default Font in Dialog Boxes
Platform Default Font

Windows For non-MBCS systems, BasicScript uses the 8-point MS

Sans Serif font. For MBCS systems, BasicScript uses the
default system font.

Win32 For non-MBCS systems, BasicScript uses the 8-point MS

Sans Serif font. For MBCS systems, BasicScript uses the
default system font.

Macintosh 10-point Geneva.

UNIX The default font is determined by X resource files (e.g.,

$HOME/.xdefaults).

When Help is enabled within a dialog, the help key is enabled as described in the
following table:
Help Key in BasicScript Dialogs
Platform Help Key

Windows F1

Win32 F1

OS/2 F1

Macintosh Command+?

UNIX The default help key is F1, unless if has been redefined in
your X resource files.

Dim (statement)
Syntax Dim name [(<subscripts>)] [As [New] type] [,name [(<subscripts>)] [As
[New] type]]...

Description Declares a list of local variables and their corresponding types and sizes.

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Comments If a type-declaration character is used when specifying name (such as %, @, &, $, or !),
the optional [As type] expression is not allowed. For example, the following are
allowed:
Dim Temperature As Integer
Dim Temperature%
The subscripts parameter allows the declaration of dynamic and fixed arrays. The
subscripts parameter uses the following syntax:
[lower to] upper [,[lower to] upper]...
The lower and upper parameters are integers specifying the lower and upper bounds of
the array. If lower is not specified, then the lower bound as specified by Option Base is
used (or 1 if no Option Base statement has been encountered). BasicScript supports a
maximum of 60 array dimensions.
The total size of an array (not counting space for strings) is limited to 64K.
Dynamic arrays are declared by not specifying any bounds:
Dim a()
The type parameter specifies the type of the data item being declared. It can be any of
the following data types: String, Integer, Long, Single, Double, Currency, Object,
data object, built-in data type, or any user-defined data type. When specifying explicit
object types, you can use the following syntax for type:
[Link]
Where module is the name of the module in which the object is defined and class is the
type of object. For example, to specify the OLE automation variable for Excel’s
Application object, you could use the following code:
Dim a As [Link]

Note: Explicit object types can only be specified for data objects and early bound
OLE automation objects—i.e., objects whose type libraries have been registered with
BasicScript.

A Dim statement within a subroutine or function declares variables local to that

subroutine or function. If the Dim statement appears outside of any subroutine or
function declaration, then that variable has the same scope as variables declared with the
Private statement.

Fixed-Length Strings
Fixed-length strings are declared by adding a length to the String type-declaration
character:
Dim name As String * length
where length is a literal number specifying the string's length.

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Implicit Variable Declaration

If BasicScript encounters a variable that has not been explicitly declared with Dim, then
the variable will be implicitly declared using the specified type-declaration character (#,
%, @, $, or &). If the variable appears without a type-declaration character, then the
first letter is matched against any pending DefType statements, using the specified type
if found. If no DefType statement has been encountered corresponding to the first letter
of the variable name, then Variant is used.

Declaring Explicit OLE Automation Objects

The Dim statement can be used to declare variables of an explicit object type for objects
known to BasicScript through type libraries. This is accomplished using the following
syntax:
Dim name As [Link]
The application parameter specifies the application used to register the OLE automation
object and class specifies the specific object type as defined in the type library. Objects
declared in this manner are early bound, meaning that the BasicScript is able resolve
method and property information at compile time, improving the performance when
invoking methods and properties off that object variable.

Creating New Objects

The optional New keyword is used to declare a new instance of the specified data object.
This keyword cannot be used when declaring arrays or OLE automation objects.
At runtime, the application or extension that defines that object type is notified that a
new object is being defined. The application responds by creating a new physical object
(within the appropriate context) and returning a reference to that object, which is
immediately assigned to the variable being declared.
When that variable goes out of scope (i.e., the Sub or Function procedure in which the
variable is declared ends), the application is notified. The application then performs
some appropriate action, such as destroying the physical object.

Initial Values
All declared variables are given initial values, as described in the following table:
Data Type Initial Value
Integer 0
Long 0
Double 0.0
Single 0.0
Date December 31, 1899 00:00:00
Currency 0.0

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Dim (statement) 175

Data Type Initial Value

Boolean False
Object Nothing
Variant Empty
String "" (zero-length string)
User-defined type Each element of the structure is given an initial value, as
described above.
Arrays Each element of the array is given an initial value, as described
above.

Naming Conventions
Variable names must follow these naming rules:
1. Must start with a letter.
2. May contain letters, digits, and the underscore character (_); punctuation is not
allowed. The exclamation point (!) can appear within the name as long as it is not
the last character, in which case it is interpreted as a type-declaration character.
3. The last character of the name can be any of the following type-declaration
characters: #, @, %, !, &, and $.
4. Must not exceed 80 characters in length.
5. Cannot be a reserved word.
Examples 'The following examples use the Dim statement to declare various
'variable types.
Sub Main()
Dim i As Integer
Dim l& 'Long
Dim s As Single
Dim d# 'Double
Dim c$ 'String
Dim MyArray(10) As Integer'10 element integer array
Dim MyStrings$(2,10)'2-10 element string arrays
Dim Filenames$(5 to 10)'6 element string array
Dim Values(1 to 10, 100 to 200)'111 element variant array
End Sub

See Also Redim (statement); Public (statement); Private (statement); Option Base (statement).
Platform(s) All.

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Dir, Dir$ (functions)

Syntax Dir[$] [(pathname [,attributes])]
Dir[$] [(pathname, filetype [,attributes])]

Description Returns a String containing the first or next file matching pathname.
If pathname is specified, then the first file matching that pathname is returned. If
pathname is not specified, then the next file matching the initial pathname is returned.
Comments Dir$ returns a String, whereas Dir returns a String variant.
The Dir$/Dir functions take the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
pathname String containing a file specification.
If this parameter is specified, then Dir$ returns the first file
matching this file specification. If this parameter is omitted, then
the next file matching the initial file specification is returned.
If no path is specified in pathname, then all files are returned
from the current directory.
An error is generated if pathname$ is Null.
filetype Indicates the type of file to return. If pathname is also specified,
then files of this type are returned from that directory. Otherwise,
files of this type are returned from the current directory.
File types are specified using the MacID function.
attributes Integer specifying attributes of files you want included in the
list, as described below. If this parameter is omitted, then only
the normal, read-only, and archive files are returned.
An error is generated if Dir$ is called without first calling it with a valid pathname.
If there is no matching pathname, then a zero-length string is returned.

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Dir, Dir$ (functions) 177

Wildcards
The pathname argument can include wildcards, such as * and ?. The * character
matches any sequence of zero or more characters, whereas the ? character matches any
single character. Multiple *'s and ?'s can appear within the expression to form complete
searching patterns. The following table shows some examples:
This pattern Matches these files Doesn't match these files
*S*.TXT [Link] SAMPLE
[Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*[Link] [Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*T CAT [Link]
[Link]
C?T CAT [Link]
CUT CAPIT
CT
* (All files)

Attributes
You can control which files are included in the search by specifying the optional
attributes parameter. The Dir, Dir$ functions always return all normal, read-only, and
archive files (ebNormal Or ebReadOnly Or ebArchive). To include additional files,
you can specify any combination of the following attributes (combined with the Or
operator):
Constant Value Includes
ebNormal 0 Read-only, archive, subdir, and none
ebHidden 2 Hidden files
ebSystem 4 System files
ebVolume 8 Volume label
ebDirectory 16 Subdirectories
Example 'This example dimensions a null array and fills it with
'directory entries. The result is displayed in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Dim a$(10)
a(1) = Dir$("*.*")

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i% = 1
While (a(i%) <> "") And (i% < 10)
i% = i% + 1
a(i%) = Dir$
Wend
MsgBox a(1) & crlf & a(2) & crlf & a(3) & crlf & a(4)
End Sub
See Also ChDir (statement); ChDrive (statement); CurDir, CurDir$ (functions); MkDir
(statement); RmDir (statement); FileList (statement).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Macintosh: The Macintosh does not support wildcard characters such as * and ?. These
are valid filename characters. Instead of wildcards, the Macintosh uses the MacID
function to specify a collection of files of the same type. The syntax for this function is:
Dir$(pathname,MacID(text$) [,attributes])
The text$ parameter is a four-character string containing a file type, a resource type, an
application signature, or an Apple event. A runtime error occurs if the MacID function
is used on platforms other than the Macintosh.
When the MacID function is used, the pathname parameter specifies the directory in
which to search for files of the indicated type.
Platform Notes Windows: For compatibility with DOS wildcard matching, BasicScript special-cases
the pattern "*.*" to indicate all files, not just files with a periods in their names.
UNIX: On UNIX platforms, the hidden file attribute corresponds to files without the
read or write attributes.

DiskDrives (statement)
Syntax DiskDrives array()

Description Fills the specified String or Variant array with a list of valid drive letters.
Comments The array() parameter specifies either a zero- or a one-dimensioned array of strings or
variants. The array can be either dynamic or fixed.
If array() is dynamic, then it will be redimensioned to exactly hold the new number of
elements. If there are no elements, then the array will be redimensioned to contain no
dimensions. You can use the LBound, UBound, and ArrayDims functions to
determine the number and size of the new array's dimensions.
If the array is fixed, each array element is first erased, then the new elements are placed
into the array. If there are fewer elements than will fit in the array, then the remaining
elements are initialized to zero-length strings (for String arrays) or Empty (for Variant
arrays). A runtime error results if the array is too small to hold the new elements.

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Example 'This example builds and displays an array containing the first
'three available disk drives.
Sub Main()
Dim drive$()
DiskDrives drive$
r% = SelectBox("Available Disk Drives",,drive$)
End Sub

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180 BasicScript Language Reference

Description Changes the caption of the current dialog to text.

Example 'This example displays a dialog box, adjusting the caption to
'contain the text of the currently selected option button.
Function DlgProc(c As String,a As Integer,v As Integer)
If a = 1 Then
DlgCaption choose(DlgValue("OptionGroup1") + 1, _
"Blue","Green")
ElseIf a = 2 Then
DlgCaption choose(DlgValue("OptionGroup1") + 1, _
"Blue","Green")
End If
End Function
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog UserDialog ,,149,45,"Untitled",.DlgProc
OKButton 96,8,40,14
OptionGroup .OptionGroup1
OptionButton 12,12,56,8,"Blue",.OptionButton1
OptionButton 12,28,56,8,"Green",.OptionButton2
End Dialog
Dim d As UserDialog
Dialog d
End Sub

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DlgEnable (function) 181

The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with that control in the dialog box template.
The BasicScript statements and functions that dynamically manipulate dialog box
controls identify individual controls using either the .Identifier name of the control or
the control's index. Using the index to refer to a control is slightly faster but results in
code that is more difficult to maintain.
Example Function DlgProc(ControlName$,Action%,SuppValue%) As Integer
'If a control is clicked, disable the next three controls.
If Action% = 2 Then
'Enable the next three controls.
start% = DlgControlId(ControlName$)
For i = start% + 1 To start% + 3
DlgEnable i,True
Next i
DlgProc = 1'Don't close the dialog box.
End If
End Function
See Also DlgEnable (function); DlgEnable (statement); DlgFocus (function); DlgFocus
(statement); DlgListBoxArray (function); DlgListBoxArray (statement);
DlgSetPicture (statement); DlgText (statement); DlgText$ (function); DlgValue
(function); DlgValue (statement); DlgVisible (statement); DlgVisible (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

DlgEnable (function)
Syntax DlgEnable(ControlName$ | ControlIndex)

Description Returns True if the specified control is enabled; returns False otherwise.
Comments Disabled controls are dimmed and cannot receive keyboard or mouse input.
The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with a control in the dialog box template. A case-insensitive comparison is used to
locate the specific control within the template. Alternatively, by specifying the
ControlIndex parameter, a control can be referred to using its index in the dialog box
template (0 is the first control in the template, 1 is the second, and so on).

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

If you attempt to disable the control with the focus, BasicScript will automatically set
the focus to the next control in the tab order.
Example If DlgEnable("SaveOptions") Then

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182 BasicScript Language Reference

MsgBox "The Save Options are enabled."

End If
If DlgEnable(10) And DlgVisible(12) Then code = 1 Else code = 2

Description Enables or disables the specified control.

Comments Disabled controls are dimmed and cannot receive keyboard or mouse input.
The isOn parameter is an Integer specifying the new state of the control. It can be any
of the following values:
0 The control is disabled.

1 The control is enabled.

Omitted Toggles the control between enabled and disabled.

Option buttons can be manipulated individually (by specifying an individual option

button) or as a group (by specifying the name of the option group).
The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with a control in the dialog box template. Alternatively, by specifying the ControlIndex
parameter, a control can be referred to using its index in the dialog box template (0 is
the first control in the template, 1 is the second, and so on).

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

Example DlgEnable "SaveOptions", False'Disable the Save Options control.

DlgEnable "EditingOptions"'Toggle a group of option buttons.
For i = 0 To 5
DlgEnable i,True'Enable six controls.
Next i

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DlgFocus (function) 183

Description Sets focus to the specified control.

Comments A runtime error results if the specified control is hidden, disabled, or nonexistent.

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184 BasicScript Language Reference

The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with a control in the dialog box template. A case-insensitive comparison is used to
locate the specific control within the template. Alternatively, by specifying the
ControlIndex parameter, a control can be referred to using its index in the dialog box
template (0 is the first control in the template, 1 is the second, and so on).

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

Example 'This code fragment makes sure that the control being disabled
'does not currently have the focus (otherwise, a runtime error
'would occur).
If DlgFocus$ = "Files" Then'Does it have the focus?
DlgFocus "OK"'Change the focus to another control.
End If
DlgEnable "Files", False'Now we can disable the control.

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

The ArrayVariable parameter specifies a single-dimensioned array used to initialize the

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DlgText (statement) 191

Picture libraries on the Macintosh are files with collections of named PICT resources.
The PictureName$ parameter corresponds to the name of one the resources as it appears
within the file..

DlgText (statement)
Syntax DlgText {ControlName$ | ControlIndex}, NewText$

Description Changes the text content of the specified control.

Comments The effect of this statement depends on the type of the specified control:
Control Type Effect of DlgText
Picture Runtime error.
Option group Runtime error.
Drop list box If an exact match cannot be found, the DlgText statement
searches from the first item looking for an item that starts with
NewText$. If no match is found, then the selection is removed.
OK button Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
Cancel button Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
Push button Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
List box Sets the current selection to the item matching NewText$. If an
exact match cannot be found, the DlgText statement searches
from the first item looking for an item that starts with
NewText$. If no match is found, then the selection is removed.
Combo box Sets the content of the edit field of the combo box to
NewText$.
Text Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
Text box Sets the content of the text box to NewText$.
Group box Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
Option button Sets the label of the control to NewText$.
The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with a control in the dialog box template. A case-insensitive comparison is used to
locate the specific control within the template. Alternatively, by specifying the
ControlIndex parameter, a control can be referred to using its index in the dialog box
template (0 is the first control in the template, 1 is the second, and so on).

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

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192 BasicScript Language Reference

Example DlgText "GroupBox1","Save Options" 'Change text of group box 1.

If DlgText$(9) = "Save Options" Then
DlgText 9,"Editing Options"'Change text to "Editing Options".
End If

Description Returns the text content of the specified control.

Comments The text returned depends on the type of the specified control:
Control Type Value Returned by DlgText$
Picture No value is returned. A runtime error occurs.
Option group No value is returned. A runtime error occurs.
Drop list box Returns the currently selected item. A zero-length string is
returned if no item is currently selected.
OK button Returns the label of the control.
Cancel button Returns the label of the control.
Push button Returns the label of the control.
List box Returns the currently selected item. A zero-length string is
returned if no item is currently selected.
Combo box Returns the content of the edit field portion of the combo box.
Text Returns the label of the control.
Text box Returns the content of the control.
Group box Returns the label of the control.
Option button Returns the label of the control.

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DlgValue (function) 193

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

Example MsgBox DlgText$(10) 'Display the text in the tenth control.

If DlgText$("SaveOptions") = "EditingOptions" Then
MsgBox "You are currently viewing the editing options."
End If
See Also DlgControlId (function); DlgEnable (function); DlgEnable (statement); DlgFocus
(function); DlgFocus (statement); DlgListBoxArray (function); DlgListBoxArray
(statement); DlgSetPicture (statement); DlgText (statement); DlgValue (function);
DlgValue (statement); DlgVisible (statement); DlgVisible (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

DlgValue (function)
Syntax DlgValue(ControlName$ | ControlIndex)

Description Returns an Integer indicating the value of the specified control.

Comments The value of any given control depends on its type, according to the following table:
Control Type D1gValue Returns

Option group The index of the selected option button within the group (0 is the
first option button, 1 is the second, and so on).
List box The index of the selected item.
Drop list box The index of the selected item.
Check box 1 if the check box is checked; 0 otherwise.
A runtime error is generated if DlgValue is used with controls other than those listed in
the above table.

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194 BasicScript Language Reference

The ControlName$ parameter contains the name of the .Identifier parameter associated
with a control in the dialog box template. Alternatively, by specifying the ControlIndex
parameter, a control can be referred to using its index in the dialog box template (0 is
the first control in the template, 1 is the second, and so on).

Note: When ControlIndex is specified, OptionGroup statements do not count as a

control.

Example See DlgValue (statement).

See Also DlgControlId (function); DlgEnable (function); DlgEnable (statement); DlgFocus
(function); DlgFocus (statement); DlgListBoxArray (function); DlgListBoxArray
(statement); DlgSetPicture (statement); DlgText (statement); DlgText$ (function);
DlgValue (statement); DlgVisible (statement); DlgVisible (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

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DoKeys (statement) 201

Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Win32: Under Win32, this statement does nothing. Since Win32 systems are
preemptive, use of this statement under these platforms is not necessary.

DoKeys (statement)
Syntax DoKeys KeyString$ [,time]

Description Simulates the pressing of the specified keys.

Comments The DoKeys statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
KeyString$ String containing the keys to be sent. The format for
KeyString$ is described under the SendKeys statement.
time Integer specifying the number of milliseconds devoted for the
output of the entire KeyString$ parameter. It must be within the
following range:
0 <= time <= 32767
For example, if time is 5000 (5 seconds) and the KeyString$
parameter contains ten keys, then a key will be output every 1/2
second. If unspecified (or 0), the keys will play back at full
speed.
Example 'This code fragment plays back the time and date into Notepad.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
id = Shell("Notepad",4)'Run Notepad.
AppActivate "Notepad"
t$ = time$
d$ = date$
DoKeys "The time is: " & t$ & "." & crlf
DoKeys "The date is: " & d$ & "."
End Sub

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202 BasicScript Language Reference

Double (data type)

Syntax Double

Description A data type used to declare variables capable of holding real numbers with 15–16 digits
of precision.
Comment Double variables are used to hold numbers within the following ranges:
Sign Range
Negative –1.797693134862315E308 <= double <=
–4.94066E-324
Positive 4.94066E-324 <= double <= 1.797693134862315E308
The type-declaration character for Double is #.

Description Returns True if the given text box is enabled within the active window or dialog box;
returns False otherwise.
Comments The EditEnabled function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the text box.
The name of a text box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a text box.
id Integer specifying the ID of the text box.
A runtime error is generated if a text box control with the given name or ID cannot be
found within the active window.
If enabled, the text box can be given the focus using the ActivateControl statement.

Note: The EditEnabled function is used to determine whether a text box is enabled
in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgEnable function in dynamic dialog
boxes.

Example 'This example adjusts the left margin if this control is enabled.
Sub Main()
Menu "[Link]"
If EditEnabled("Left:") Then
SetEditText "Left:","5 pt"
End If
End Sub

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End (statement) 205

Comments The EditExists function takes the following parameters:

Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the text box.
The name of a text box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a text box.
id Integer specifying the ID of the text box.
A runtime error is generated if a text box control with the given name or ID cannot be
found within the active window.
If there is no active window, False will be returned.

Note: The EditExists function is used to determine whether a text box exists in
another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent function for use with
dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This example adjusts the left margin if this control exists and
'is enabled.
Sub Main()
Menu "[Link]"
If EditExists("Left:") Then
If EditEnabled("Left:") Then
SetEditText "Left:","5 pt"
End If
End If
End Sub
See Also EditEnabled (function); GetEditText$ (function); SetEditText (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

End (statement)
Syntax End

Description Terminates execution of the current script, closing all open files.
Example 'This example uses the End statement to stop execution.
Sub Main()
MsgBox "The next line will terminate the script."
End
End Sub
See Also Close (statement); Stop (statement); Exit For (statement); Exit Do (statement); Exit
Function (statement); Exit Sub (statement).

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206 BasicScript Language Reference

Platform(s) All.

Environ, Environ$ (functions)

Syntax Environ[$](variable$ | VariableNumber)

Description Returns the value of the specified environment variable.

Comments Environ$ returns a String, whereas Environ returns a String variant.
If variable$ is specified, then this function looks for that variable$ in the environment.
If the variable$ name cannot be found, then a zero-length string is returned.
If VariableNumber is specified, then this function looks for the Nth variable within the
environment (the first variable being number 1). If there is no such environment
variable, then a zero-length string is returned. Otherwise, the entire entry from the
environment is returned in the following format:
variable = value

Example 'This example looks for the DOS Comspec variable and displays
'the value in a dialog box.
Sub Main()
Dim a$(1)
a$(1) = Environ$("COMSPEC")
MsgBox "The DOS Comspec variable is set to: " & a$(1)
End Sub

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Eqv (operator) 207

Example 'This example opens the [Link] file and reads lines from
'the file until the end-of-file is reached.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Dim s$
Open "c:\[Link]" For Input As #1
Do While Not EOF(1)
Input #1,s$
Loop
Close
MsgBox "The last line was:" & crlf & s$
End Sub
See Also Open (statement); Lof (function).
Platform(s) All.

Eqv (operator)
Syntax result = expression1 Eqv expression2
Description Performs a logical or binary equivalence on two expressions.
Comments If both expressions are either Boolean, Boolean variants, or Null variants, then a logical
equivalence is performed as follows:
If expression1 is and expression2 is then the result is

True True True

True False False
False True False
False False True
If either expression is Null, then Null is returned.

Binary Equivalence
If the two expressions are Integer, then a binary equivalence is performed, returning an
Integer result. All other numeric types (including Empty variants) are converted to
Long and a binary equivalence is then performed, returning a Long result.
Binary equivalence forms a new value based on a bit-by-bit comparison of the binary
representations of the two expressions, according to the following table:
If bit in expression1 is and bit in expression2 is the result is
1 1 1
0 1 0

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If bit in expression1 is and bit in expression2 is the result is

1 0 0
0 0 1
Example 'This example assigns False to A, performs some equivalent
'operations, and displays a dialog box with the result. Since A
'is equivalent to False, and False is equivalent to 0, and by
'definition, A = 0, then the dialog box will display "A is False."
Sub Main()
a = False
If ((a Eqv False) And (False Eqv 0) And (a = 0)) Then
MsgBox "a is False."
Else
MsgBox "a is True."
End If
End Sub
See Also Operator Precedence (topic); Or (operator); Xor (operator); Imp (operator); And
(operator).
Platform(s) All.

Erase (statement)
Syntax Erase array1 [,array2]...

Description Erases the elements of the specified arrays.

Comments For dynamic arrays, the elements are erased, and the array is redimensioned to have no
dimensions (and therefore no elements). For fixed arrays, only the elements are erased;
the array dimensions are not changed.
After a dynamic array is erased, the array will contain no elements and no dimensions.
Thus, before the array can be used by your program, the dimensions must be
reestablished using the Redim statement.
Up to 32 parameters can be specified with the Erase statement.
The meaning of erasing an array element depends on the type of the element being
erased:
Element Type What Erase Does to That Element
Integer Sets the element to 0.
Boolean Sets the element to False.
Long Sets the element to 0.

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Erl (function) 209

Element Type What Erase Does to That Element

Double Sets the element to 0.0.

Date Sets the element to December 30, 1899.
Single Sets the element to 0.0.
String (variable-length) Frees the string, then sets the element to a zero-length
string.
String (fixed-length) Sets every character of each element to zero (Chr$(0)).
Object Decrements the reference count and sets the element to
Nothing.
Variant Sets the element to Empty.
User-defined type Sets each structure element as a separate variable.
Example 'This example puts a value into an array and displays it. Then
'it erases the value and displays it again.
Sub Main()
Dim a$(10) 'Declare an array.
a$(1) = Dir$("*") 'Fill element 1 with a filename.
MsgBox "Array before Erase: " & a$(1) 'Display element 1.
Erase a$ 'Erase all elements in the array.
MsgBox "Array after Erase: " & a$(1) 'Display element 1
'again (should be
'erased).
End Sub
See Also Redim (statement); Arrays (topic).
Platform(s) All.

Erl (function)
Syntax Erl[()]

Description Returns the line number of the most recent error.

Comments The first line of the script is 1, the second line is 2, and so on.
The internal value of Erl is reset to 0 with any of the following statements: Resume,
Exit Sub, Exit Function. Thus, if you want to use this value outside an error handler,
you must assign it to a variable.
Example 'This example generates an error and then determines the line
'on which the error occurred.
Sub Main()
Dim i As Integer

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210 BasicScript Language Reference

On Error Goto Trap1

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214 BasicScript Language Reference

Loop Until [Link] <> 3000

End Sub
See Also Error Handling (topic); [Link] (method); [Link] (property);
[Link] (property); [Link] (property); [Link] (property);
[Link] (property).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: On these platforms, the [Link] property can be set to any
valid Windows help file (i.e., a file with a .HLP extension compatible with the
WINHELP help engine).

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns the last error generated by an external call—i.e., a call to a routine declared
with the Declare statement that resides in an external module.
Comments The [Link] property is automatically set when calling a routine defined in
an external module. If no error occurs within the external call, then this property will
automatically be set to 0.
The [Link] property will always return 0 on platform where this property
is not supported.,
Example 'The following script calls the GetCurrentDirectoryA. If an
'error occurs, this Win32 function sets the [Link]
'property which can be checked for.
Declare Sub GetCurrentDirectoryA Lib "kernel32" (ByVal DestLen _
As Integer,ByVal lpDest As String)
Sub Main()
Dim dest As String * 256
[Link]
GetCurrentDirectoryA len(dest),dest
If [Link] <> 0 Then
MsgBox "Error " & [Link] & " occurred."
Else
MsgBox "Current directory is " & dest
End If
End Sub

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[Link] (property) 215

Platform Notes Win32: On this platform, this property is set by DLL routines that set the last error
using the Win32 function SetLastError(). BasicScript uses the Win32 function
GetLastError() to retrieve the value of this property. The value 0 is returned when
calling DLL routines that do not set an error.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link] [= errornumber]

Description Returns or sets the number of the error.

Comments The [Link] property is set automatically when an error occurs. This property can
be used within an error trap to determine which error occurred.
You can set the [Link] property to any Long value.
The Number property is the default property of the Err object. This allows you to use
older style syntax such as those shown below:
Err = 6
If Err = 6 Then MsgBox "Overflow"
The Err function can only be used while within an error trap.
The internal value of the [Link] property is reset to 0 with any of the following
statements: Resume, Exit Sub, Exit Function. Thus, if you want to use this value
outside an error handler, you must assign it to a variable.
Setting [Link] to –1 has the side effect of resetting the error state. This allows
you to perform error trapping within an error handler. The ability to reset the error
handler while within an error trap is not standard Basic. Normally, the error handler is
reset only with the Resume, Exit Sub, Exit Function, End Function, or End Sub
statements.
Example 'This example forces error 10, with a subsequent transfer to
'the TestError label. TestError tests the error and, if not
'error 55, resets Err to 999 (user-defined error) and returns
'to the Main subroutine.
Sub Main()
On Error Goto TestError
Error 10
MsgBox "The returned error is: '" & Err() & " - " & _
Error$ & "'"
Exit Sub
TestError:
If Err = 55 Then 'File already open.
MsgBox "Cannot copy an open file. Close it and try again."
Else
MsgBox "Error '" & Err & "' has occurred!"

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216 BasicScript Language Reference

Err = 999
End If
Resume Next
End Sub

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[Link] (property) 217

This method can be used in place of the Error statement for generating errors. Using the
[Link] method gives you the opportunity to set the desired properties of the Err
object in one statement.
Example 'The following example uses the [Link] method to generate
'a user-defined error.
Sub Main()
Dim x As Variant
On Error Goto TRAP
x = InputBox("Enter a number:")
If Not IsNumber(x) Then
[Link] 3000,,"Invalid number specified","[Link]",30
End If
MsgBox x
Exit Sub
TRAP:
MsgBox [Link]
End Sub

See Also Error (statement); Error Handling (topic); [Link] (method); [Link]
(property); [Link] (property); [Link] (property); [Link]
(property); [Link] (property).
Platform(s) All.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link] [= stringexpression]

Description Sets or retrieves the source of a runtime error.

Comments For OLE automation errors generated by the OLE server, the [Link] property is set
to the name of the object that generated the error. For all other errors generated by
BasicScript, the [Link] property is automatically set to be the name of the script
that generated the error.
For user-defined errors, the [Link] property can be set to any valid String
expression indicating the source of the error. If the [Link] property is not explicitly
set for user-defined errors, the BasicScript sets the value to be the name of the script in
which the error was generated.
Example 'The following script generates an error, setting the source
'to the specific location where the error was generated.
Function InputInteger(Prompt,Optional Title,Optional Def)
On Error Resume Next
Dim x As Integer
x = InputBox(Prompt,Title,Def)
If [Link] Then

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218 BasicScript Language Reference

[Link] = "InputInteger"
[Link] = "Integer value expected"
InputInteger = Null
[Link] 3000
End If
InputInteger = x
End Function
Sub Main
On Error Resume Next
x = InputInteger("Enter a number:")
If [Link] Then MsgBox [Link] & ":" & [Link]
End Sub

Description Simulates the occurrence of the given runtime error.

Comments The errornumber parameter is any Integer containing either a built-in error number or a
user-defined error number. The [Link] property can be used within the error trap
handler to determine the value of the error.
The Error statement is provided for backward compatibility. Use the [Link] method
instead. When using the Error statement to generate an error, the Err object's
properties are set to the following default values:
Property Default Value

Number This property is set to errornumber as specified in the Error

statement.
Source Name of the currently executing script.
Description Text of the error. If errornumber does not specify a known
BasicScript error, then Description is set to an empty string.
HelpFile Name of the BasicScript help file.
HelpContext Context ID corresponding to errornumber.
A runtime error is generated if errornumber is less than 0.
Example 'This example forces error 10, with a subsequent transfer to
'the TestError label. TestError tests the error and, if not

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Error Handling (topic) 219

'error 55, resets Err to 999 (user-defined error) and returns

'to the Main subroutine.
Sub Main()
On Error Goto TestError
Error 10
MsgBox "The returned error is: '" & Err & " - " & Error$ & "'"
Exit Sub
TestError:
If Err = 55 Then 'File already open.
MsgBox "Cannot copy an open file. Close it and try again."
Else
MsgBox "Error '" & Err & "' has occurred."
Err = 999
End If
Resume Next
End Sub

Error Handling (topic)

Error Handlers
BasicScript supports nested error handlers. When an error occurs within a subroutine,
BasicScript checks for an On Error handler within the currently executing subroutine
or function. An error handler is defined as follows:
Sub foo()
On Error Goto catch
'Do something here.
Exit Sub
catch:
'Handle error here.
End Sub
Error handlers have a life local to the procedure in which they are defined. The error is
reset when any of the following conditions occurs:
• An On Error or Resume statement is encountered.
• When [Link] is set to -1.
• When the [Link] method is called.
• When an Exit Sub, Exit Function, End Function, End Sub is encountered.

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Cascading Errors
If a runtime error occurs and no On Error handler is defined within the currently
executing procedure, then BasicScript returns to the calling procedure and executes the
error handler there. This process repeats until a procedure is found that contains an error
handler or until there are no more procedures. If an error is not trapped or if an error
occurs within the error handler, then BasicScript displays an error message, halting
execution of the script.
Once an error handler has control, it should address the condition that caused the error
and resume execution with the Resume statement. This statement resets the error
handler, transferring execution to an appropriate place within the current procedure. The
error is reset if the procedure exits without first executing Resume.

Syntax Exit Function

Description Causes execution to exit the current function, continuing execution on the statement
following the call to this function.
Comments This statement can only appear within a function.
Example 'This function displays a message and then terminates with Exit
'Function.
Function Test_Exit() As Integer
MsgBox "Testing function exit, returning to Main()."
Test_Exit = 0
Exit Function
MsgBox "This line should never execute."
End Function
Sub Main()
a% = Test_Exit()
MsgBox "This is the last line of Main()."
End Sub

See Also Stop (statement); Exit For (statement); Exit Do (statement); Exit Sub (statement); End
(statement); Function...End Function (statement).
Platform(s) All.

Exit Sub (statement)

Syntax Exit Sub

Description Causes execution to exit the current subroutine, continuing execution on the statement
following the call to this subroutine.
Comments This statement can appear anywhere within a subroutine. It cannot appear within a
function.
Example 'This example displays a dialog box and then exits. The last
'line should never execute because of the Exit Sub statement.
Sub Main()
MsgBox "Terminating Main()."
Exit Sub

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MsgBox "Still here in Main()."

End Sub
See Also Stop (statement); Exit For (statement); Exit Do (statement); Exit Function
(statement); End (function); Sub...End Sub (statement).
Platform(s) All.

Exp (function)
Syntax Exp(number)

Description Returns the value of e raised to the power of number.

Comments The number parameter is a Double within the following range:
0 <= number <= 709.782712893.
A runtime error is generated if number is out of the range specified above.
The value of e is 2.71828.
Example 'This example assigns a to e raised to the 12.4 power and
'displays it in a dialog box.
Sub Main()
a# = Exp(12.40)
MsgBox "e to the 12.4 power is: " & a#
End Sub
See Also Log (function).
Platform(s) All.

Expression Evaluation (topic)

BasicScript allows expressions to involve data of different types. When this occurs, the
two arguments are converted to be of the same type by promoting the less precise
operand to the same type as the more precise operand. For example, BasicScript will
promote the value of i% to a Double in the following expression:
result# = i% * d#
In some cases, the data type to which each operand is promoted is different than that of
the most precise operand. This is dependent on the operator and the data types of the
two operands and is noted in the description of each operator.
If an operation is performed between a numeric expression and a String expression,
then the String expression is usually converted to be of the same type as the numeric
expression. For example, the following expression converts the String expression to an
Integer before performing the multiplication:

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result = 10 * "2" 'Result is equal to 20.

There are exceptions to this rule, as noted in the description of the individual operators.

Type Coercion
BasicScript performs numeric type conversion automatically. Automatic conversions
sometimes result in overflow errors, as shown in the following example:
d# = 45354
i% = d#
In this example, an overflow error is generated because the value contained in d# is
larger than the maximum size of an Integer.

Rounding
When floating-point values (Single or Double) are converted to integer values (Integer
or Long), the fractional part of the floating-point number is lost, rounding to the nearest
integer value. BasicScript uses Baker's rounding:
• If the fractional part is larger than .5, the number is rounded up.
• If the fractional part is smaller than .5, the number is rounded down.
• If the fractional part is equal to .5, then the number is rounded up if it is odd and
down if it is even.
The following table shows sample values before and after rounding:
Before Rounding After Rounding to Whole Number
2.1 2
4.6 5
2.5 2
3.5 4

FileDateTime (function)
Syntax FileDateTime(pathname)

Description Returns a Date variant representing the date and time of the last modification of a file.
Comments This function retrieves the date and time of the last modification of the file specified by
pathname (wildcards are not allowed). A runtime error results if the file does not exist.
The value returned can be used with the date/time functions (i.e., Year, Month, Day,
Weekday, Minute, Second, Hour) to extract the individual elements.
Some operating systems (such as Win32) store the file creation date, last modification
date, and the date the file was last written to. The FileDateTime function only returns
the last modification date.
Example 'This example gets the file date/time of the [Link] file
'and displays it in a dialog box.
Sub Main()
If FileExists("c:\[Link]") Then
a# = FileDateTime("c:\[Link]")
MsgBox "The date/time information for the file is: " _
& Year(a#) & "-" & Month(a#) & "-" & Day(a#)
Else
MsgBox "The file does not exist."
End If
End Sub

See Also FileLen (function); GetAttr (function); FileType (function); FileAttr (function);
FileExists (function).
Platform(s) All.

FileDirs (statement)
Syntax FileDirs array() [,dirspec$]

Description Fills a String or Variant array with directory names from disk.

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Comments The FileDirs statement takes the following parameters:

Parameter Description
array() Either a zero- or a one-dimensioned array of strings or variants.
The array can be either dynamic or fixed.
If array() is dynamic, then it will be redimensioned to exactly
hold the new number of elements. If there are no elements, then
the array will be redimensioned to contain no dimensions. You
can use the LBound, UBound, and ArrayDims functions to
determine the number and size of the new array's dimensions.
If the array is fixed, each array element is first erased, then the
new elements are placed into the array. If there are fewer
elements than will fit in the array, then the remaining elements
are initialized to zero-length strings (for String arrays) or
Empty (for Variant arrays). A runtime error results if the array
is too small to hold the new elements.
dirspec$ String containing the file search mask, such as:
t*.
c:\*.*
If this parameter is omitted or an empty string, then * is used,
which fills the array with all the subdirectory names within the
current directory.
Example 'This example fills an array with directory entries and displays
'the first one.
Sub Main()
Dim a$()
FileDirs a$,"c:\*.*"
MsgBox "The first directory is: " & a$(0)
End Sub
See Also FileList (statement); Dir, Dir$ (functions); CurDir, CurDir$ (functions); ChDir
(statement).
Platform(s) All.

FileExists (function)
Syntax FileExists(filename$)

Description Returns True if filename$ exists; returns False otherwise.

Comments This function determines whether a given filename$ is valid.

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Wildcards
The * character matches any sequence of zero or more characters, whereas the ?
character matches any single character. Multiple *'s and ?'s can appear within the
expression to form complete searching patterns. The following table shows some
examples:
This pattern Matches these files Doesn't match these files
*S.*TXT SAMPLE. TXT SAMPLE
[Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*[Link] [Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*T CAT [Link]
[Link]
C?T CAT [Link]
CUT CAPIT
CT
* (All files)

File Attributes
These numbers can be any combination of the following:
Constant Value Includes
ebNormal 0 Read-only, archive, subdir, none
ebReadOnly 1 Read-only files
ebHidden 2 Hidden files
ebSystem 4 System files
ebVolume 8 Volume label
ebDirectory 16 Subdirectories
ebArchive 32 Files that have changed since the last backup
ebNone 64 Files with no attributes
Example 'This example fills an array a with the directory of the current
'drive for all files that have normal or no attributes and
'excludes those with system attributes. The dialog box displays
'four filenames from the array.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()

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Dim a$()
FileList a$,"*.*", (ebNormal + ebNone), ebSystem
If ArrayDims(a$) > 0 Then
MsgBox a$(1) & crlf & a$(2) & crlf & a$(3) & crlf & a$(4)
Else
MsgBox "No files found."
End If
End Sub
See Also FileDirs (statement); Dir, Dir$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Windows: For compatibility with DOS wildcard matching, BasicScript special-cases
the pattern "*.*" to indicate all files, not just files with a periods in their names.
UNIX: On UNIX platforms, the hidden file attribute corresponds to files without the
read or write attributes.

FileParse$ (function)
Syntax FileParse$(filename$[, operation])

Description Returns a String containing a portion of filename$ such as the path, drive, or file
extension.
Comments The filename$ parameter can specify any valid filename (it does not have to exist). For
example:
..\[Link]
c:\sheets\[Link]
[Link]
A runtime error is generated if filename$ is a zero-length string.
The optional operation parameter is an Integer specifying which portion of the
filename$ to extract. It can be any of the following values.
Value Meaning Example

0 Full name c:\sheets\[Link]

1 Drive c
2 Path c:\sheets
3 Name [Link]
4 Root test
5 Extension dat

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If operation is not specified, then the full name is returned. A runtime error will result if
operation is not one of the above values.
A runtime error results if filename$ is empty.
On systems that do not support drive letters, operation 1 will return a zero-length string.
Example 'This example parses the file string "c:\testsub\[Link]"
'into its component parts and displays them in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Dim a$(6)
For i = 1 To 5
a$(i) = FileParse$("c:\testsub\[Link]",i - 1)
Next i
MsgBox a$(1) & crlf & a$(2) & crlf & a$(3) & crlf & a$(4) &
crlf & a$(5)
End Sub
See Also FileLen (function); GetAttr (function); FileType (function); FileAttr (function);
FileExists (function).
Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32, OS/2: The path separator is different on different platforms. Under
Windows, OS/2, and Win32, the backslash and forward slash can be used
interchangeably. For example, "c:\[Link]" is the same as "c:/[Link]".
UNIX: Under UNIX systems, the backslash and colon are valid filename characters.
Macintosh: On the Macintosh, all characters are valid within filenames except colons,
which are seen as path separators.
NetWare: Under NetWare, operation 1 returns the volume name (up to 14 characters).

FileType (function)
Syntax FileType(filename$)

Description Returns the type of the specified file.

Comments One of the following Integer constants is returned:
Constant Value Description
ebDos 1 DOS executable file(exe files only; com files are not
recognized).
ebWindows 2 Windows executable file
If one of the above values is not returned, then the file type is unknown.

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For...Next (statement)
Syntax For counter = start To end [Step increment]
[statements]
[Exit For]
[statements]
Next [counter [,nextcounter]... ]
Description Repeats a block of statements a specified number of times, incrementing a loop counter
by a given increment each time through the loop.
Comments The For statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
counter Name of a numeric variable. Variables of the following types
can be used: Integer, Long, Single, Double, Variant.
start Initial value for counter. The first time through the loop,
counter is assigned this value.
end Final value for counter. The statements will continue executing
until counter is equal to end.
increment Amount added to counter each time through the loop. If end is
greater than start, then increment must be positive. If end is less
than start, then increment must be negative.
If increment is not specified, then 1 is assumed. The expression
given as increment is evaluated only once. Changing the step
during execution of the loop will have no effect.
statements Any number of BasicScript statements.
The For...Next statement continues executing until an Exit For statement is
encountered when counter is greater than end.
For...Next statements can be nested. In such a case, the Next [counter] statement
applies to the innermost For...Next.
The Next clause can be optimized for nested next loops by separating each counter with
a comma. The ordering of the counters must be consistent with the nesting order
(innermost counter appearing before outermost counter). The following example shows
two equivalent For statements:
For i = 1 To 10 For i = 1 To 10
For j = 1 To 10 For j = 1 To 10
Next j Next j,i
Next i
A Next clause appearing by itself (with no counter variable) matches the innermost For
loop.

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The counter variable can be changed within the loop but will have no effect on the
number of times the loop will execute.
Example 'This example constructs a truth table for the OR statement
'using nested For...Next loops.
Sub Main()
Dim m As String
For x = -1 To 0
For y = -1 To 0
z = x Or y
m = m & Format(Abs(x),"0") & " Or "
m = m & Format(Abs(y),"0") & " = "
m = m & Format(Z,"True/False") & [Link]$
Next y
Next x
MsgBox m
End Sub

Format, Format$ (functions)

Syntax Format[$](expression [, [format] [, [firstdayofweek] [, firstweekofyear]]])

Description Returns a String formatted to user specification.

Comments Format$ returns a String, whereas Format returns a String variant.

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The Format$/Format functions take the following named parameters:

Named Parameter Description
expression String or numeric expression to be formatted.
BasicScript will only examine the first 255 characters of
expression.
format Format expression that can be either one of the built-in
BasicScript formats or a user-defined format consisting of
characters that specify how the expression should be displayed.
String, numeric, and date/time formats cannot be mixed in a
single format expression.
firstdayofweek Indicates the first day of the week. If omitted, then sunday is
assumed (i.e., the constant ebSunday described below).
firstweekofyear Indicates the first week of the year. If omitted, then the first
week of the year is considered to be that containing January 1
(i.e., the constant ebFirstJan1 as described bellow).
If format is omitted and the expression is numeric, then these functions perform the
same function as the Str$ or Str statements, except that they do not preserve a leading
space for positive values.
If expression is Null, then a zero-length string is returned.
The maximum length of the string returned by Format or Format$ functions is 255.
The firstdayofweek parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description
ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofweek.
ebSunday 1 Sunday (the default)
ebMonday 2 Monday
ebTuesday 3 Tuesday
ebWednesday 4 Wednesday
ebThursday 5 Thursday
ebFriday 6 Friday
ebSaturday 7 Saturday
The firstdayofyear parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofyear.

ebFirstJan1 1 The first week of the year is that in which January 1
occurs (the default).

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Constant Value Description

ebFirstFourDays 2 The first week of the year is that containing at least

four days in the year.
ebFirstFullWeek 3 The first week of the year is the first full week of the
year.

Built-In Formats
To format numeric expressions, you can specify one of the built-in formats. There are
two categories of built-in formats: one deals with numeric expressions and the other
with date/time [Link] following tables list the built-in numeric and date/time format
strings, followed by an explanation of what each does.
Numeric Formats
Format Description

General Number Displays the numeric expression as is, with no additional

formatting.

Currency Displays the numeric expression as currency, with

thousands separator if necessary.
The built-in Currency format allows the specification of an
optional user-defined format specification used only for
zero values:
Currency;zero-format-string
Where zero-format-string is a user-defined format used
specifically for zero values.

Fixed Displays at least one digit to the left of the decimal

separator and two digits to the right.

Standard Displays the numeric expression with thousands separator

if necessary. Displays at least one digit to the left of the
decimal separator and two digits to the right.

Percent Displays the numeric expression multiplied by 100. A

percent sign (%) will appear at the right of the formatted
output. Two digits are displayed to the right of the decimal
separator.

Scientific Displays the number using scientific notation. One digit

appears before the decimal separator and two after.

Yes/No Displays No if the numeric expression is 0. Displays Yes

for all other values.

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Numeric Formats (Continued)

Format Description

True/False Displays False if the numeric expression is 0. Displays

True for all other values.

On/Off Displays Off if the numeric expression is 0. Displays On

for all other values.

Date/Time Formats
Format Description

General date Displays the date and time. If there is no fractional part in
the numeric expression, then only the date is displayed. If
there is no integral part in the numeric expression, then
only the time is displayed. Output is in the following form:
1/1/95 01:00:00 AM.

Medium date Displays a medium date—prints out only the abbreviated

name of the month.

Short date Displays a short date.

Long time Displays the long time. The default is: h:mm:ss.

Medium time Displays the time using a 12-hour clock. Hours and
minutes are displayed, and the AM/PM designator is at the
end.

Short time Displays the time using a 24-hour clock. Hours and
minutes are displayed.

User-Defined Formats
In addition to the built-in formats, you can specify a user-defined format by using
characters that have special meaning when used in a format expression. The following
tables list the characters you can use for numeric, string, and date/time formats and
explain their functions.
Numeric Formats
Character Meaning

Empty string Displays the numeric expression as is, with no additional

formatting.

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Numeric Formats (Continued)

Character Meaning

0 This is a digit placeholder.

Displays a number or a 0. If a number exists in the numeric
expression in the position where the 0 appears, the number
will be displayed. Otherwise, a 0 will be displayed. If there
are more 0s in the format string than there are digits, the
leading and trailing 0s are displayed without modification.

# This is a digit placeholder.

Displays a number or nothing. If a number exists in the
numeric expression in the position where the number sign
appears, the number will be displayed. Otherwise, nothing
will be displayed. Leading and trailing 0s are not displayed.

. This is the decimal placeholder.

Designates the number of digits to the left of the decimal
and the number of digits to the right. The character used in
the formatted string depends on the decimal placeholder, as
specified by your locale.

% This is the percentage operator.

The numeric expression is multiplied by 100, and the
percent character is inserted in the same position as it
appears in the user-defined format string.

, This is the thousands separator.

The common use for the thousands separator is to separate
thousands from hundreds. To specify this use, the
thousands separator must be surrounded by digit
placeholders. Commas appearing before any digit
placeholders are specified are just displayed. Adjacent
commas with no digit placeholders specified between them
and the decimal mean that the number should be divided by
1,000 for each adjacent comma in the format string. A
comma immediately to the left of the decimal has the same
function. The actual thousands separator character used
depends on the character specified by your locale.

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Numeric Formats (Continued)

Character Meaning

E- E+ e- e+ These are the scientific notation operators, which display

the number in scientific notation. At least one digit
placeholder must exist to the left of E-, E+, e-, or e+. Any
digit placeholders displayed to the left of E-, E+, e-, or e+
determine the number of digits displayed in the exponent.
Using E+ or e+ places a + in front of positive exponents
and a – in front of negative exponents. Using E- or e-
places a – in front of negative exponents and nothing in
front of positive exponents.

: This is the time separator.

Separates hours, minutes, and seconds when time values
are being formatted. The actual character used depends on
the character specified by your locale.

/ This is the date separator.

Separates months, days, and years when date values are
being formatted. The actual character used depends on the
character specified by your locale.

- + $ ( ) space These are the literal characters you can display.

To display any other character, you should precede it with a
backslash or enclose it in quotes.

\ This designates the next character as a displayed character.

To display characters, precede them with a backslash. To
display a backslash, use two backslashes. Double quotation
marks can also be used to display characters. Numeric
formatting characters, date/time formatting characters, and
string formatting characters cannot be displayed without a
preceding backslash.

"ABC" Displays the text between the quotation marks, but not the
quotation marks. To designate a double quotation mark
within a format string, use two adjacent double quotation
marks.

* This will display the next character as the fill character.

Any empty space in a field will be filled with the specified
fill character.

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Numeric formats can contain one to three parts. Each part is separated by a semicolon.
If you specify one format, it applies to all values. If you specify two formats, the first
applies to positive values and the second to negative values. If you specify three
formats, the first applies to positive values, the second to negative values, and the third
to 0s. If you include semicolons with no format between them, the format for positive
values is used.
String Formats
Character Meaning

@ This is a character placeholder. It displays a character if

one exists in the expression in the same position; otherwise,
it displays a space. Placeholders are filled from right to left
unless the format string specifies left to right.

& This is a character placeholder. It displays a character if

one exists in the expression in the same position; otherwise,
it displays nothing. Placeholders are filled from right to left
unless the format string specifies left to right.

< This character forces lowercase. It displays all characters in

the expression in lowercase.

> This character forces uppercase. It displays all characters in

the expression in uppercase.

! This character forces placeholders to be filled from left to

right. The default is right to left.

Date/Time Formats
Character Meaning

c Displays the date as ddddd and the time as ttttt. Only the
date is displayed if no fractional part exists in the numeric
expression. Only the time is displayed if no integral portion
exists in the numeric expression.

d Displays the day without a leading 0 (1–31).

dd Displays the day with a leading 0 (01–31).

ddd Displays the day of the week abbreviated (Sun–Sat).

dddd Displays the day of the week (Sunday–Saturday).

ddddd Displays the date as a short date.

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Date/Time Formats (Continued)

Character Meaning

dddddd Displays the date as a long date.

w Displays the number of the day of the week (1–7). Sunday

is 1; Saturday is 7.

ww Displays the week of the year (1–53).

m Displays the month without a leading 0 (1–12). If m

immediately follows h or hh, m is treated as minutes (0–
59).

mm Displays the month with a leading 0 (01–12). If mm

immediately follows h or hh, mm is treated as minutes with
a leading 0 (00–59).

mmm Displays the month abbreviated (Jan–Dec).

mmmm Displays the month (January–December).

q Displays the quarter of the year (1–4).

yy Displays the year, not the century (00–99).

yyyy Displays the year (1000–9999).

h Displays the hour without a leading 0 (0–24).

hh Displays the hour with a leading 0 (00–24).

n Displays the minute without a leading 0 (0–59).

nn Displays the minute with a leading 0 (00–59).

s Displays the second without a leading 0 (0–59).

ss Displays the second with a leading 0 (00–59).

Part Description
ReturnType Type of data returned by the function. If the return type is not
given, then Variant is assumed. The ReturnType can only be
specified if the function name (i.e., the name parameter) does
not contain an explicit type-declaration character.
A function returns to the caller when either of the following statements is encountered:
End Function
Exit Function
Functions can be recursive.

Returning Values from Functions

To assign a return value, an expression must be assigned to the name of the function, as
shown below:
Function TimesTwo(a As Integer) As Integer
TimesTwo = a * 2
End Function
If no assignment is encountered before the function exits, then one of the following
values is returned:
Value Data Type Returned by the Function
0 Integer, Long, Single, Double, Currency
Zero-length string String
Nothing Object (or any data object)
Error Variant
December 30, 1899 Date
False Boolean
The type of the return value is determined by the As ReturnType clause on the Function
statement itself. As an alternative, a type-declaration character can be added to the
Function name. For example, the following two definitions of Test both return String
values:
Function Test() As String
Test = "Hello, world"
End Function
Function Test$()
Test = "Hello, world"
End Function
Functions in BasicScript cannot return user-defined types or dialogs.

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Passing Parameters to Functions

Parameters are passed to a function either by value or by reference, depending on the
declaration of that parameter in arglist. If the parameter is declared using the ByRef
keyword, then any modifications to that passed parameter within the function change
the value of that variable in the caller. If the parameter is declared using the ByVal
keyword, then the value of that variable cannot be changed in the called function. If
neither the ByRef or ByVal keywords are specified, then the parameter is passed by
reference.
You can override passing a parameter by reference by enclosing that parameter within
parentheses. For instance, the following example passes the variable j by reference,
regardless of how the third parameter is declared in the arglist of UserFunction:
i = UserFunction(10,12,(j))

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Get (statement)
Syntax Get [#] filenumber, [recordnumber], variable

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GetAttr (function) 257

The GetAllSettings function returns a Variant containing an array of strings.

Example Sub Main()
Dim NewAppSettings() As Variant
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup", _
key := "Height", setting := 200
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup _
", key := "Width", setting := 320
GetAllSettings appname := "NewApp", _
section := "Startup", resultarray := NewAppSettings
For i = LBound(NewAppSettings) To UBound(NewAppSettings)
NewAppSettings(i) = NewAppSettings(i) & "=" & _
GetSetting("NewApp", "Startup", NewAppSettings(i))
Next i
r = SelectBox("Registry Settings","", NewAppSettings)
End Sub

Description Returns an Integer containing the attributes of the specified file.

Comments The attribute value returned is the sum of the attributes set for the file. The value of each
attribute is as follows:
Constant Value Includes

ebNormal 0 Read-only files, archive files, subdirectories, and files

with no attributes
ebReadOnly 1 Read-only files
ebHidden 2 Hidden files

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258 BasicScript Language Reference

Constant Value Includes

ebSystem 4 System files

ebVolume 9 Volume label
ebDirectory 16 Subdirectories
ebArchive 32 Files that have changed since the last backup
ebNone 64 Files with no attributes
To deterimine whether a particular attribute is set, you can And the values shown above
with the value returned by GetAttr. If the result is True, the attribute is set, as shown
below:
Dim w As Integer
w = GetAttr("[Link]")
If w And ebReadOnly Then MsgBox "This file is read-only."
Example 'This example tests to see whether the file [Link] exists. If
'it does not, then it creates the file. The file attributes are
'then retrieved with the GetAttr function, and the result is
'displayed.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
If Not FileExists("[Link]") Then
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Write As #1
Close
End If
y% = GetAttr("[Link]")
If y% And ebNone Then _
message = message & "No archive bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebReadOnly Then _
message = message & "The read-only bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebHidden Then _
message = message & "The hidden bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebSystem Then _
message = message & "The system bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebVolume Then _
message = message & "The volume bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebDirectory Then _
message = message & "The directory bit is set." & crlf
If y% And ebArchive Then _
message = message & "The archive bit is set."
MsgBox message
Kill "[Link]"
End Sub

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GetCheckBox (function) 259

Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, these attributes are the same as those used by DOS.
UNIX: On UNIX platforms, the hidden file attribute corresponds to files without the
read or write attributes.

GetCheckBox (function)
Syntax GetCheckBox(name$ | id)

Description Returns an Integer representing the state of the specified check box.
Comments This function is used to determine the state of a check box, given its name or ID. The
returned value will be one of the following:
Returned Value Description
0 Check box contains no check.
1 Check box contains a check.
2 Check box is grayed.
The GetCheckBox function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the check box.
id Integer specifying the ID of the check box.

Note: The GetCheckBox function is used to retrieve the state of a check box in
another application's dialog box. Use the DlgValue function to retrieve the state of a
check box in a dynamic dialog box.

Example 'This example toggles the Match Case check box in the Find
'dialog box.
Sub Main()
Menu "[Link]"
If GetCheckBox("Match Case") = 0 Then
SetCheckBox "Match Case",1
Else
SetCheckBox "Match Case",0
End If
End Sub

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260 BasicScript Language Reference

GetComboBoxItem$ (function)
Syntax GetComboBoxItem$(name$ | id [,ItemNumber])

Description Returns a String containing the text of an item within a combo box.
Comments The GetComboBoxItem$ function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String specifying the name of the combo box containing the
item to be returned.
The name of a combo box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a combo box. A runtime error is
generated if a combo box with that name cannot be found within
the active window.
id Integer specifying the ID of the combo box containing the item
to be returned.
ItemNumber Integer containing the line number of the desired combo box
item to be returned. If omitted, then the currently selected item in
the combo box is returned.
The combo box must exist within the current window or dialog box; otherwise, a
runtime error is generated.
A zero-length string will be returned if the combo box does not contain textual items.

Note: The GetComboBoxItem$ function is used to retrieve the current item of a

combo box in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgText function to retrieve
the current item of a combo box in a dynamic dialog box.

Example 'This example retrieves the last item from a combo box.
Sub Main()
last% = GetComboBoxItemCount("Directories:")
s$ = GetComboBoxItem$("Directories:",last% - 1) 'Number is
'0-based.
MsgBox "The last item in the combo box is " & s$
End Sub
See Also ComboBoxEnabled (function); ComboBoxExists (function);
GetComboBoxItemCount (function); SelectComboBoxItem (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

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GetComboBoxItemCount (function) 261

GetComboBoxItemCount (function)
Syntax GetComboBoxItemCount(name$ | id)

Description Returns an Integer containing the number of items in the specified combo box.
Comments The GetComboBoxItemCount function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the combo box.
The name of a combo box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a combo box. A runtime error is
generated if a combo box with that name cannot be found within
the active window.
id Integer specifying the ID of the combo box.
A runtime error is generated if the specified combo box does not exist within the current
window or dialog box.

Note: The GetComboBoxItemCount function is used to determine the number of

items in a combo box in another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent
function for use with dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This example copies all the items out of a combo box and into
'an array.
Sub Main()
Dim MyList$()
last% = GetComboBoxItemCount("Directories:")
ReDim MyList$(0 To last - 1)
For i = 0 To last - 1
MyList$(i) = GetComboBoxItem$("Directories:",i)
Next i
End Sub
See Also ComboBoxEnabled (function); ComboBoxExists (function); GetComboBoxItem$
(function); SelectComboBoxItem (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

GetEditText$ (function)
Syntax GetEditText$(name$ | id)

Description Returns a String containing the content of the specified text box control.

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262 BasicScript Language Reference

Comments The GetEditText$ function takes the following parameters:

Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the text box whose content will be
returned.
The name of a text box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a text box. A runtime error is generated
if a text box with that name cannot be found within the active
window.
id Integer specifying the ID of the text box whose content will be
returned.
A runtime error is generated if a text box control with the given name or ID cannot be
found within the active window.

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266 BasicScript Language Reference

Parameter Description

id Integer containing the ID of the option button. The id must be

used when the name of the option button is not known in
advance.
The option button must exist within the current window or dialog box.
A runtime error will be generated if the specified option button does not exist.

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Goto (statement) 269

The label must appear within the same subroutine or function as the Goto.
Labels are identifiers that follow these rules:
1. Must begin with a letter.
2. May contain letters, digits, and the underscore character.
3. Must not exceed 80 characters in length.
4. Must be followed by a colon (:).
Labels are not case-sensitive.
Example 'This example gets a name from the user and then branches to a
'statement, depending on the input name. If the name is not
'MICHAEL, it is reset to MICHAEL unless it is null or the user
'clicks Cancel--in which case, the program displays a message
'and terminates.
Sub Main()
uname$ = Ucase$(InputBox$("Enter your name:","Enter Name"))
If uname$ = "MICHAEL" Then
Goto RightName
Else
Goto WrongName
End If
WrongName:
If (uname$ = "") Then
MsgBox "No name? Clicked Cancel? I'm shutting down."
Else
MsgBox "I am renaming you MICHAEL!"
uname$ = "MICHAEL"
Goto RightName
End If
Exit Sub
RightName:
MsgBox "Hello, MICHAEL!"
End Sub

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270 BasicScript Language Reference

GroupBox (statement)
Syntax GroupBox x,y,width,height,title$ [,.Identifier]

Description Defines a group box within a dialog box template.

Comments This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The group box control is used for static display onlythe user cannot interact with a
group box control.
Separator lines can be created using group box controls. This is accomplished by
creating a group box that is wider than the width of the dialog box and extends below
the bottom of the dialog boxi.e., three sides of the group box are not visible.
If title$ is a zero-length string, then the group box is drawn as a solid rectangle with no
title.
The GroupBox statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control in
dialog units.
title$ String containing the label of the group box. If title$ is a
zero-length string, then no title will appear.
.Identifier Optional parameter that specifies the name by which this control
can be referenced by statements in a dialog function (such as
DlgFocus and DlgEnable). If omitted, then the first two words
of title$ are used.
Example 'This example shows the GroupBox statement being used both for
'grouping and as a separator line.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog OptionsTemplate 16,32,128,84,"Options"
GroupBox 4,4,116,40,"Window Options"
CheckBox 12,16,60,8,"Show &Toolbar",.ShowToolbar
CheckBox 12,28,68,8,"Show &Status Bar",.ShowStatusBar
GroupBox -12,52,152,48," ",.SeparatorLine
OKButton 16,64,40,14,.OK
CancelButton 68,64,40,14,.Cancel
End Dialog
Dim OptionsDialog As OptionsTemplate
Dialog OptionsDialog
End Sub

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HelpButton (statement) 271

Description Defines a help button within a dialog template.

Comments This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The HelpButton statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description

x,y Integer position of the control (in dialog units) relative to the
upper left corner of the dialog box.
width,height Integer dimensions of the control in dialog units.
HelpFileName$ String expression specifying the name of the help file to be
invoked when the button is selected.
HelpContext Long expression specifying the ID of the topic within
HelpFileName$ containing context-sensitive help.
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements
in a dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable).
When the user selects a help button, the associated help file is located at the indicated
topic. Selecting a help button does not remove the dialog. Similarly, no actions are sent
to the dialog procedure when a help button is selected.
When a help button is present within a dialog, it can be automatically selected by
pressing the help key (F1 on most platforms).
Example Sub Main()
Begin Dialog HelpDialogTemplate ,,180,96,"Untitled"
OKButton 132,8,40,14
CancelButton 132,28,40,14
HelpButton 132,48,40,14,"", 10
Text 16,12,88,12,"Please click ""Help"".",.Text1
End Dialog

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272 BasicScript Language Reference

Dim HelpDialog As
HelpDialogTemplat
e
Dialog HelpDialog End Sub

Hex, Hex$ (functions)

Syntax Hex[$](number)

Description Returns a String containing the hexadecimal equivalent of number.

Comments Hex$ returns a String, whereas Hex returns a String variant.
The returned string contains only the number of hexadecimal digits necessary to
represent the number, up to a maximum of eight.
The number parameter can be any type but is rounded to the nearest whole number
before converting to hex. If the passed number is an integer, then a maximum of four
digits are returned; otherwise, up to eight digits can be returned.
The number parameter can be any expression convertible to a number. If number is
Null, then Null is returned. Empty is treated as 0.
Example 'This example inputs a number and displays it in decimal and
'hex until the input number is 0 or an invalid input.
Sub Main()
Do
xs$ = InputBox$("Enter a number to convert:","Hex Convert")
x = Val(xs$)
If x <> 0 Then
MsgBox "Dec: " & x & " Hex: " & Hex$(x)
Else
MsgBox "Goodbye."
End If
Loop While x <> 0
End Sub

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HLine (statement) 273

HLine (statement)
Syntax HLine [lines]

Description Scrolls the window with the focus left or right by the specified number of lines.
Comments The lines parameter is an Integer specifying the number of lines to scroll. If this
parameter is omitted, then the window is scrolled right by one line.
Example 'This example scrolls the Notepad window to the left by three
'"amounts." Each "amount" is equivalent to clicking the right
'arrow of the horizontal scroll bar once.
Sub Main()
AppActivate "Notepad"
HLine 3 'Move 3 lines in.
End Sub

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274 BasicScript Language Reference

HPage (statement)
Syntax HPage [pages]

Description Scrolls the window with the focus left or right by the specified number of pages.
Comments The pages parameter is an Integer specifying the number of pages to scroll. If this
parameter is omitted, then the window is scrolled right by one page.
Example 'This example scrolls the Notepad window to the left by three
'"amounts." Each "amount" is equivalent to clicking within the
'horizontal scroll bar on the right side of the thumb mark.
Sub Main()
AppActivate "Notepad"
HPage 3 'Move 3 pages down.
End Sub

Description A data type used to hold window objects.

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[Link] (property) 275

Comments This data type is used to hold references to physical windows in the operating
environment. The following commands operate on HWND objects:
WinActivate WinClose WinFind WinList

WinMaximize WinMinimize WinMove WinRestore

WinSize

The above language elements support both string and HWND window specifications.
Example 'This example activates the "Main" MDI window within Program
'Manager.
Sub Main()
Dim ProgramManager As HWND
Dim ProgramManagerMain As HWND
Set ProgramManager = WinFind("Program Manager")
If ProgramManager Is Not Nothing Then
WinActivate ProgramManager
WinMaximize ProgramManager
Set ProgramManagerMain = WinFind("Program Manager|Main")
If ProgramManagerMain Is Not Nothing Then
WinActivate ProgramManagerMain
WinRestore ProgramManagerMain
Else
MsgBox "Your Program Manager doesn't have a Main group."
End If
Else
MsgBox "Program Manager is not running."
End If
End Sub

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276 BasicScript Language Reference

Example 'This example displays a dialog box containing the class name of
'Program Manager's Main window. It does so using the .Value
'property, passing it directly to a Windows external routine.
Declare Sub GetClassName Lib "user" (ByVal Win%,ByVal
ClsName$,ByVal ClsNameLen%)
Sub Main()
Dim ProgramManager As HWND
Set ProgramManager = WinFind("Program Manager")
ClassName$ = Space(40)
GetClassName [Link],ClassName$,Len(ClassName$)
MsgBox "The program classname is: " & ClassName$
End Sub
See Also HWND (object).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.
Platform Notes Under Windows, this value is an Integer. Under Win32, this value is a Long.

If...Then...Else (statement)
Syntax 1 If condition Then statements [Else else_statements]

Syntax 2 If condition Then

[statements]
[ElseIf else_condition Then
[elseif_statements]]
[Else
[else_statements]]
End If

Description Conditionally executes a statement or group of statements.

Comments The single-line conditional statement (syntax 1) has the following parameters:
Parameter Description
condition Any expression evaluating to a Boolean value.
statements One or more statements separated with colons. This group
of statements is executed when condition is True.
else_statements One or more statements separated with colons. This group
of statements is executed when condition is False.
The multiline conditional statement (syntax 2) has the following parameters:
Parameter Description
condition Any expression evaluating to a Boolean value.

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If...Then...Else (statement) 277

Parameter Description
statements One or more statements to be executed when condition is
True.
else_condition Any expression evaluating to a Boolean value. The
else_condition is evaluated if condition is False.
elseif_statements One or more statements to be executed when condition is
False and else_condition is True.
else_statments One or more statements to be executed when both
condition and else_condition are False.
There can be as many ElseIf conditions as required.
Example 'This example inputs a name from the user and checks to see
'whether it is MICHAEL or MIKE using three forms of the
'If...Then...Else statement. It then branches to a statement
'that displays a welcome message depending on the user's name.
Sub Main()
uname$ = UCase$(InputBox$("Enter your name:","Enter Name"))
If uname$ = "MICHAEL" Then GoSub MikeName
If uname$ = "MIKE" Then
GoSub MikeName
Exit Sub
End If
If uname$ = "" Then
MsgBox "Since you don't have a name, I'll call you MIKE!"
uname$ = "MIKE"
GoSub MikeName
ElseIf uname$ = "MICHAEL" Then
GoSub MikeName
Else
GoSub OtherName
End If
Exit Sub
MikeName:
MsgBox "Hello, MICHAEL!"
Return
OtherName:
MsgBox "Hello, " & uname$ & "!"
Return
End Sub

See Also Choose (function); Switch (function); IIf (function); Select...Case (statement).
Platform(s) All.

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278 BasicScript Language Reference

IIf (function)
Syntax IIf(expression, truepart, falsepart)

Description Returns truepart if condition is True; otherwise, returns falsepart.

Comments Both expressions are calculated before IIf returns.
The IIf function is shorthand for the following construct:
If condition Then
variable = truepart
Else
variable = falsepart
End If

Example Sub Main()

s$ = "Car"
MsgBox IIf(s$ = "Car","Nice Car","Nice Automobile")
End Sub

Description Returns the current status of the input method editor.

Comments The IMEStatus function returns one of the following constants for Japanese locales:
Constant Value Description
ebIMENoOp 0 IME not installed.
ebIMEOn 1 IME on.
ebIMEOff 2 IME off.
ebIMEDisabled 3 IME disabled.
ebIMEHiragana 4 Hiragana double-byte character.
ebIMEKatakanaDbl 5 Katakana double-byte characters.
ebIMEKatakanaSng 6 Katakana single-byte characters.
ebIMEAlphaDbl 7 Alphanumeric double-byte characters.
ebIMEAlphaSng 8 Alphanumeric single-byte characters.

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IMEStatus (function) 279

For Chinese locales, one of the following constants are returned:

Constant Value Description
ebIMENoOp 0 IME not installed.
ebIMEOn 1 IME on.
ebIMEOff 2 IME off.
For Korean locales, this function returns a value with the first 5 bits having the
following meaning:
Bit If not set (or 0) If set (or 1)
Bit 0 IME not installed IME installed
Bit 1 IME disabled IME enabled
Bit 2 English mode Hangeul mode
Bit 3 Banja mode (single-byte) Junja mode (double-byte)
Bit 4 Normal mode Hanja conversion mode

Note: You can test for the different bits using the And operator as follows:
a = IMEStatus()
If a And 1 Then ... 'Test for bit 0
If a And 2 Then ... 'Test for bit 1
If a And 4 Then ... 'Test for bit 2
If a And 8 Then ... 'Test for bit 3
If a And 16 Then ... ’Test for bit 4

This function always returns 0 if no input method editor is installed.

Example 'This example retrieves the IMEStatus and displays the results.
Sub Main()
a = IMEStatus()
Select case a
Case 0
MsgBox "IME not installed."
Case 1
MsgBox "IME on."
Case 2
Msgbox "IME off."
End Select
End Sub

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Imp (operator)
Syntax result = expression1 Imp expression2
Description Performs a logical or binary implication on two expressions.
Comments If both expressions are either Boolean, Boolean variants, or Null variants, then a logical
implication is performed as follows:
If expression1 is and expression2 is then the result is

True True True

True False False
True Null Null
False True True
False False True
False Null True
Null True True
Null False Null
Null Null Null

Binary Implication
If the two expressions are Integer, then a binary implication is performed, returning an
Integer result. All other numeric types (including Empty variants) are converted to
Long and a binary implication is then performed, returning a Long result.
Binary implication forms a new value based on a bit-by-bit comparison of the binary
representations of the two expressions, according to the following table:
If bit in expression1 is and bit in expression2 is the result is
1 1 1
0 1 1
1 0 0
0 0 1
Example 'This example compares the result of two expressions to
'determine whether one implies the other.
Sub Main()
a = 10 : b = 20 : c = 30 : d = 40
If (a < b) Imp (c < d) Then
MsgBox "a less than b implies that c is less than d."
Else
MsgBox "a less than b does not imply that c is less than d."

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Inline (statement) 281

End If
If (a < b) Imp (c > d) Then
MsgBox "a less than b implies that c is greater than d."
Else
MsgBox "a less than b does not imply that c greater than d."
End If
End Sub
See Also Operator Precedence (topic); Or (operator); Xor (operator); Eqv (operator); And
(operator).
Platform(s) All.

Inline (statement)
Syntax Inline name [parameters]
anytext
End Inline
Description Allows execution or interpretation of a block of text.
Comments The Inline statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name Identifier specifying the type of inline statement
parameters Comma-separated list of parameters.
anytext Text to be executed by the Inline statement. This text must
be in a format appropriate for execution by the Inline
statement.
The end of the text is assumed to be the first occurrence of
the words End Inline appearing on a line.
Example Sub Main()
Inline MacScript
-- AppleScript comment.
Beep
Display Dialog "AppleScript" buttons "OK"
End Inline
End Sub

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Input# (statement)
Syntax Input [#]filenumber%,variable[,variable]...

Description Reads data from the file referenced by filenumber into the given variables.
Comments Each variable must be type-matched to the data in the file. For example, a String
variable must be matched to a string in the file.
The following parsing rules are observed while reading each variable in the variable list:
1. Leading white space is ignored (spaces and tabs).
2. When reading String variables, if the first character on the line is a quotation mark,
then characters are read up to the next quotation mark or the end of the line,
whichever comes first. Blank lines are read as empty strings. If the first character
read is not a quotation mark, then characters are read up to the first comma or the
end of the line, whichever comes first. String delimiters (quotes, comma,
end-of-line) are not included in the returned string. Spaces are trimmed from the
end of unquoted strings.
3. When reading numeric variables, scanning of the number stops when the first
non-numeric character (such as a comma, a letter, or any other unexpected
character) is encountered. Numeric errors are ignored while reading numbers from
a file. The resultant number is automatically converted to the same type as the
variable into which the value will be placed. If there is an error in conversion, then
0 is stored into the variable.
After reading the number, input is skipped up to the next delimiter—a comma, an
end-of-line, or an end-of-file.
Numbers must adhere to any of the following syntaxes:
[-|+]digits[.digits][E[-|+]digits][!|#|%|&|@]
&Hhexdigits[!|#|%|&]
&[O]octaldigits[!|#|%|&|@]
4. When reading Boolean variables, the first character must be #; otherwise, a runtime
error occurs. If the first character is #, then input is scanned up to the next delimiter
(a comma, an end-of-line, or an end-of-file). If the input matches #FALSE#, then
False is stored in the Boolean; otherwise, True is stored.
5. When reading Date variables, the first character must be #; otherwise, a runtime
error occurs. If the first character is #, then the input is scanned up to the next
delimiter (a comma, an end-of-line, or an end-of-file). If the input ends in a # and
the text between the #'s can be correctly interpreted as a date, then the date is
stored; otherwise, December 31, 1899, is stored.
Normally, dates that follow the universal date format are input from sequential files.
These dates use this syntax:

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Input# (statement) 283

#YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS#
where YYYY is a year between 100 and 9999, MM is a month between 1 and 12, DD
is a day between 1 and 31, HH is an hour between 0 and 23, MM is a minute
between 0 and 59, and SS is a second between 0 and 59.
6. When reading Variant variables, if the data begins with a quotation mark, then a
string is read consisting of the characters between the opening quotation mark and
the closing quotation mark, end-of-line, or end-of-file.
If the input does not begin with a quotation mark, then input is scanned up to the
next comma, end-of-line, or end-of-file and a determination is made as to what data
is being represented. If the data cannot be represented as a number, Date, Error,
Boolean, or Null, then it is read as a string.
The following table describes how special data is interpreted as variants:
Blank line Read as an Empty variant.
#NULL# Read as a Null variant.
TRUE# Read as a Boolean variant.
#FALSE# Read as a Boolean variant.
ERROR code# Read as a user-defined error.
date# Read as a Date variant.
"text" Read as a String variant.

7. If an error occurs in interpretation of the data as a particular type, then that data is
read as a String variant.
8. When reading numbers into variants, the optional type-declaration character
determines the VarType of the resulting variant. If no type-declaration character is
specified, then BasicScript will read the number according to the following rules:
• Rule 1: If the number contains a decimal point or an exponent, then the number is
read as Currency. If there is an error converting to Currency, then the number is
treated as a Double.
• Rule 2: If the number does not contain a decimal point or an exponent, then the
number is stored in the smallest of the following data types that most accurately
represents that value: Integer, Long, Currency, Double.
9. End-of-line is interpreted as either a single line feed, a single carriage return, or a
carriage-return/line-feed pair. Thus, text files from any platform can be interpreted
using this command.
The filenumber parameter is a number that is used by BasicScript to refer to the
open filethe number passed to the Open statement.

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The filenumber must reference a file opened in Input mode. It is good practice to
use the Write statement to write date elements to files read with the Input
statement to ensure that the variable list is consistent between the input and output
routines.
10. Null characters are ignored.
Example 'This example creates a file called [Link] and writes a series
'of variables into it. Then the variables are read using the
'Input# function.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" For Output As #1
Write #1,2112,"David","McCue","123-45-6789"
Close
Open "[Link]" For Input As #1
Input #1,x%,st1$,st2$,st3$
message = "Employee " & x% & " Information" & crlf & crlf
message = message & "First Name: " & st1$ & crlf
message = message & "Last Name: "& st2$ & crlf
message = message & "Social Security Number: " & sy3$
MsgBox message
Close
Kill "[Link]"
End Sub

See Also Open (statement); Get (statement); Line Input# (statement); Input, Input$, InputB,
InputB$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.

Input, Input$, InputB, InputB$ (functions)

Syntax Input[$](numchars,[#]filenumber)
InputB[$](numbytes,[#]filenumber)
Description Returns a specified number of characters or bytes read from a given sequential file.
Comments The Input$ and InputB$ functions return a String, whereas Input and InputB return a
String variant.
The following parameters are required:
Parameter Description
numchars Integer containing the number of characters to be read
from the file.
numbytes Integer containing the number of bytes to be read from the
file.

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Parameter Description

filenumber Integer referencing a file opened in either Input or Binary

mode. This is the same number passed to the Open
statement.
The Input and Input$ functions read all characters, including spaces and end-of-lines.
Null characters are ignored.
The InputB and InputB$ functions are used to read byte data from a file.
Example 'This example opens the [Link] file and displays it in a
'dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) & Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
x& = FileLen("c:\[Link]")
If x& > 0 Then
Open "c:\[Link]" For Input As #1
Else
MsgBox "File not found or empty."
Exit Sub
End If
If x& > 80 Then
ins = Input(80,#1)
Else
ins = Input(x,#1)
End If
Close
MsgBox "File length: " & x& & crlf & ins
End Sub

See Also Open (statement); Get (statement); Input# (statement); Line Input# (statement).
Platform(s) All.

InputBox, InputBox$ (functions)

Syntax InputBox[$](prompt [, [title] [, [default] [,[xpos],[ypos]
[,helpfile,context]]]])

Description Displays a dialog box with a text box into which the user can type.
Comments The content of the text box is returned as a String (in the case of InputBox$) or as a
String variant (in the case of InputBox). A zero-length string is returned if the user
selects Cancel.

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The InputBox/InputBox$ functions take the following named parameters:

Named Parameter Description
prompt Text to be displayed above the text box. The prompt
parameter can contain multiple lines, each separated with
an end-of-line (a carriage return, line feed, or
carriage-return/line-feed pair). A runtime error is generated
if prompt is Null.
title Caption of the dialog box. If this parameter is omitted, then
no title appears as the dialog box's caption. A runtime error
is generated if title is Null.
default Default response. This string is initially displayed in the
text box. A runtime error is generated if default is Null.
xpos, ypos Integer coordinates, given in twips (twentieths of a point),
specifying the upper left corner of the dialog box relative to
the upper left corner of the screen. If the position is
omitted, then the dialog box is positioned on or near the
application executing the script.
helpfile Name of the file containing context-sensitive help for this
dialog. If this parameter is specified, then context must also
be specified.
context Number specifying the ID of the topic within helpfile for
this dialog's help. If this parameter is specified, then
helpfile must also be specified.
You can type a maximum of 255 characters into InputBox.
If both the helpfile and context parameters are specified, then a Help button is added in
addition to the OK and Cancel buttons. Context-sensitive help can be invoked by
selecting this button or using the help key (F1 on most platforms). Invoking help does
not remove the dialog.
When Cancel is selected, an empty string is returned. An empty string is also returned
when the user selects the OK button with no text in the input box. Thus, it is not possible
to determine the difference between these two situations. If you need to determine the
difference, you should create a user-defined dialog or use the AskBox function.
Example Sub Main()
s$ = InputBox$("File to copy:","Copy","[Link]")
End Sub

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InStr, InstrB (functions)

Syntax InStr([start,] search, find [,compare])
InStrB([start,] search, find [,compare])

Description Returns the first character position of string find within string search.
Comments The InStr function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
start Integer specifying the character position (for Instr) or byte
position (for InstrB) where searching begins. The start
parameter must be between 1 and 32767.
If this parameter is omitted, then the search starts at the
beginning (start = 1).
search Text to search. This can be any expression convertible to a
String.
find Text for which to search. This can be any expression
convertible to a String.
compare Integer controlling how string comparisons are performed.
It can be any of the following values:
0 String comparisons are case-sensitive.
1 String comparisons are case-insensitive.
Any other value produces a runtime error.
If this parameter is omitted, then string comparisons use
the current Option Compare setting. If no Option
Compare statement has been encountered, then Binary is
used (i.e., string comparisons are case-sensitive).
If the string is found, then its character position within search is returned, with 1 being
the character position of the first character.
The InStr and InStrB functions observe the following additional rules:
• If either search or find is Null, then Null is returned.
• If the compare parameter is specified, then start must also be specified. In other
words, if there are three parameters, then it is assumed that these parameters
correspond to start, search, and find.
• A runtime error is generated if start is Null.
• A runtime error is generated if compare is not 0 or 1.
• If search is Empty, then 0 is returned.

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• If find is Empty, then start is returned. If start is greater than the length of search,
then 0 is returned.
• A runtime error is generated if start is less than or equal to zero.
The InStr and InStrB functions operate on character and byte data respectively. The
Instr function interprets the start parameter as a character, performs a textual
comparisons, and returns a character position. The InStrB function, on the other hand,
interprets the start parameter as a byte position, performs binary comparisons, and
returns a byte position.
On SBCS platforms, the InStr and InStrB functions are identical.
Example 'This example checks to see whether one string is in another
'and, if it is, then it copies the string to a variable and
'displays the result.
Sub Main()
a$ = "This string contains the name Stuart."
x% = InStr(a$,"Stuart",1)
If x% <> 0 Then
b$ = Mid$(a$,x%,6)
MsgBox b$ & " was found."
Exit Sub
Else
MsgBox "Stuart not found."
End If
End Sub
See Also Mid, Mid$, MidB, MidB$ (functions); Option Compare (statement); Item$
(function); Word$ (function); Line$ (function).
Platform(s) All.

Int (function)
Syntax Int(number)

Description Returns the integer part of number.

Comments This function returns the integer part of a given value by returning the first integer less
than the number. The sign is preserved.
The Int function returns the same type as number, with the following exceptions:
• If number is Empty, then an Integer variant of value 0 is returned.
• If number is a String, then a Double variant is returned.
• If number is Null, then a Null variant is returned.
Example 'This example extracts the integer part of a number.

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Integer (data type) 289

Sub Main()
a# = -1234.5224
b% = Int(a#)
MsgBox "The integer part of -1234.5224 is: " & b%
End Sub

Integer (data type)

Syntax Integer

Description A data type used to declare whole numbers with up to four digits of precision.
Comments Integer variables are used to hold numbers within the following range:
–32768 <= integer <= 32767
Internally, integers are 2-byte short values. Thus, when appearing within a structure,
integers require 2 bytes of storage. When used with binary or random files, 2 bytes of
storage are required.
When passed to external routines, Integer values are sign-extended to the size of an
integer on that platform (either 16 or 32 bits) before pushing onto the stack.
The type-declaration character for Integer is %.
See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Long (data type); Object
(data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean (data
type); DefType (statement); CInt (function).
Platform(s) All.

IPmt (function)
Syntax IPmt(rate, per, nper, pv, fv, due)

Description Returns the interest payment for a given period of an annuity based on periodic, fixed
payments and a fixed interest rate.
Comments An annuity is a series of fixed payments made to an insurance company or other
investment company over a period of time. Examples of annuities are mortgages,
monthly savings plans, and retirement plans.

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The following table describes the named parameters:

See Also Variant (data type); IsDate (function); IsError (function); IsObject (function);
VarType (function); IsNull (function).
Platform(s) All.

IsError (function)
Syntax IsError(expression)

Description Returns True if expression is a user-defined error value; returns False otherwise.
Example 'This example creates a function that divides two numbers. If
'there is an error dividing the numbers, then a variant of type
'"error" is returned. Otherwise, the function returns the result
'of the division. The IsError function is used to determine

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IsMissing (function) 295

'whether the function encountered an error.

Function Div(ByVal a,ByVal b) As Variant
If b = 0 Then
Div = CVErr(2112)'Return a special error value.
Else
Div = a / b 'Return the division.
End If
End Function
Sub Main()
Dim a As Variant
a = Div(10,12)
If IsError(a) Then
MsgBox "The following error occurred: " & CStr(a)
Else
MsgBox "The result is: " & a
End If
End Sub

See Also Variant (data type); IsEmpty (function); IsDate (function); IsObject (function);
VarType (function); IsNull (function).
Platform(s) All.

IsMissing (function)
Syntax IsMissing(argname)

Description Returns True if argname was passed to the current subroutine or function; returns False
if omitted.
Comments The IsMissing function is used with variant variables passed as optional parameters
(using the Optional keyword) to the current subroutine or function. For nonvariant
variables or variables that were not declared with the Optional keyword, IsMissing will
always return True.
Example 'The following function runs an application and optionally
'minimizes it. If the optional isMinimize parameter is not
'specified by the caller, then the application is not minimized.
Sub Test(AppName As String,Optional isMinimize As Variant)
app = Shell(AppName)
If Not IsMissing(isMinimize) Then
AppMinimize app
Else
AppMaximize app
End If
End Sub
Sub Main
Test "Notepad"'Maximize this application

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Test "Notepad",True'Mimimize this application

End Sub
See Also Declare (statement); Sub...End Sub (statement); Function...End Function
(statement).
Platform(s) All.

IsNull (function)
Syntax IsNull(expression)

Description Returns True if expression is a Variant variable that contains no valid data; returns
False otherwise.
Comments The IsNull function is the same as the following:
(VarType(expression) = ebNull)

Example Sub Main()

Dim a As Variant'Initialized as Empty
If IsNull(a) Then MsgBox "The variable contains no valid
data."
a = Empty * Null
If IsNull(a) Then MsgBox "Null propagated through the
expression."
End Sub
See Also Variant (data type); IsEmpty (function); IsDate (function); IsError (function);
IsObject (function); VarType (function).
Platform(s) All.

IsNumeric (function)
Syntax IsNumeric(expression)

Description Returns True if expression can be converted to a number; returns False otherwise.
Comments If passed a number or a variant containing a number, then IsNumeric always returns
True.
If a String or String variant is passed, then IsNumeric will return True only if the
string can be converted to a number. The following syntaxes are recognized as valid
numbers:
&Hhexdigits[&|%|!|#|@]
&[O]octaldigits[&|%|!|#|@]
[-|+]digits[.[digits]][E[-|+]digits][!|%|&|#|@]

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If an Object variant is passed, then the default property of that object is retrieved and
one of the above rules is applied.
IsNumeric returns False if expression is a Date.
Example Sub Main()
Dim s$ As String
s$ = InputBox("Enter a number.","Enter Number")
If IsNumeric(s$) Then
MsgBox "You did good!"
Else
MsgBox "You didn't do so good!"
End If
End Sub

See Also Variant (data type); IsEmpty (function); IsDate (function); IsError (function);
IsObject (function); VarType (function); IsNull (function).
Platform(s) All.

IsObject (function)
Syntax IsObject(expression)

Description Returns True if expression is a Variant variable containing an Object; returns False
otherwise.
Example 'This example will attempt to find a running copy of Excel and
'create an Excel object that can be referenced as any other
'object in BasicScript.
Sub Main()
Dim v As Variant
On Error Resume Next
Set v = GetObject(,"[Link]")
If IsObject(v) Then
MsgBox"The default object value is: " & v = [Link]'Access
value property of the object.
Else
MsgBox "Excel not loaded."
End If
End Sub

See Also Variant (data type); IsEmpty (function); IsDate (function); IsError (function);
VarType (function); IsNull (function).
Platform(s) All.

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298 BasicScript Language Reference

Item$ (function)
Syntax Item$(text$,first [,[last] [,delimiters$]])

Description Returns all the items between first and last within the specified formatted text list.
Comments The Item$ function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
text$ String containing the text from which a range of items is
returned.
first Integer containing the index of the first item to be
returned. If first is greater than the number of items in
text$, then a zero-length string is returned.
last Integer containing the index of the last item to be returned.
All of the items between first and last are returned. If last is
greater than the number of items in text$, then all items
from first to the end of text are returned.
If last is missing, then only the item specified by first is
returned. An "Invalid use of Null" error is returned if this
parameter is Null.
delimiters$ String containing different item delimiters.
By default, items are separated by commas and
end-of-lines. This can be changed by specifying different
delimiters in the delimiters$ parameter.
The Item$ function treats embedded null characters as regular characters.
An empty string is returned if first is less than 1. If last is less than first, the values are
swapped.
Example 'This example creates two delimited lists and extracts a range
'from each, then displays the result in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
ilist$ = "1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15"
slist$ = "1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15"
list1$ = Item$(ilist$,5,12)
list2$ = Item$(slist$,2,9,"/")
MsgBox "The returned lists are: " & crlf & list1$ & crlf &
list2$
End Sub
See Also ItemCount (function); Line$ (function); LineCount (function); Word$ (function);
WordCount (function).

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Platform(s) All.

ItemCount (function)
Syntax ItemCount(text$ [,delimiters$])

Description Returns an Integer containing the number of items in the specified delimited text.
Comments Items are substrings of a delimited text string. Items, by default, are separated by
commas and/or end-of-lines. This can be changed by specifying different delimiters in
the delimiters$ parameter. For example, to parse items using a backslash:
n = ItemCount(text$,"\")
The ItemCount function treats embedded null characters as regular characters.
Example 'This example creates two delimited lists and then counts the
'number of items in each. The counts are displayed in a dialog
'box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
ilist$ = "1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15"
slist$ = "1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19"
l1% = ItemCount(ilist$)
l2% = ItemCount(slist$,"/")
message = "The first lists contains: " & l1% & " items." & crlf
message = message & "The second list contains: " _
& l2% & " items."
MsgBox message
End Sub

See Also Item$ (function); Line$ (function); LineCount (function); Word$ (function);
WordCount (function).
Platform(s) All.

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Keywords (topic)
A keyword is any word or symbol recognized by BasicScript as part of the language. All
of the following are keywords:
Access Alias And Any

Append As Base Begin

Binary Boolean ByRef ByVal

Call CancelButton Case CDecl

CheckBox Chr ChrB ChrW

Close ComboBox Compare Const

CStrings Currency Date Declare

Default DefBool DefCur DefDate

DefDbl DefInt DefLng DefObj

DefSng DefStr DefVar Dialog

Dim Do Double DropListBox

Else ElseIf End Eqv

Error Exit Explicit For

Function Get Global GoSub

Goto GroupBox HelpButton If

Imp Inline Input Input

InputB Integer Is Len

Let Lib Like Line

ListBox Lock Long Loop

LSet Mid MidB Mod

Name New Next Not

Nothing Object Off OKButton

On Open Option Optional

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Kill (statement) 301

OptionButton OptionGroup Or Output

ParamArray Pascal Picture PictureButton

Preserve Print Private Public

PushButton Put Random Read

ReDim Rem Resume Return

RSet Seek Select Set

Shared Single Spc Static

StdCall Step Stop String

Sub System Tab Text

TextBox Then Time To

Type Unlock Until Variant

WEnd While Width Write

Xor

Restrictions
All keywords are reserved by BasicScript, in that you cannot create a variable, function,
constant, or subroutine with the same name as a keyword. However, you are free to use
all keywords as the names of structure members.
For all other keywords in BasicScript (such as MsgBox, Str, and so on), the following
restrictions apply:
• You can create a subroutine or function with the same name as a keyword.
• You can create a variable with the same name as a keyword as long as the variable
is first explicitly declared with a Dim, Private, or Public statement.
Platform(s) All.

Kill (statement)
Syntax Kill pathname
Kill pathname [,filetype]
Kill filetype
Description Deletes all files matching pathname.

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Comments The Kill statement accepts the following named parameters:

Named Parameter Description
pathname Specifies the file to delete. If filetype is specified, then this
parameter must specify a path. Otherwise, this parameter can
include both a path and a file specification containing
wildcards.
filetype Specifies the type of file on a Macintosh. If pathname is also
specified, it indicates the directory from which files will be
removed. Otherwise, files are removed from the current
directory.
File types are specified using the MacID function.
The pathname argument can include wildcards, such as * and ?. The * character
matches any sequence of zero or more characters, whereas the ? character matches any
single character. Multiple *'s and ?'s can appear within the expression to form complex
searching patterns. The following table shows some examples.
This Pattern Matches These Files Doesn't Match These Files
*S.*TXT SAMPLE. TXT SAMPLE
[Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*[Link] [Link] [Link]
[Link]
C*T CAT [Link]
[Link]
C?T CAT [Link]
CUT CAPIT
CT
* (All files)
Example 'This example looks to see whether file [Link] exists. If it
'does not, then it creates both [Link] and [Link]. The
'existence of the files is tested again; if they exist, a
'message is generated, and then they are deleted. The final test
'looks to see whether they are still there and displays the
'result.
Sub Main()
If Not FileExists("[Link]") Then
Open "[Link]" For Output As #1
Open "[Link]" For Output As #2

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LBound (function) 303

Close
End If
If FileExists ("[Link]") Then
MsgBox "File [Link] exists."
Kill "test?.dat"
End If
If FileExists ("[Link]") Then
MsgBox "File [Link] still exists."
Else
MsgBox "test?.dat sucessfully deleted."
End If
End Sub

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304 BasicScript Language Reference

Dim a(5 To 12)

Dim b(2 To 100, 9 To 20)
lba = LBound(a)
lbb = LBound(b,2)
MsgBox "The lower bound of a is: " & lba _
& " The lower bound of b is: " & lbb
'This example uses LBound and UBound to dimension a dynamic
'array to hold a copy of an array redimmed by the FileList
'statement.
Dim fl$()
FileList fl$,"*.*"
count = UBound(fl$)
If ArrayDims(a) Then
Redim nl$(LBound(fl$) To UBound(fl$))
For x = 1 To count
nl$(x) = fl$(x)
Next x
MsgBox "The last element of the new array is: " & nl$(count)
End If
End Sub

LCase, LCase$ (functions)

Syntax LCase[$](string)

Description Returns the lowercase equivalent of the specified string.

Comments LCase$ returns a String, whereas LCase returns a String variant.
Null is returned if string is Null.
Example 'This example shows the LCase function used to change uppercase
'names to lowercase with an uppercase first letter.
Sub Main()
lname$ = "WILLIAMS"
fl$ = Left$(lname$,1)
rest$ = Mid$(lname$,2,Len(lname$))
lname$ = fl$ & LCase$(rest$)
MsgBox "The converted name is: " & lname$
End Sub

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Left, Left$, LeftB, LeftB$ (functions) 305

Left, Left$, LeftB, LeftB$ (functions)

Syntax Left[$](string, length)
LeftB[$](string,length)

Description Returns the leftmost length characters (for Left and Left$) or bytes (for LeftB and
LeftB$) from a given string.
Comments Left$ returns a String, whereas Left returns a String variant.
The length parameter is an Integer value specifying the number of characters to return.
If length is 0, then a zero-length string is returned. If length is greater than or equal to
the number of characters in the specified string, then the entire string is returned.
The LeftB and LeftB$ functions are used to return a sequence of bytes from a string
containing byte data. In this case, length specifies the number of bytes to return. If
length is greater than the number of bytes in string, then the entire string is returned.
Null is returned if string is Null.
Example 'This example shows the Left$ function used to change uppercase
'names to lowercase with an uppercase first letter.
Sub Main()
lname$ = "WILLIAMS"
fl$ = Left$(lname$,1)
rest$ = Mid$(lname$,2,Len(lname$))
lname$ = fl$ & LCase$(rest$)
MsgBox "The converted name is: " & lname$
End Sub
See Also Right, Right$, RightB, RightB$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.

Len, LenB (functions)

Syntax Len(expression)
LenB(expression)

Description Returns the number of characters (for Len) or bytes (for LenB) in String expression or
the number of bytes required to store the specified variable.
Comments If expression evaluates to a String, then Len returns the number of characters in a given
string or 0 if the string is empty. When used with a Variant variable, the length of the
variant when converted to a String is returned. If expression is a Null, then Len returns
a Null variant.
The LenB function is used to return the number of bytes in a given string. On SBCS
systems, the LenB and Len functions are identical.

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If used with a non-String or non-Variant variable, these functions returns the number
of bytes occupied by that data element.
When used with user-defined data types, these functions return the combined size of
each member within the structure. Since variable-length strings are stored elsewhere,
the size of each variable-length string within a structure is 2 bytes.
The following table describes the sizes of the individual data elements when appearing
within a structure:
Data Element Size

Line Numbers (topic)

Line numbers are not supported by BasicScript.
As an alternative to line numbers, you can use meaningful labels as targets for absolute
jumps, as shown below:
Sub Main()
Dim i As Integer
On Error Goto MyErrorTrap
i = 0
LoopTop:
i = i + 1
If i < 10 Then Goto LoopTop
MyErrorTrap:
MsgBox "An error occurred."
End Sub

Line$ (function)
Syntax Line$(text$,first[,last])

Description Returns a String containing a single line or a group of lines between first and last.
Comments Lines are delimited by carriage return, line feed, or carriage-return/line-feed pairs.
Embedded null characters are treated as regular characters.
The Line$ function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
text$ String containing the text from which the lines will be
extracted.
first Integer representing the index of the first line to return. If last
is omitted, then this line will be returned. If first is greater
than the number of lines in text$, then a zero-length string is
returned.
last Integer representing the index of the last line to return
Example 'This example reads five lines of the [Link] file,

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'extracts the third and fourth lines with the Line$ function,
'and displays them in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Open "c:\[Link]" For Input As #1
For x = 1 To 5
Line Input #1,lin$
txt = txt & lin$ & crlf
Next x
lines$ = Line$(txt,3,4)
MsgBox lines$
End Sub

See Also Item$ (function); ItemCount (function); LineCount (function); Word$ (function);
WordCount (function).
Platform(s) All.

LineCount (function)
Syntax LineCount(text$)

Description Returns an Integer representing the number of lines in text$.

Comments Lines are delimited by carriage return, line feed, or both. Embedded null characters are
treated as regular characters.
Example 'This example reads the first ten lines of your [Link]
'file, uses the LineCount function to determine the number of
'lines, and then displays them in a message box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
x = 1
Open "c:\[Link]" For Input As #1
While (x < 10) And Not EOF(1)
Line Input #1,lin$
txt = txt & lin$ & crlf
x = x + 1
Wend
lines! = LineCount(txt)
MsgBox "The number of lines in txt is: " _
& lines! & crlf & crlf & txt
End Sub

See Also Item$ (function); ItemCount (function); Line$ (function); Word$ (function);
WordCount (function).
Platform(s) All.

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ListBox (statement)
Syntax ListBox x,y,width,height,ArrayVariable,.Identifier

Description Creates a list box within a dialog box template.

is the same as:

i% = 22
Similarly, with strings, the expression
s$ = "Hello," + " there" + Chr(46)
is the same as:
s$ = "Hello, there."

Loc (function)
Syntax Loc(filenumber)

Description Returns a Long representing the position of the file pointer in the given file.
Comments The filenumber parameter is an Integer used by BasicScript to refer to the number
passed by the Open statement to BasicScript.
The Loc function returns different values depending on the mode in which the file was
opened:
File Mode Returns

Input Current byte position divided by 128

Output Current byte position divided by 128
Append Current byte position divided by 128
Binary Position of the last byte read or written
Random Number of the last record read or written
Example 'This example reads five lines of the [Link] file,
'determines the current location of the file pointer, and
'displays it in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Open "c:\[Link]" For Input As #1
For x = 1 To 5
If Not EOF(1) Then Line Input #1,lin$
Next x
lc% = Loc(1)
Close
MsgBox "The file location is: " & lc%
End Sub
See Also Seek (function); Seek (statement); FileLen (function).
Platform(s) All.

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Lock, Unlock (statements)

Syntax Lock [#] filenumber [,{record | [start] To end}]
Unlock [#] filenumber [,{record | [start] To end}]

Description Locks or unlocks a section of the specified file, granting or denying other processes
access to that section of the file.
Comments The Lock statement locks a section of the specified file, preventing other processes from
accessing that section of the file until the Unlock statement is issued. The Unlock
statement unlocks a section of the specified file, allowing other processes access to that
section of the file.
The Lock and Unlock statements require the following parameters:
Parameter Description
filenumber Integer used by BasicScript to refer to the open file—the
number passed to the Open statement.
record Long specifying which record to lock or unlock.
start Long specifying the first record within a range to be locked or
unlocked.
end Long specifying the last record within a range to be locked or
unlocked.
For sequential files, the record, start, and end parameters are ignored. The entire file is
locked or unlocked.
The section of the file is specified using one of the following:
Syntax Description
No parameters Locks or unlocks the entire file (no record specification is
given).
record Locks or unlocks the specified record number (for Random
files) or byte (for Binary files).
To end Locks or unlocks from the beginning of the file to the specified
record (for Random files) or byte (for Binary files).
start To end Locks or unlocks the specified range of records (for Random
files) or bytes (for Binary files).
The lock range must be the same as that used to subsequently unlock the file range, and
all locked ranges must be unlocked before the file is closed. Ranges within files are not
unlocked automatically by BasicScript when your script terminates, which can cause
file access problems for other processes. It is a good idea to group the Lock and Unlock

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318 BasicScript Language Reference

statements close together in the code, both for readability and so subsequent readers can
see that the lock and unlock are performed on the same range. This practice also reduces
errors in file locks.
Example 'This example creates a file named [Link] and fills it with
'ten string variable records. These are displayed in a dialog
'box. The file is then reopened for read/write, and each record
'is locked, modified, rewritten, and unlocked. The new records
'are then displayed in a dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
a$ = "This is record number: "
b$ = "0"
rec$ = ""
message = ""
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Write Shared As #1
For x = 1 To 10
rec$ = a$ & x
Lock #1,x
Put #1,,rec$
Unlock #1,x
message = message & rec$ & crlf
Next x
Close
MsgBox "The records are:" & crlf & message
message = ""
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Read Write Shared As #1
For x = 1 To 10
rec$ = Mid$(rec$,1,23) & (11 - x)
Lock #1,x
Put #1,x,rec$
Unlock #1,x
message = message & rec$ & crlf
Next x
MsgBox "The records are: " & crlf & message
Close
Kill "[Link]"
End Sub

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Lof (function) 319

Lof (function)
Syntax Lof(filenumber)

Description Returns a Long representing the number of bytes in the given file.
Comments The filenumber parameter is an Integer used by BasicScript to refer to the open
filethe number passed to the Open statement.
The file must currently be open.
Example 'This example creates a test file, writes ten records into it,
'then finds the length of the file and displays it in a message
'box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
a$ = "This is record number: "
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Write Shared As #1
For x = 1 To 10
rec$ = a$ & x
put #1,,rec$
message = message & rec$ & crlf
Next x
Close
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Read Write Shared As #1
r% = Lof(1)
Close
MsgBox "The length of [Link] is: " & r%
End Sub

Description Returns a Double representing the natural logarithm of a given number.

Comments The value of number must be a Double greater than 0.
The value of e is 2.71828.
Example 'This example calculates the natural log of 100 and displays it
'in a message box.
Sub Main()
x# = Log(100)
MsgBox "The natural logarithm of 100 is: " & x#

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End Sub
See Also Exp (function).
Platform(s) All.

Long (data type)

Syntax Long

Description Long variables are used to hold numbers (with up to ten digits of precision) within the
following range:
–2,147,483,648 <= Long <= 2,147,483,647
Internally, longs are 4-byte values. Thus, when appearing within a structure, longs
require 4 bytes of storage. When used with binary or random files, 4 bytes of storage are
required.
The type-declaration character for Long is &.
See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type);
Object (data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean
(data type); DefType (statement); CLng (function).
Platform(s) All.

LSet (statement)
Syntax 1 LSet dest = source

Syntax 2 LSet dest_variable = source_variable

Description Left-aligns the source string in the destination string or copies one user-defined type to
another.
Comments Syntax 1
The LSet statement copies the source string source into the destination string dest. The
dest parameter must be the name of either a String or Variant variable. The source
parameter is any expression convertible to a string.
If source is shorter in length than dest, then the string is left-aligned within dest, and the
remaining characters are padded with spaces. If source$ is longer in length than dest,
then source is truncated, copying only the leftmost number of characters that will fit in
dest.

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The destvariable parameter specifies a String or Variant variable. If destvariable is a

Variant containing Empty, then no characters are copied. If destvariable is not
convertible to a String, then a runtime error occurs. A runtime error results if
destvariable is Null.

Syntax 2
The source structure is copied byte for byte into the destination structure. This is useful
for copying structures of different types. Only the number of bytes of the smaller of the
two structures is copied. Neither the source structure nor the destination structure can
contain strings.
Example 'This example replaces a 40-character string of asterisks (*)
'with an RSet and LSet string and then displays the result.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Dim message, tmpstr$
tmpstr$ = String$(40, "*")
message = "Here are two strings that have been right-" + crlf
message = message & "and left-justified in " & _
"a 40-character string."
message = message & crlf & crlf
RSet tmpstr$ = "Right->"
message = message & tmpstr$ & crlf
LSet tmpstr$ = "<-Left"
message = message & tmpstr$ & crlf
MsgBox message
End Sub

LTrim, LTrim$ (functions)

See Trim, Trim$, LTrim, LTrim$, RTrim, RTrim$ (functions).

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MacID (function)
Syntax MacID(constant)

Description Returns a value representing a collection of same-type files on the Macintosh.

Comments Since this platform does not support wildcards (i.e., * or ?), this function is the only way
to specify a group of files. This function can only be used with the following statements:
Kill Dir$ Shell AppActivate
The constant parameter is a four-character string containing a file type, a resource type,
an application signature, or an Apple event. A runtime error occurs if the MacID
function is used on platforms other than the Macintosh.
Example 'This example retrieves the names of all the text files.
Sub Main()
s$ = Dir$(MacID("TEXT"))'Get the first text file.
While s$ <> ""
MsgBox s$ 'Display it.
s$ = Dir$ 'Get the next text file in the list.
Wend
'Delete all the text files.
Kill MacID("TEXT")
End Sub
See Also Kill (statement); Dir, Dir$ (functions); Shell (function); AppActivate (statement).
Platform(s) Macintosh.

MacScript (statement)
Syntax MacScript script

Description Executes the specified AppleScript script.

Comments When using the MacScript statement, you can separate multiple lines by embedding
carriage returns:
MacScript "Beep" + Chr(13) + "Display Dialog ""Hello"""
If embedding carriage returns proves cumbersome, you can use the Inline statement.
The following Inline statement is equivalent to the above example:
Inline MacScript
Beep
Display Dialog "Hello"
End Inline

Example Sub Main()

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MacScript "display dialog ""AppleScript"""

End Sub
See Also Inline (statement).
Platform(s) Macintosh..

Main (statement)
Syntax Sub Main()
End Sub
Description Defines the subroutine where execution begins.
Example Sub Main()
MsgBox "This is the Main() subroutine and entry point."
End Sub

Platform(s) All.

Mci (function)
Syntax Mci(command$,result$ [,error$])

Description Executes an Mci command, returning an Integer indicating whether the command was
successful.
Comments The Mci function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description

command$ String containing the command to be executed.

result$ String variable into which the result is placed. If the command
doesn't return anything, then a zero-length string is returned.
To ignore the returned string, pass a zero-length string:
r% = Mci("open [Link] type
waveaudio","")
error$ Optional String variable into which an error string will be
placed. A zero-length string will be returned if the function is
successful.
The Mci function returns 0 if successul. Otherwise, an non-zero Integer is returned
indicating the error.
Examples 'This first example plays a wave file. The wave file is played
'to completion before execution can continue.
Sub Main()

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Dim result As String

Dim ErrorMessage As String
Dim Filename As String
Dim rc As Integer
'Establish name of file in the Windows directory.
Filename = FileParse$([Link]$ + "\" _
+ "[Link]")
'Open the file and driver.
rc = Mci("open " & Filename & _
" type waveaudio alias CoolSound","",ErrorMessage)
If (rc) Then
'Error occurred--display error message to user.
MsgBox ErrorMessage
Exit Sub
End If
rc = Mci("play CoolSound wait","","") 'Wait for sound to
'finish.
rc = Mci("close CoolSound","","") 'Close driver and file.
End Sub
'This next example shows how to query an Mci device and play an
'MIDI file in the background.
Sub Main()
Dim result As String
Dim ErrMsg As String
Dim Filename As String
Dim rc As Integer
'Check to see whether MIDI device can play for us.
rc = Mci("capability sequencer can play",result,ErrorMessage)
'Check for error.
If rc Then
MsgBox ErrorMessage
Exit Sub
End If
'Can it play?
If result <> "true" Then
MsgBox "MIDI device is not capable of playing."
Exit Sub
End If
'Assemble a filename from the Windows directory.
Filename = FileParse$([Link]$ & "\" _
& "[Link]")
'Open the driver and file.
rc = Mci("open " & Filename & _
" type sequencer alias song",result$,ErrMsg)
If rc Then
MsgBox ErrMsg
Exit Sub

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End If
rc = Mci("play song","","")'Play in the background.
MsgBox "Press OK to stop the music.",ebOKOnly
rc = Mci("close song","","")
End Sub

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Platform(s) Windows.

MenuItemChecked (function)
Syntax MenuItemChecked(MenuItemName$)

Description Returns True if the given menu item exists and is checked; returns False otherwise.
Comments The MenuItemName$ parameter specifies a complete menu item or menu item pop-up
following the same format as that used by the Menu statement.
Example 'This example turns the ruler off if it is on.
Sub Main()
If MenuItemChecked("[Link]") Then Menu "[Link]"
End Sub
See Also Menu (statement); MenuItemEnabled (function); MenuItemExists (function).
Platform(s) Windows.

MenuItemEnabled (function)
Syntax MenuItemEnabled(MenuItemName$)

Description Returns True if the given menu item exists and is enabled; returns False otherwise.
Comments The MenuItemName$ parameter specifies a complete menu item or menu item pop-up
following the same format as that used by the Menu statement.
Example 'This example only pastes if there is something in the Clipboard.
Sub Main()
If MenuItemEnabled("[Link]") Then
Menu "[Link]"
Else
MsgBox "There is nothing in the Clipboard.",ebOKOnly
End If
End Sub
See Also Menu (statement); MenuItemChecked (function); MenuItemExists (function).
Platform(s) Windows.

MenuItemExists (function)
Syntax MenuItemExists(MenuItemName$)

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Mid, Mid$, MidB, MidB$ (functions) 327

Description Returns True if the given menu item exists; returns False otherwise.
Comments The MenuItemName$ parameter specifies a complete menu item or menu item pop-up
following the same format as that used by the Menu statement.
Examples Sub Main()
If MenuItemExists("[Link]") Then Beep
If MenuItemExists("File") Then MsgBox "There is a File menu."
End Sub

Mid, Mid$, MidB, MidB$ (functions)

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338 BasicScript Language Reference

If both the helpfile and context parameters are specified, then context-sensitive help can
be invoked using the help key (F1 on most platforms). Invoking help does not remove
the dialog.

Breaking Text across Lines

The prompt parameter can contain end-of-line characters, forcing the text that follows to
start on a new line. The following example shows how to display a string on two lines:
MsgBox "This is on" + Chr(13) + Chr(10) + "two lines."
The carriage-return or line-feed characters can be used by themselves to designate an
end-of-line.
Example Sub Main
MsgBox "This is a simple message box."
MsgBox "This is a message box with a title and an icon.", _
ebExclamation,"Simple"
MsgBox "This message box has OK and Cancel buttons.", _
ebOkCancel
MsgBox "This message box has Yes, No, and Cancel buttons.", _
ebYesNoCancel Or ebDefaultButton2
MsgBox "This message box has Yes and No buttons.", _
ebYesNo
MsgBox "This message box has Retry and Cancel buttons.", _
ebRetryCancel
MsgBox "This message box is system modal!",ebSystemModal
End Sub
See Also AskBox, AskBox$ (functions); AskPassword, AskPassword$ (functions); InputBox,
InputBox$ (functions); OpenFileName$ (function); SaveFileName$ (function);
SelectBox (function); AnswerBox (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.
Platform Notes The appearance of the MsgBox dialog box and its icons differs slightly depending on
the platform.

MsgBox (statement)
Syntax MsgBox prompt [, [buttons] [,[title] [, helpfile, context]]]

Description This command is the same as the MsgBox function, except that the statement form does
not return a value. See MsgBox (function).
Example Sub Main()
MsgBox "This is text displayed in a message box." 'Display
'text.
MsgBox "The result is: " & (10 * 45)'Display a number.

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End Sub
See Also AskBox, AskBox$ (functions); AskPassword, AskPassword$ (functions); InputBox,
InputBox$ (functions); OpenFileName$ (function); SaveFileName$ (function);
SelectBox (function); AnswerBox (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

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Name (statement)
Syntax Name oldfile$ As newfile$

Description Renames a file.

Comments Each parameter must specify a single filename. Wildcard characters such as * and ? are
not allowed.
Some platforms allow naming of files to different directories on the same physical disk
volume. For example, the following rename will work under Windows:
Name "c:\samples\[Link]" As "c:\backup\doc\[Link]"
You cannot rename files across physical disk volumes. For example, the following will
error under Windows:
Name "c:\samples\[Link]" As "a:\[Link]" 'This will
’error!
To rename a file to a different physical disk, you must first copy the file, then erase the
original:
FileCopy "c:\samples\[Link]","a:\[Link]" 'Make a copy.
Kill "c:\samples\[Link]" 'Delete the original.

Example ’This example creates a file called [Link] and then renames it
’to [Link].
Sub Main()
On Error Resume Next
If FileExists("[Link]") Then
Name "[Link]" As "[Link]"
If Err <> 0 Then
message = "File exists and cannot be renamed! Error: " _
& Err
Else
message = "File exists and renamed to [Link]."
End If
Else
Open "[Link]" For Output As #1
Close
Name "[Link]" As "[Link]"
If Err <> 0 Then
message = "File created but not renamed! Error: " & Err
Else
message = "File created and renamed to [Link]."
End If
End If
MsgBox message
End Sub

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Named Parameters (topic) 341

Named Parameters (topic)

Many language elements in BasicScript support named parameters. Named parameters
allow you to specify parameters to a function or subroutine by name rather than in
adherence to a predetermined order. The following table contains examples showing
various calls to MsgBox both using parameter by both name and position.
By Name MsgBox Prompt:= "Hello, world."
By Position MsgBox "Hello, world."
By Name MsgBox Title:="Title", Prompt:="Hello, world."
By Position MsgBox "Hello, world",,"Title"
By Name MsgBox HelpFile:="[Link]", _
Prompt:="Hello, world.", Context:=10
By Position MsgBox "Hello, world.",,,"[Link]",10

Using named parameter makes your code easier to read, while at the same time removes
you from knowing the order of parameter. With function that require many parameters,
most of which are optional (such as MsgBox), code becomes significantly easier to
write and maintain.
When supported, the names of the named parameter appear in the description of that
language element.
When using named parameter, you must observe the following rules:
• Named parameter must use the parameter name as specified in the description of
that language element. Unrecognized parameter names cause compiler errors.
• All parameters, whether named or positional, are separated by commas.
• The parameter name and its associated value are separated with :=
• If one parameter is named, then all subsequent parameter must also be named as
shown below:
MsgBox "Hello, world", Title:="Title" ’OK
MsgBox Prompt:="Hello, world.",,"Title" ’WRONG!!!

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[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link] netpath$,[password$],[localname$] [,[username$]
[,permanent]]

Description Redirects a local device (a disk drive or printer queue) to the specified shared device or
remote server.
Comments The [Link] method takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
netpath$ String containing the name of the shared device or the name of a
remote server. This parameter can contain the name of a shared
printer queue (such as that returned by [Link][1]) or the
name of a network path (such as that returned by
[Link][0]).
password$ String containing the password for the given device or server.
This parameter is mainly used to specify the password on a
remote server.
If password$ is not specified, then the default password is used.
localname$ String containing the name of the local device being redirected,
such as "LPT1" or "D:".
If localname$ is not specified, then a connection is made to the
network resource without redirecting a local device.
username$ Specifies the name of the user making the connection.
permanent Specifies if the connection should be restored during subsequent
logon operations. Only a successful connection will persist in
this manner.
Connections are assumed to be permanent if this parameter is
omitted. Connections established when localname$ is missing
are never permanent.
A runtime error will result if no network is present.
Example ’This example sets N: so that it refers to the network path
’SYS:\PUBLIC.
Sub Main()
[Link] "SYS:\PUBLIC","","N:"
End Sub
See Also [Link] (method); [Link]$ (method).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

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Platform Notes Windows: On Windows platforms, the localname$ parameter cannot be omitted. The
username$ and permanent parameters are ignored.
Win32: On Win32 platforms, if username$ is omitted, then the default user for the
current process is used. The permanent parameter is always True under Win32s.

[Link]$ (method)
Syntax [Link]$(type)

1 Always returns 0
2 Network type:
0 No network is installed.
1 Microsoft Network.
2 Microsoft LAN Manager.
3 Novell NetWare.
4 Banyan Vines.
5 10Net.
6 Locus
7 SunSoft PC NFS.
8 LanStep.
9 9 Titles.
10 Articom Lantastic.
11 IBM AS/400.
12 FTP Software FTP NFS.
13 DEC Pathworks.
3 Version of the network with the major version in the high byte and
the minor version in the low byte:
Major = [Link](2) \ 256
Minor = [Link](2) And &H00FF

[Link]$ (method)
Syntax [Link]$(localname$)

Description Returns the name of the network resource associated with the specified redirected local
device.
Comments The localname$ parameter specifies the name of the local device, such as "LPT1" or
"D:".
The function returns a zero-length string if the specified local device is not redirected.
A runtime error will result if no network is present.
Example ’This example finds out where drive Z is mapped.
Sub Main()

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NetPath$ = [Link]$("Z:")
MsgBox "Drive Z is mapped as " & NetPath$
End Sub

Description Returns the name of the user on the network.

Named Parameter Description

pmt Double representing the amount of each payment or income.

Income is represented by positive values, whereas payments are
represented by negative values.
pv Double representing the present value of your annuity. In the
case of a loan, the present value would be the amount of the loan,
and the future value (see below) would be zero.
fv Double representing the future value of your annuity. In the case
of a loan, the future value would be zero, and the present value
would be the amount of the loan.
due Integer indicating when payments are due for each payment
period. A 0 specifies payment at the end of each period, whereas
a 1 indicates payment at the start of each period.
Positive numbers represent cash received, whereas negative numbers represent cash
paid out.
Example ’This example calculates the number of $100.00 monthly payments
’necessary to accumulate $10,000.00 at an annual rate of 10%.
’Payments are made at the beginning of the month.
Sub Main()
ag# = NPer((.10/12),100,0,10000,1)
MsgBox "The number of monthly periods is: " &
Format(ag#,"Standard")
End Sub

See Also IPmt (function); Pmt (function); PPmt (function); Rate (function).
Platform(s) All.

Npv (function)
Syntax Npv(rate, valuearray())

Description Returns the net present value of an annuity based on periodic payments and receipts,
and a discount rate.
Comments The Npv function requires the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
rate Double that represents the interest rate over the length of the
period. If the values are monthly, annual rates must be divided by
12 to normalize them to monthly rates.

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Named Parameter Description

valuearray() Array of Double numbers representing the payments and
receipts. Positive values are payments, and negative values are
receipts.
There must be at least one positive and one negative value.
Positive numbers represent cash received, whereas negative numbers represent cash
paid out.
For accurate results, be sure to enter your payments and receipts in the correct order
because Npv uses the order of the array values to interpret the order of the payments and
receipts.
If your first cash flow occurs at the beginning of the first period, that value must be
added to the return value of the Npv function. It should not be included in the array of
cash flows.
Npv differs from the Pv function in that the payments are due at the end of the period
and the cash flows are variable. Pv's cash flows are constant, and payment may be made
at either the beginning or end of the period.
Example ’This example illustrates the purchase of a lemonade stand for
’$800 financed with money borrowed at 10%. The returns are
’estimated to accelerate as the stand gains popularity. The
’incomes are estimated (generated) over 12 months. This program
’first generates the income stream array in two For...Next loops,
’and then the net present value (Npv) is calculated and displayed.
’Note normalization of the annual 10% rate.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Dim valu#(12)
valu(1) = -800 'Initial investment
message = valu(1) & ", "
For x = 2 To 5 'Months 2-5
valu(x) = 100 + (x * 2)
message = message & valu(x) & ", "
Next x
For x = 6 To 12 'Months 6-12
valu(x) = 100 + (x * 10)'Accelerated income
message = message & valu(x) & ", "
Next x
NetVal# = NPV((.10/12),valu)
message = "The values:" & crlf & message & crlf & crlf
MsgBox message & "Net present value: " _
& Format(NetVal#,"Currency")
End Sub

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Object (data type) 355

Platform(s) All.

Object (data type)

Syntax Object

Description A data type used to declare OLE Automation variables.

Comments The Object type is used to declare variables that reference objects within an application
using OLE Automation.
Each object is a 4-byte (32-bit) value that references the object internally. The value 0
(or Nothing) indicates that the variable does not reference a valid object, as is the case
when the object has not yet been given a value. Accessing properties or methods of such
Object variables generates a runtime error.

Using Objects
Object variables are declared using the Dim, PUBLIC, or Private statement:
Dim MyApp As Object
Object variables can be assigned values (thereby referencing a real physical object)
using the Set statement:
Set MyApp = CreateObject("[Link]")
Set MyApp = Nothing
Properties of an Object are accessed using the dot (.) separator:
[Link] = 10
i% = [Link]
Methods of an Object are also accessed using the dot (.) separator:
[Link] "[Link]"
isSuccess = [Link]("[Link]",15)

Automatic Destruction
BasicScript keeps track of the number of variables that reference a given object so that
the object can be destroyed when there are no longer any references to it:
Sub Main() 'Number of references to object
Dim a As Object '0
Dim b As Object '0
Set a = CreateObject("[Link]) '1
Set b = a '2
Set a = Nothing '1
End Sub '0 (object

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356 BasicScript Language Reference

'destroyed)

Note: An OLE Automation object is instructed by BasicScript to destroy itself when

no variables reference that object. However, it is the responsibility of the OLE
Automation server to destroy it. Some servers do not destroy their objects, usually
when the objects have a visual component and can be destroyed manually by the
user.

See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type); Long
(data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean (data
type); DefType (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh.

Objects (topic)
BasicScript defines two types of objects: data objects and OLE Automation objects.
Syntactically, these are referenced in the same way.

What Is an Object
An object in BasicScript is an encapsulation of data and routines into a single unit. The
use of objects in BasicScript has the effect of grouping together a set of functions and
data items that apply only to a specific object type.
Objects expose data items for programmability called properties. For example, a sheet
object may expose an integer called NumColumns. Usually, properties can be both
retrieved (get) and modified (set).
Objects also expose internal routines for programmability called methods. In
BasicScript, an object method can take the form of a function or a subroutine. For
example, a OLE Automation object called MyApp may contain a method subroutine
called Open that takes a single argument (a filename), as shown below:
[Link] "c:\files\[Link]"

Declaring Object Variables

In order to gain access to an object, you must first declare an object variable using either
Dim, Public, or Private:
Dim o As Object 'OLE Automation object
Initially, objects are given the value 0 (or Nothing). Before an object can be accessed, it
must be associated with a physical object.

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Objects (topic) 357

Assigning a Value to an Object Variable

An object variable must reference a real physical object before accessing any properties
or methods of that object. To instantiate an object, use the Set statement.
Dim MyApp As Object
Set MyApp = CreateObject("[Link]")

Accessing Object Properties

Once an object variable has been declared and associated with a physical object, it can
be modified using BasicScript code. Properties are syntactically accessible using the dot
operator, which separates an object name from the property being accessed:
[Link] = 10
i% = [Link]
Properties are set using BasicScript's normal assignment statement:
[Link] = 10
Object properties can be retrieved and used within expressions:
i% = [Link] + 10
MsgBox "Number of documents = " & [Link]

Accessing Object Methods

Like properties, methods are accessed via the dot operator. Object methods that do not
return values behave like subroutines in BasicScript (i.e., the arguments are not enclosed
within parentheses):
[Link] "c:\files\[Link]",True,15
Object methods that return a value behave like function calls in BasicScript. Any
arguments must be enclosed in parentheses:
If [Link] = 0 Then MsgBox "No open documents."
NumDocs = [Link](4,5)
There is no syntactic difference between calling a method function and retrieving a
property value, as shown below:
variable = [Link](arg1,arg2)
variable = [Link](arg1,arg2)

Comparing Object Variables

The values used to represent objects are meaningless to the script in which they are
used, with the following exceptions:
• Objects can be compared to each other to determine whether they refer to the same
object.
• Objects can be compared with Nothing to determine whether the object variable
refers to a valid object.

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Object comparisons are accomplished using the Is operator:

If a Is b Then MsgBox "a and b are the same object."
If a Is Nothing Then MsgBox "a is not initialized."
If b Is Not Nothing Then MsgBox "b is in use."

Collections
A collection is a set of related object variables. Each element in the set is called a
member and is accessed via an index, either numeric or text, as shown below:
[Link](0)
[Link]("Tuesday")
It is typical for collection indexes to begin with 0.
Each element of a collection is itself an object, as shown in the following examples:
Dim MyToolbarButton As Object
Set MyToolbarButton = [Link]("Save")
[Link](1).Caption = "Open"
The collection itself contains properties that provide you with information about the
collection and methods that allow navigation within that collection:
Dim MyToolbarButton As Object
NumButtons% = [Link]
[Link]
[Link] "Save"
For i = 1 To [Link]
Set MyToolbarButton = [Link](i)
[Link] = "Copy"
Next i

Predefined Objects
BasicScript predefines a few objects for use in all scripts. These are:
Clipboard System Desktop HWND

Net Basic Screen

Note: Some of these objects are not available on all platforms.

Oct, Oct$ (functions)

Syntax Oct[$](number)

Description Returns a String containing the octal equivalent of the specified number.

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OKButton (statement) 359

Comments Oct$ returns a String, whereas Oct returns a String variant.

The returned string contains only the number of octal digits necessary to represent the
number.
The number parameter is any numeric expression. If this parameter is Null, then Null is
returned. Empty is treated as 0. The number parameter is rounded to the nearest whole
number before converting to the octal equivalent.
Example 'This example displays the octal equivalent of several numbers.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
st$ = "The octal values are: " & crlf
For x = 1 To 5
y% = x * 10
st$ = st$ & y% & " : " & Oct$(y%) & crlf
Next x
MsgBox st$
End Sub
See Also Hex, Hex$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.

OKButton (statement)
Syntax OKButton x,y,width,height [,.Identifier]

Description Creates an OK button within a dialog box template.

Comments This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The OKButton statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements in
a dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable).
If the DefaultButton parameter is not specified in the Dialog statement, the OK button
will be used as the default button. In this case, the OK button can be selected by
pressing Enter on a nonbutton control.

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A dialog box template must contain at least one OKButton, CancelButton, or

PushButton statement (otherwise, the dialog box cannot be dismissed).
Example 'This example shows how to use the OK and Cancel buttons within a
'dialog box template and how to detect which one closed the dialog
'box.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog ButtonTemplate 17,33,104,23,"Buttons"
OKButton 8,4,40,14,.OK
CancelButton 56,4,40,14,.Cancel
End Dialog
Dim ButtonDialog As ButtonTemplate
WhichButton = Dialog(ButtonDialog)
If WhichButton = -1 Then
MsgBox "OK was pressed."
ElseIf WhichButton = 0 Then
MsgBox "Cancel was pressed."
End If
End Sub

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On Error (statement) 361

Once an error trap has gained control, appropriate action should be taken, and then
control should be resumed using the Resume statement. The Resume statement resets
the error handler and continues execution. If a procedure ends while an error is pending,
then an error will be generated. (The Exit Sub or Exit Function statement also resets
the error handler, allowing a procedure to end without displaying an error message.)

Errors within an Error Handler

If an error occurs within the error handler, then the error handler of the caller (or any
procedure in the call stack) will be invoked. If there is no such error handler, then the
error is fatal, causing the script to stop executing. The following statements reset the
error state (i.e., these statements turn off the fact that an error occurred):
Resume
Err=-1
The Resume statement forces execution to continue either on the same line or on the
line following the line that generated the error. The Err=-1 statement allows explicit
resetting of the error state so that the script can continue normal execution without
resuming at the statement that caused the error condition.
The On Error statement will not reset the error. Thus, if an On Error statement occurs
within an error handler, it has the effect of changing the location of a new error handler
for any new errors that may occur once the error has been reset.
Example 'This example will demonstrate three types of error handling. The
'first case simply by-passes an expected error and continues with
'program operation. The second case creates an error branch that
'jumps to a common error handling routine that processes incoming
'errors, clears the error (with the Resume statement) and resumes
'program execution. The third case clears all internal error
'handling so that execution will stop when the next error is
'encountered.
Sub Main()
Dim x%
a = 10000
b = 10000

On Error Goto Pass'Branch to this label on error.

Do
x% = a * b
Loop

Or Logical or binary disjunction

Xor, Eqv, Imp Logical or binary operators Lowest
The precedence order can be controlled using parentheses, as shown below:
a = 4 + 3 * 2 'a becomes 10.
a = (4 + 3) * 2 'a becomes 14.

Operator Precision (topic)

When numeric, binary, logical or comparison operators are used, the data type of the
result is generally the same as the data type of the more precise operand. For example,
adding an Integer and a Long first converts the Integer operand to a Long, then
preforms a long addition, overflowing only if the result cannot be contained with a
Long. The order of precision is shown in the following list:
Empty Least precise

Boolean

Integer

Long

Single

Date

Double

Currency Most precise

There are exceptions noted in the descriptions of each operator.

The rules for operand conversion are further complicated when an operator is used with
variant data. In many cases, an overflow causes automatic promotion of the result to the
next highest precise data type. For example, adding two Integer variants results in an
Integer variant unless it overflows, in which case the result is automatically promoted
to a Long variant.

Option Base (statement)

Syntax Option Base {0 | 1}

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Description Sets the lower bound for array declarations.

Comments By default, the lower bound used for all array declarations is 0.
This statement must appear outside of any functions or subroutines.
Example Option Base 1
Sub Main()
Dim a(10) 'Contains 10 elements (not 11).
End Sub
See Also Dim (statement); Public (statement); Private (statement).
Platform(s) All.

Option Compare (statement)

Syntax Option Compare [Binary | Text]

Description Controls how strings are compared.

Comments When Option Compare is set to Binary, then string comparisons are case-sensitive
(e.g., "A" does not equal "a"). When it is set to Text, string comparisons are
case-insensitive (e.g., "A" is equal to "a").
The default value for Option Compare is Binary.
The Option Compare statement affects all string comparisons in any statements that
follow the Option Compare statement. Additionally, the setting affects the default
behavior of Instr, StrComp, and the Like operator. The following table shows the
types of string comparisons affected by this setting:
> < <>

<= >= Instr

StrComp Like

The Option Compare statement must appear outside the scope of all subroutines and
functions. In other words, it cannot appear within a Sub or Function block.
Example 'This example shows the use of Option Compare.
Option Compare Binary
Sub CompareBinary
a$ = "This String Contains UPPERCASE."
b$ = "this string contains uppercase."
If a$ = b$ Then
MsgBox "The two strings were compared case-insensitive."
Else
MsgBox "The two strings were compared case-sensitive."

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Option CStrings (statement) 369

End If
End Sub
Option Compare Text
Sub CompareText
a$ = "This String Contains UPPERCASE."
b$ = "this string contains uppercase."
If a$ = b$ Then
MsgBox "The two strings were compared case-insensitive."
Else
MsgBox "The two strings were compared case-sensitive."
End If
End Sub
Sub Main()
CompareBinary 'Calls subroutine above.
CompareText 'Calls subroutine above.
End Sub

See Also Like (operator); InStr, InStrB (functions); StrComp (function); Comparison
Operators (topic).
Platform(s) All.

Option CStrings (statement)

Syntax Option CStrings {On | Off}

Description Turns on or off the ability to use C-style escape sequences within strings.
Comments When Option CStrings On is in effect, the compiler treats the backslash character as an
escape character when it appears within strings. An escape character is simply a special
character that otherwise cannot ordinarily be typed by the computer keyboard.
Escape Description Equivalent Expression
\r Carriage return Chr$(13)
\n Line Feed Chr$(10)
\a Bell Chr$(7)
\b Backspace Chr$(8)
\f Form Feed Chr$(12)
\t Tab Chr$(9)
\v Vertical tab Chr$(11)
\0 Null Chr$(0_
\" Double quote "" or Chr$(34)
\\ Backslash Chr$(92)

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Escape Description Equivalent Expression

\? Question mark ?
\’ Single quote ’
\xhh Hexadecimal number Chr$(Val(&Hhh))
\ooo Octal number Chr$(Val(&Oooo))
\anycharacter Any character anycharacter
With hexadecimal values, BasicScript stops scanning for digits when it encounters a
nonhexadecimal digit or two digits, whichever comes first. Similarly, with octal values,
BasicScript stops scanning when it encounters a nonoctal digit or three digits,
whichever comes first.
When Option CStrings Off is in effect, then the backslash character has no special
meaning. This is the default.
Example Option CStrings On
Sub Main()
MsgBox "They said, \"Watch out for that clump of grass!\""
MsgBox "First line.\r\nSecond line."
MsgBox "Char A: \x41 \r\n Char B: \x42"
End Sub

Platform(s) All.

Option Default (statement)

Syntax Option Default type

Description Sets the default data type of variables and function return values when not otherwise
specified.
Comments By default, the type of implicitly defined variables and function return values is
Variant. This statement is used for backward compatibility with earlier versions of
BasicScript where the default data type was Integer.
This statement must appear outside the scope of all functions and subroutines.
Currently, type can only be set to Integer.
Example 'This script sets the default data type to Integer. This fact
'is used to declare the function AddIntegers which returns an
'Integer data type.
Option Default Integer
Function AddIntegers(a As Integer,b As Integer)
Foo = a + b
End Function

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Option Explicit (statement) 371

Sub Main
Dim a,b,result
a = InputBox("Enter an integer:")
b = InputBox("Enter an integer:")
result = AddIntegers(a,b)
End Sub
See Also DefType (statement).
Platform(s) All.

Option Explicit (statement)

Syntax Option Explicit

Description Prevents implicit declaration of variables and externally called procedures.

Comments By default, BasicScript implicitly declares variables that are used but have not been
explicitly declared with Dim, Public, or Private. To avoid typing errors, you may want
to use Option Explicit to prevent this behavior.
The Option Explicit statement also enforces explicit declaration of all externally called
procedures. Once specified, all externally called procedures must be explicitly declared
with the Declare statement.
See Also Const (statement); Dim (statement); Public (statement); Private (statement); ReDim
(statement); Declare (statement).
Platform(s) All.

OptionButton (statement)
Syntax OptionButton x,y,width,height,title$ [,.Identifier]

Description Defines an option button within a dialog box template.

Comments This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
The OptionButton statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control in
dialog units.

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Parameter Description

title$ String containing text that appears within the option button. This
text may contain an ampersand character to denote an
accelerator letter, such as "&Portrait" for Portrait, which can be
selected by pressing the P accelerator.
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements in a
dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable).
Example See OptionGroup (statement).
See Also CancelButton (statement); CheckBox (statement); ComboBox (statement); Dialog
(function); Dialog (statement); DropListBox (statement); GroupBox (statement);
ListBox (statement); OKButton (statement); OptionGroup (statement); Picture
(statement); PushButton (statement); Text (statement); TextBox (statement); Begin
Dialog (statement); PictureButton (statement); HelpButton (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32, OS/2: On Windows, Win32, and OS/2 platforms, accelerators are
underlined, and the accelerator combination Alt+letter is used.
Macintosh: On the Macintosh, accelerators are normal in appearance, and the
accelerator combination Command+letter is used.

OptionEnabled (function)
Syntax OptionEnabled(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified option button is enabled within the current window or
dialog box; returns False otherwise.
Comments This function is used to determine whether a given option button is enabled within the
current window or dialog box. If an option button is enabled, then its value can be set
using the SetOption statement.
The OptionEnabled statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the option button.
id Integer specifying the ID of the option button.

Note: The OptionEnabled function is used to determine whether an option button is

enabled in another application's dialog box. Use the DlgEnable function with
dynamic dialog boxes.

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OptionExists (function) 373

Example 'This example checks to see whether the option button is enabled
'before setting it.
If OptionEnabled("Tile") Then
SetOption "Tile"
End If
See Also GetOption (function); OptionExists (function); SetOption (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

OptionExists (function)
Syntax OptionExists(name$ | id)

Description Returns True if the specified option button exists within the current window or dialog
box; returns False otherwise.
Comments This function is used to determine whether a given option button exists within the
current window or dialog box.
The OptionExists statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String containing the name of the option button.
id Integer specifying the ID of the option button.

Note: The OptionExists function is used to determine whether an option button

exists in another application's dialog box. There is no equivalent function for use
with dynamic dialog boxes.

Example 'This example checks to see whether the option button exists and
'is enabled before setting it.
If OptionExists("Tile") Then
If OptionEnabled("Tile") Then
SetOption("Tile")
End If
End If

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Description Specifies the start of a group of option buttons within a dialog box template.
Comments The .Identifier parameter specifies the name by which the group of option buttons can
be referenced by statements in a dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable).
This parameter also creates an integer variable whose value corresponds to the index of
the selected option button within the group (0 is the first option button, 1 is the second
option button, and so on). This variable can be accessed using the following syntax:
[Link].
This statement can only appear within a dialog box template (i.e., between the Begin
Dialog and End Dialog statements).
When the dialog box is created, the option button specified by .Identifier will be on; all
other option buttons in the group will be off. When the dialog box is dismissed, the
.Identifier will contain the selected option button.
Example 'This example creates a group of option buttons.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog PrintTemplate 16,31,128,65,"Print"
GroupBox 8,8,64,52,"Orientation",.Junk
OptionGroup .Orientation
OptionButton 16,20,37,8,"Portrait",.Portrait
OptionButton 16,32,51,8,"Landscape",.Landscape
OptionButton 16,44,49,8,"Don't Care",.DontCare
OKButton 80,8,40,14
End Dialog
Dim PrintDialog As PrintTemplate
Dialog PrintDialog
End Sub

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Or (operator) 375

Comments If both expressions are either Boolean, Boolean variants, or Null variants, then a logical
disjunction is performed as follows:
If expression1 is and expression2 is then the result is
True True True
True False True
True Null True
False True True
False False False
False Null Null
Null True True
Null False Null
Null Null Null

Binary Disjunction
If the two expressions are Integer, then a binary disjunction is performed, returning an
Integer result. All other numeric types (including Empty variants) are converted to
Long and a binary disjunction is then performed, returning a Long result.
Binary disjunction forms a new value based on a bit-by-bit comparison of the binary
representations of the two expressions according to the following table:
If bit in expression1 is and bit in expression2 is the result is
1 1 1
0 1 1
1 0 1
0 0 0

Examples 'This first example shows the use of logical Or.

Dim s$ As String
s$ = InputBox$("Enter a string.")
If s$ = "" Or Mid$(s$,1,1) = "A" Then
s$ = LCase$(s$)
End If
'This second example shows the use of binary Or.
Dim w As Integer
TryAgain:
s$ = InputBox$("Enter a hex number (four digits max).")
If Mid$(s$,1,1) <> "&" Then
s$ = "&H" & s$
End If

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If Not IsNumeric(s$) Then Goto TryAgain

w = CInt(s$)
MsgBox "Your number is &H" & Hex$(w)
w = w Or &H8000
MsgBox "Your number with the high bit set is &H" & Hex$(w)

See Also Operator Precedence (topic); Xor (operator); Eqv (operator); Imp (operator); And
(operator).
Platform(s) All.

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Picture (statement) 377

Picture (statement)
Syntax Picture x,y,width,height,PictureName$,PictureType [,[.Identifier]
[,style]]

Description Creates a picture control in a dialog box template.

Comments Picture controls are used for the display of graphics images only. The user cannot
interact with these controls.
The Picture statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
x, y Integer coordinates specifying the position of the control (in
dialog units) relative to the upper left corner of the dialog
box.
width, height Integer coordinates specifying the dimensions of the control
in dialog units.
PictureName$ String containing the name of the picture. If PictureType is 0,
then this name specifies the name of the file containing the
image. If PictureType is 10, then PictureName$ specifies the
name of the image within the resource of the picture library.
If PictureName$ is empty, then no picture will be associated
with the control. A picture can later be placed into the picture
control using the DlgSetPicture statement.
PictureType Integer specifying the source for the image. The following
sources are supported:
0 - The image is contained in a file on disk.
10 - The image is contained in a picture library as specified
by the PicName$ parameter on the Begin Dialog statement.
.Identifier Name by which this control can be referenced by statements
in a dialog function (such as DlgFocus and DlgEnable). If
omitted, then the first two words of PictureName$ are used.
style Specifies whether the picture is drawn within a 3D frame. It
can be either of the following values:
0 - Draw the picture control with a normal frame.
1 - Draw the picture control with a 3D frame.
If this parameter is omitted, then the picture control is drawn
with a normal frame.

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378 BasicScript Language Reference

The picture control extracts the actual image from either a disk file or a picture library.
In the case of bitmaps, both 2- and 16-color bitmaps are supported. In the case of
WMFs, BasicScript supports the Placeable Windows Metafile.
If PictureName$ is a zero-length string, then the picture is removed from the picture
control, freeing any memory associated with that picture.
Examples 'This first example shows how to use a picture from a file.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog LogoDialogTemplate 16,32,288,76,"Introduction"
OKButton 240,8,40,14
Picture 8,8,224,64,"c:\bitmaps\[Link]",0,.Logo
End Dialog
Dim LogoDialog As LogoDialogTemplate
Dialog LogoDialog
End Sub
'This second example shows how to use a picture from a picture
'library with a 3D frame.
Sub Main()
Begin Dialog LogoDlg 16,31,288,76,"Introduction",,"[Link]"
OKButton 240,8,40,14
Picture 8,8,224,64,"CompanyLogo",10,.Logo,1
End Dialog
Dim LogoDialog As LogoDialogTemplate
Dialog LogoDialog
End Sub

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PopupMenu (function)
Syntax PopupMenu(MenuItems$())

Description Displays a pop-up menu containing the specified items, returning an Integer
representing the index of the selected item.
Comments If no item is selected (i.e., the pop-up menu is canceled), then a value of 1 less than the
lower bound of the array is returned.
This function creates a pop-up menu using the string elements in the given array. Each
array element is used as a menu item. A zero-length string results in a separator bar in
the menu.
The pop-up menu is created with the upper left corner at the current mouse position.
A runtime error results if MenuItems$ is not a single-dimension array.
Only one pop-up menu can be displayed at a time. An error will result if another script
executes this function while a pop-up menu is visible.
Example Sub Main()
Dim a$()
AppList a$
w% = PopupMenu(a$)
End Sub
See Also SelectBox (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

PPmt (function)
Syntax PPmt(rate, per, nper, pv, fv, due)

Description Calculates the principal payment for a given period of an annuity based on periodic,
fixed payments and a fixed interest rate.
Comments An annuity is a series of fixed payments made to an insurance company or other
investment company over a period of time. Examples of annuities are mortgages and
monthly savings plans.
The PPmt function requires the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
rate Double representing the interest rate per period.
per Double representing the number of payment periods. The per
parameter can be no less than 1 and no greater than nper.

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Named Parameter Description

nper Double representing the total number of payments in your
annuity.
pv Double representing the present value of your annuity. In the
case of a loan, the present value would be the amount of the
loan.
fv Double representing the future value of your annuity. In the
case of a loan, the future value would be 0.
due Integer indicating when payments are due. If this parameter
is 0, then payments are due at the end of each period; if it is 1,
then payments are due at the start of each period.
The rate and nper parameters must be in the same units to calculate correctly. If rate is
expressed in months, then nper must also be expressed in months.
Negative values represent payments paid out, whereas positive values represent
payments received.
Example 'This example calculates the principal paid during each year on
'a loan of $1,000.00 with an annual rate of 10% for a period of
'10 years. The result is displayed as a table containing the
'following information: payment, principal payment, principal
'balance.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
pay = Pmt(.1,10,1000.00,0,1)
message = "Amortization table for"
message = message & " 10 years: " & crlf & crlf
bal = 1000.00
For per = 1 to 10
prn = PPmt(.1,per,10,1000,0,0)
bal = bal + prn
message = message & Format(pay,"Currency") & " " _
& Format$(Prn,"Currency")
message = message & " " & Format(bal,"Currency") & crlf
Next per
MsgBox message
End Sub

See Also IPmt (function); NPer (function); Pmt (function); Rate (function).
Platform(s) All.

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Print (statement)
Syntax Print [[{Spc(n) | Tab(n)}][expressionlist][{; | ,}]]

Description Prints data to an output device.

Comments The actual output device depends on the platform on which BasicScript is running.
The following table describes how data of different types is written:
Data Type Description

String Printed in its literal form, with no enclosing quotes.

Any numeric type Printed with an initial space reserved for the sign (space =
positive). Additionally, there is a space following each
number.
Boolean Printed as "True" or "False". These keywords are translated
as appropriate according to your system’s locale.
Date Printed using the short date format. If either the date or
time component is missing, only the provided portion is
printed (this is consistent with the "general date" format
understood by the Format/Format$ functions).
Empty Nothing is printed
Null Prints "Null". This keyword is translated as appropriate
according to your system’s locale.
User-defined errors User-defined errors are printed to files as "Error code",
where code is the value of the user-defined error. The word
"Error" is not translated. The "Error" keyword is translated
as appropriate according to your system’s locale.
Object For any object type, BasicScript retrieves the default
property of that object and prints this value using the above
rules.
Each expression in expressionlist is separated with either a comma (,) or a semicolon (;).
A comma means that the next expression is output in the next print zone. A semicolon
means that the next expression is output immediately after the current expression. Print
zones are defined every 14 spaces.
If the last expression in the list is not followed by a comma or a semicolon, then a
carriage return is printed to the file. If the last expression ends with a semicolon, no
carriage return is printedthe next Print statement will output information
immediately following the expression. If the last expression in the list ends with a
comma, the file pointer is positioned at the start of the next print zone on the current
line.

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Print# (statement) 385

The Tab and Spc functions provide additional control over the column position. The
Tab function moves the file position to the specified column, whereas the Spc function
outputs the specified number of spaces.

Note: Null charactersChr$(0)within strings are translated to spaces when

printing to the Viewport window. When printing to files, this translation is not
performed.

Examples Sub Main()

i% = 10
s$ = "This is a test."
Print "The value of i=";i%,"the value of s=";s$
'This example prints the value of i% in print zone 1 and s$
'in print zone 3.
Print i%,,s$
'This example prints the value of i% and s$ separated by 10
'spaces.
Print i%;Spc(10);s$
'This example prints the value of i in column 1 and s$ in
'column 30.
Print i%;Tab(30);s$
'This example prints the value of i% and s$.
Print i%;s$,
Print 67
End Sub

Description Writes data to a sequential disk file.

Comments The filenumber parameter is a number that is used by BasicScript to refer to the open
file—the number passed to the Open statement.

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The following table describes how data of different types is written:

Data Type Description
String Printed in its literal form, with no enclosing quotes.
Any numeric type Printed with an initial space reserved for the sign (space =
positive). Additionally, there is a space following each
number.
Boolean Printed as "True" or "False". These keywords are translated
as appropriate according to your system’s locale.
Date Printed using the short date format. If either the date or
time component is missing, only the provided portion is
printed (this is consistent with the "general date" format
understood by the Format/Format$ functions).
Empty Nothing is printed
Null Prints "Null". This keyword is translated as appropriate
according to your system’s locale.
User-defined errors User-defined errors are printed to files as "Error code",
where code is the value of the user-defined error. The word
"Error" is not translated. The "Error" keyword is translated
as appropriate according to your system’s locale.
Object For any object type, BasicScript retrieves the default
property of that object and prints this value using the above
rules.
Each expression in expressionlist is separated with either a comma (,) or a semicolon (;).
A comma means that the next expression is output in the next print zone. A semicolon
means that the next expression is output immediately after the current expression. Print
zones are defined every 14 spaces.
If the last expression in the list is not followed by a comma or a semicolon, then an
end-of-line is printed to the file. If the last expression ends with a semicolon, no
end-of-line is printedthe next Print statement will output information immediately
following the expression. If the last expression in the list ends with a comma, the file
pointer is positioned at the start of the next print zone on the current line.
The Write statement always outputs information ending with an end-of-line. Thus, if a
Print statement is followed by a Write statement, the file pointer is positioned on a new
line.
The Print statement can only be used with files that are opened in Output or Append
mode.
The Tab and Spc functions provide additional control over the file position. The Tab
function moves the file position to the specified column, whereas the Spc function
outputs the specified number of spaces.

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PrinterGetOrientation (function) 387

In order to correctly read the data using the Input# statement, you should write the data
using the Write statement.
The end-of-line character is different on many platforms. On some platforms, it is
defined as a carriage-return/line-feed pair, and on other platforms, it is defined as only a
line feed. The BasicScript statements that read sequential files don't care about the
end-of-line character—either will work.
Examples Sub Main()
'This example opens a file and prints some data.
Open "[Link]" For Output As #1
i% = 10
s$ = "This is a test."
Print #1,"The value of i=";i%,"the value of s=";s$
'This example prints the value of i% in print zone 1 and s$
'in print zone 3.
Print #1,i%,,s$
'This example prints the value of i% and s$ separated by ten
'spaces.
Print #1,i%;Spc(10);s$
'This example prints the value of i in column 1 and s$ in
'column 30.
Print #1,i%;Tab(30);s$
'This example prints the value of i% and s$.
Print #1,i%;s$,
Print #1,67
Close #1
Kill "[Link]"
End Sub

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388 BasicScript Language Reference

PrinterSetOrientation ebPortrait
Else
PrinterSetOrientation ebLandscape
End If
End Sub

Description Sets the orientation of the default printer to NewSetting.

Comments The possible values for NewSetting are as follows:
Setting Description

ebLandscape Sets printer orientation to landscape.

ebPortrait Sets printer orientation to portrait.
This function loads the printer driver for the default printer and therefore may be slow.
Example See PrinterGetOrientation (function).
See Also PrinterGetOrientation (function).
Platform(s) Windows.
Platform Notes Windows: The default printer is determined by examining the device= line in the
[windows] section of the [Link] file.

PrintFile (function)
Syntax PrintFile(filename$)

Description Prints the filename$ using the application to which the file belongs.
Comments PrintFile returns an Integer indicating success or failure.
If an error occurs executing the associated application, then PrintFile generates a
trappable runtime error, returning 0 for the result. Otherwise, PrintFile returns a value
representing that application to the system. This value is suitable for calling the
AppActivate statement.

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Example 'This example asks the user for the name of a text file, then
'prints it.
Sub Main()
f$ = OpenFilename$("Print Text File","Text Files:*.txt")
If f$ <> "" Then
rc% = PrintFile(f$)
If rc% > 32 Then
MsgBox "File is printing."
End If
End If
End Sub
See Also Shell (function).
Platform(s) Windows.
Platform Notes Windows: This function invokes the Windows 3.1 shell functions that cause an
application to execute and print a file. The application executed by PrintFile depends
on your system's file associations.

Private (statement)
Syntax Private name [(subscripts)] [As type] [,name [(subscripts)] [As
type]]...
Description Declares a list of private variables and their corresponding types and sizes.
Comments Private variables are global to every Sub and Function within the currently executing
script.
If a type-declaration character is used when specifying name (such as %, @, &, $, or !),
the optional [As type] expression is not allowed. For example, the following are
allowed:
Private foo As Integer
Private foo%
The subscripts parameter allows the declaration of arrays. This parameter uses the
following syntax:
[lower To] upper [,[lower To] upper]...
The lower and upper parameters are integers specifying the lower and upper bounds of
the array. If lower is not specified, then the lower bound as specified by Option Base is
used (or 1 if no Option Base statement has been encountered). Up to 60 array
dimensions are allowed.
The total size of an array (not counting space for strings) is limited to 64K.
Dynamic arrays are declared by not specifying any bounds:
Private a()

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The type parameter specifies the type of the data item being declared. It can be any of
the following data types: String, Integer, Long, Single, Double, Currency, Object,
data object, built-in data type, or any user-defined data type.
If a variable is seen that has not been explicitly declared with either Dim, Public, or
Private, then it will be implicitly declared local to the routine in which it is used.

Fixed-Length Strings
Fixed-length strings are declared by adding a length to the String type-declaration
character:
Private name As String * length
where length is a literal number specifying the string's length.

Initial Values
All declared variables are given initial values, as described in the following table:
Data Type Initial Value
Integer 0
Long 0
Double 0.0
Single 0.0
Currency 0.0
Object Nothing
Date December 31, 1899 00:00:00
Boolean False
Variant Empty
String "" (zero-length string)
User-defined type Each element of the structure is given a default value, as
described above.
Arrays Each element of the array is given a default value, as
described above.
Example See Public (statement).
See Also Dim (statement); Redim (statement); Public (statement); Option Base (statement).
Platform(s) All.

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Public (statement)
Syntax Public name [(subscripts)] [As type] [,name [(subscripts)] [As type]]...

Description Declares a list of public variables and their corresponding types and sizes.
Comments Public variables are global to all Subs and Functions in all scripts.
If a type-declaration character is used when specifying name (such as %, @, &, $, or !),
the optional [As type] expression is not allowed. For example, the following are
allowed:
Public foo As integer
Public foo%
The subscripts parameter allows the declaration of arrays. This parameter uses the
following syntax:
[lower To] upper [,[lower To] upper]...
The lower and upper parameters are integers specifying the lower and upper bounds of
the array. If lower is not specified, then the lower bound as specified by Option Base is
used (or 1 if no Option Base statement has been encountered). Up to 60 array
dimensions are allowed.
The total size of an array (not counting space for strings) is limited to 64K.
Dynamic arrays are declared by not specifying any bounds:
Public a()
The type parameter specifies the type of the data item being declared. It can be any of
the following data types: String, Integer, Long, Single, Double, Currency, Object,
data object, built-in data type, or any user-defined data type.
If a variable is seen that has not been explicitly declared with either Dim, Public, or
Private, then it will be implicitly declared local to the routine in which it is used.
For compatibility, the keyword Global is also supported. It has the same meaning as
Public.

Fixed-Length Strings
Fixed-length strings are declared by adding a length to the String type-declaration
character:
Public name As String * length
where length is a literal number specifying the string's length.
All declared variables are given initial values, as described in the following table:
Data Type Initial Value

Integer 0

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Data Type Initial Value

Long 0
Double 0.0
Single 0.0
Currency 0.0
Date December 31, 1899 00:00:00
Object Nothing
Boolean False
Variant Empty
String "" (zero-length string)
User-defined type Each element of the structure is given a default value, as
described above.
Arrays Each element of the array is given a default value, as
described above.

Sharing Variables
When sharing variables, you must ensure that the declarations of the shared variables
are the same in each script that uses those variables. If the public variable being shared
is a user-defined structure, then the structure definitions must be exactly the same.
Example 'This example uses a subroutine to calculate the area of ten
'circles and displays the result in a dialog box. The variables
'R and Ar are declared as Public variables so that they can be
'used in both Main and Area.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Public x#, ar#
Sub Area()
ar# = (x# ^ 2) * Pi
End Sub
Sub Main()
message = "The area of the ten circles are:" & crlf
For x# = 1 To 10
Area
message = message & x# & ": " & ar# & [Link]$
Next x#
MsgBox message
End Sub

See Also Dim (statement); Redim (statement); Private (statement); Option Base (statement).
Platform(s) All.

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PushButton (statement) 393

PushButton (statement)
Syntax PushButton x,y,width,height,title$ [,.Identifier]

Description Defines a push button within a dialog box template.

Comments The Pv function requires the following named parameters:

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404 BasicScript Language Reference

QueMouseDn (statement)
Syntax QueMouseDn button,x,y [,time]

Description Adds a mouse down to the current event queue.

Comments The QueMouseDn statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
button Integer specifying which mouse button to press:
ebLeftButtonPress the left mouse button.
ebRightButtonPress the right mouse button.
x, y Integer coordinates, in twips, where the mouse down is to be
recorded.
time Integer specifying the delay in milliseconds between this event
and the previous event in the queue. If this parameter is omitted
(or 0), the mouse down will play back at full speed.
The QueFlush command is used to play back the events stored in the current event
queue.
Example See QueEmpty (statement).
See Also QueMouseClick (statement); QueMouseUp (statement); QueMouseDblClk
(statement); QueMouseDblDn (statement); QueMouseMove (statement);
QueMouseMoveBatch (statement); QueFlush (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

QueMouseMove (statement)
Syntax QueMouseMove x,y [,time]

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QueSetRelativeWindow (statement) 407

Parameter Description
time Integer specifying the delay in milliseconds between this event
and the previous event in the queue. If this parameter is omitted
(or 0), the mouse up will play back at full speed.
The QueFlush command is used to play back the events stored in the current event
queue.
Example See QueEmpty (statement).
See Also QueMouseClick (statement); QueMouseDn (statement); QueMouseDblClk
(statement); QueMouseDblDn (statement); QueMouseMove (statement);
QueMouseMoveBatch (statement); QueFlush (statement).
Platform(s) Windows.

QueSetRelativeWindow (statement)
Syntax QueSetRelativeWindow [window_object]

Description Forces all subsequent QueX commands to adjust the mouse positions relative to the
specified window.
Comments The window_object parameter is an object of type HWND. If window_object is
Nothing or omitted, then the window with the focus is used (i.e., the active window).
The QueFlush command is used to play back the events stored in the current event
queue.
Example Sub Main()
'Adjust mouse coordinates relative to Notepad.
Dim a As HWND
Set a = WinFind("Notepad")
QueSetRelativeWindow a
End Sub
Platform(s) Windows.

Random (function)
Syntax Random(min,max)

Description Returns a Long value greater than or equal to min and less than or equal to max.
Comments Both the min and max parameters are rounded to Long. A runtime error is generated if
min is greater than max.

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Example 'This example uses the random number generator to generate ten
'lottery numbers.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Randomize 'Start with new random seed.
For x = 1 To 10
y = Random(0,100)'Generate numbers.
message = message & y & crlf
Next x
MsgBox "Ten numbers for the lottery: " & crlf & message
End Sub
See Also Randomize (statement); Random (function).
Platform(s) All.

Randomize (statement)
Syntax Randomize [number]

Description Initializes the random number generator with a new seed.

Comments If number is not specified, then the current value of the system clock is used.
Example 'This example sets the randomize seed to a random number between
'100 and 1000, then generates ten random numbers for the lottery.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
Randomize 'Start with new random seed.
For x = 1 To 10
y = Random(0,100)'Generate numbers.
message = message + Str(y) + crlf
Next x
MsgBox "Ten numbers for the lottery: " & crlf & message
End Sub

Description Returns the rate of interest for each period of an annuity.

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ReadIni$ (function) 409

Comments An annuity is a series of fixed payments made to an insurance company or other

investment company over a period of time. Examples of annuities are mortgages and
monthly savings plans.
The Rate function requires the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
nper Double representing the total number of payments in the
annuity.
pmt Double representing the amount of each payment per period.
pv Double representing the present value of your annuity. In a loan
situation, the present value would be the amount of the loan.
fv Double representing the future value of the annuity after the last
payment has been made. In the case of a loan, the future value
would be zero.
due Integer specifying when the payments are due for each
payment period. A 0 indicates payment at the end of each
period, whereas a 1 indicates payment at the start of each
period.
guess Double specifying a guess as to the value the Rate function will
return. The most common guess is .1 (10 percent).
Positive numbers represent cash received, whereas negative values represent cash paid
out.
The value of Rate is found by iteration. It starts with the value of guess and cycles
through the calculation adjusting guess until the result is accurate within 0.00001
percent. After 20 tries, if a result cannot be found, Rate fails, and the user must pick a
better guess.
Example 'This example calculates the rate of interest necessary to save
'$8,000 by paying $200 each year for 48 years. The guess rate
'is 10%.
Sub Main()
r# = Rate(48,-200,8000,0,1,.1)
MsgBox "The rate required is: " & Format(r#,"Percent")
End Sub

See Also IPmt (function); NPer (function); Pmt (function); PPmt (function).
Platform(s) All.

ReadIni$ (function)
Syntax ReadIni$(section$,item$[,filename$])

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Description Returns a String containing the specified item from an ini file.
Comments The ReadIni$ function takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
section$ String specifying the section that contains the desired variable,
such as "windows". Section names are specified without the
enclosing brackets.
item$ String specifying the item whose value is to be retrieved.
filename$ String containing the name of the ini file to read.
The maximum length of a string returned by this function is 4096 characters.
See Also WriteIni (statement); ReadIniSection (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, OS/2.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: Under Windows and Win32, if the name of the ini file is not
specified, then [Link] is assumed.
If the filename$ parameter does not include a path, then this statement looks for ini files
in the Windows directory.

ReadIniSection (statement)
Syntax ReadIniSection section$,ArrayOfItems()[,filename$]

Description Fills an array with the item names from a given section of the specified ini file.
Comments The ReadIniSection statement takes the following parameters:
Parameter Description
section$ String specifying the section that contains the desired variables,
such as "windows". Section names are specified without the
enclosing brackets.
ArrayOfItems() Specifies either a zero- or a one-dimensioned array of strings or
variants. The array can be either dynamic or fixed.
If ArrayOfItems() is dynamic, then it will be redimensioned to
exactly hold the new number of elements. If there are no
elements, then the array will be redimensioned to contain no
dimensions. You can use the LBound, UBound, and
ArrayDims functions to determine the number and size of the
new array's dimensions.

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Redim (statement) 411

Parameter Description
If the array is fixed, each array element is first erased, then the
new elements are placed into the array. If there are fewer
elements than will fit in the array, then the remaining elements
are initialized to zero-length strings (for String arrays) or
Empty (for Variant arrays). A runtime error results if the array
is too small to hold the new elements.
filename$ String containing the name of an ini file.
On return, the ArrayOfItems() parameter will contain one array element for each
variable in the specified ini section. The maximum combined length of all the entry
names returned by this function is limited to 32K.
Example Sub Main()
Dim items() As String
ReadIniSection "windows",items$
r% = SelectBox("INI Items",,items$)
End Sub

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If subscriptRange is not specified, then the array is redimensioned to have no elements.

If lower is not specified, then 0 is used (or the value set using the Option Base
statement). A runtime error is generated if lower is less than upper. Array dimensions
must be within the following range:
–32768 <= lower <= upper <= 32767
The type parameter can be used to specify the array element type. Arrays can be
declared using any fundamental data type, user-defined data types, and objects.
Redimensioning an array erases all elements of that array unless the Preserve keyword
is specified. When this keyword is specified, existing data in the array is preserved
where possible. If the number of elements in an array dimension is increased, the new
elements are initialized to 0 (or empty string). If the number of elements in an array
dimension is decreased, then the extra elements will be deleted. If the Preserve
keyword is specified, then the number of dimensions of the array being redimensioned
must either be zero or the same as the new number of dimensions.
Example 'This example uses the FileList statement to redim an array and
'fill it with filename strings. A new array is then redimmed to
'hold the number of elements found by FileList, and the FileList
'array is copied into it and partially displayed.
Sub Main()
Dim fl$()
FileList fl$,"*.*"
count = Ubound(fl$)
Redim nl$(Lbound(fl$) To Ubound(fl$))
For x = 1 to count
nl$(x) = fl(x)
Next x
MsgBox "The last element of the new array is: " & nl$(count)
End Sub

See Also Dim (statement); Public (statement); Private (statement); ArrayDims (function);
LBound (function); UBound (function).
Platform(s) All.

Rem (statement)
Syntax Rem text

Description Causes the compiler to skip all characters on that line.

Example Sub Main()
Rem This is a line of comments that serves to illustrate the
Rem workings of the code. You can insert comments to make it
Rem more readable and maintainable in the future.

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Reset (statement) 413

End Sub
See Also ' (keyword); Comments (topic).
Platform(s) All.

Reset (statement)
Syntax Reset

Description Closes all open files, writing out all I/O buffers.
Example 'This example opens a file for output, closes it with the Reset
'statement, then deletes it with the Kill statement.
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" for Output Access Write as # 1
Reset
Kill "[Link]"
If FileExists("[Link]") Then
MsgBox "The file was not deleted."
Else
MsgBox "The file was deleted."
End If
End Sub

Description Ends an error handler and continues execution.

Comments The form Resume 0 (or simply Resume by itself) causes execution to continue with the
statement that caused the error.
The form Resume Next causes execution to continue with the statement following the
statement that caused the error.
The form Resume label causes execution to continue at the specified label.
The Resume statement resets the error state. This means that, after executing this
statement, new errors can be generated and trapped as normal.
Example 'This example accepts two integers from the user and attempts
'to multiply the numbers together. If either number is larger
'than an integer, the program processes an error routine and

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414 BasicScript Language Reference

'then continues program execution at a specific section using

'"Resume <label>". Another error trap is then set using "Resume
'Next". The new error trap will clear any previous error
'branching and also "tell" the program to continue execution of
'the program even if an error is encountered.
Sub Main()
Dim a%, b%, x%
Again:
On Error Goto Overflow
a% = InputBox("Enter 1st integer to multiply","Enter Number")
b% = InputBox("Enter 2nd integer to multiply","Enter Number")
On Error Resume Next 'Continue program execution at next
x% = a% * b% 'line if an error occurs.
if err = 0 then
MsgBox x%
else
Msgbox a% & " * " & b% & " cause an overflow!"
end if
Exit Sub
Overflow: 'Error handler.
MsgBox "You've entered a noninteger value. Try again!"
Resume Again
End Sub

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Right, Right$, RightB, RightB$ (functions) 415

Right, Right$, RightB, RightB$ (functions)

Syntax Right[$](string, length)
RightB[$](string, length)

Description Returns the rightmost length characters (for Right and Right$) or bytes (for RightB
and RightB$) from a specified string.
Comments The Right$ and RightB$ functions return a String, whereas the Right and RightB
functions return a String variant.
These functions take the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
string String from which characters are returned. A runtime error is
generated if string is Null.
length Integer specifying the number of characters or bytes to return.
If length is greater than or equal to the length of the string, then
the entire string is returned. If length is 0, then a zero-length
string is returned.
The RightB and RightB$ functions are used to return byte data from strings containing
byte data.
Example 'This example shows the Right$ function used in a routine to
'change uppercase names to lowercase with an uppercase first
'letter.
Sub Main()
lname$ = "WILLIAMS"
x = Len(lname$)
rest$ = Right$(lname$,x - 1)
fl$ = Left$(lname$,1)
lname$ = fl$ & LCase$(rest$)
MsgBox "The converted name is: " & lname$
End Sub

’to remove these entries.
Sub Main()
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup", _
key := "Height", setting := 200
SaveSetting appname := "NewApp", section := "Startup", _
key := "Width", setting := 320
DeleteSetting "NewApp" ’Remove NewApp key from registry
End Sub

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422 BasicScript Language Reference

MsgBox "The screen width is " & XDlgUnits & " dialog units."
End Sub
See Also [Link] (property).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns an Integer used to convert vertical pixels to and from dialog units.
Comments The number returned depends on the name and size of the font used to display dialog
boxes.
To convert from pixels to dialog units in the vertical direction:
(YPixels * 8) + ([Link] - 1) /
[Link]
To convert from dialog units to pixels in the vertical direction:
(YDlgUnits * [Link]) / 8

Example 'This example converts the screen width from pixels to dialog
'units.
Sub Main()
YPixels = [Link]
conv% = [Link]
YDlgUnits = (YPixels * 8) + (conv% -1) / conv%
MsgBox "The screen width is " & YDlgUnits & " dialog units."
End Sub
See Also [Link] (property).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns the height of the screen in pixels as an Integer.

Comments This property is used to retrieve the height of the screen in pixels. This value will differ
depending on the display resolution.
This property is read-only.
Example 'This example displays the screen height in pixels.
Sub Main()

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[Link] (property) 423

MsgBox "The Screen height is " & [Link] & " pixels."
End Sub
See Also [Link] (property).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns an Integer representing the number of twips per pixel in the horizontal
direction of the installed display driver.
Comments This property is read-only.
Example 'This example displays the number of twips across the screen
'horizontally.
Sub Main()
XScreenTwips = [Link] * [Link]
MsgBox "Total horizontal screen twips = " & XScreenTwips
End Sub

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[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns the width of the screen in pixels as an Integer.

Comments This property is used to retrieve the width of the screen in pixels. This value will differ
depending on the display resolution.
This property is read-only.
Example 'This example displays the screen width in pixels.
Sub Main()
MsgBox "The screen width is " & [Link] & " pixels."
End Sub
See Also [Link] (property).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

Second (function)
Syntax Second(time)

Description Returns the second of the day encoded in the specified time parameter.
Comments The value returned is an Integer between 0 and 59 inclusive.
The time parameter is any expression that converts to a Date.
Example 'This example takes the current time; extracts the hour, minute,
'and second; and displays them as the current time.
Sub Main()
xt# = TimeValue(Time$())
xh# = Hour(xt#)
xm# = Minute(xt#)
xs# = Second(xt#)
Msgbox "The current time is: " & CStr(xh#) & ":" & CStr(xm#) _
& ":" & CStr(xs#)
End Sub

See Also Day (function); Minute (function); Month (function); Year (function); Hour
(function); Weekday (function); DatePart (function).
Platform(s) All.

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Seek (function) 425

Seek (function)
Syntax Seek(filenumber)

Description Returns the position of the file pointer in a file relative to the beginning of the file.
Comments The filenumber parameter is a number that BasicScript uses to refer to the open file—
the number passed to the Open statement.
The value returned depends on the mode in which the file was opened:
File Mode Returns

Input Byte position for the next read

Output Byte position for the next write
Append Byte position for the next write
Random Number of the next record to be written or read
Binary Byte position for the next read or write
The value returned is a Long between 1 and 2147483647, where the first byte (or first
record) in the file is 1.
Example 'This example opens a file for random write, then writes ten
'records into the file using the Put statement. The file
'position is displayed using the Seek function, and the file is
'closed.
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Write As #1
For x = 1 To 10
r% = x * 10
Put #1,x,r%
Next x
y = Seek(1)
MsgBox "The current file position is: " & y
Close
End Sub

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426 BasicScript Language Reference

Comments The Seek statement accepts the following parameters:

Parameter Description
filenumber Integer used by BasicScript to refer to the open file—the
number passed to the Open statement.
position Long that specifies the location within the file at which to
position the file pointer. The value must be between 1 and
2147483647, where the first byte (or record number) in the file is
1. For files opened in either Binary, Output, Input, or Append
mode, position is the byte position within the file. For Random
files, position is the record number.
A file can be extended by seeking beyond the end of the file and writing data there.
Example 'This example opens a file for random write, then writes ten
'records into the file using the Put statement. The file is then
'reopened for read, and the ninth record is read using the Seek
'and Get functions.
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Write As #1
For x = 1 To 10
rec$ = "Record#: " & x
Put #1,x,rec$
Next x
Close
Open "[Link]" For Random Access Read As #1
Seek #1,9
Get #1,,rec$
MsgBox "The ninth record = " & x
Close
Kill "[Link]"
End Sub

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Select...Case (statement) 427

[Case Else
[statement_block]]
End Select

Description Used to execute a block of BasicScript statements depending on the value of a given
expression.
Comments The Select Case statement has the following parts:
Part Description

testexpression Any numeric or string expression.

statement_block Any group of BasicScript statements. If the testexpression
matches any of the expressions contained in expressionlist, then
this statement block will be executed.
expressionlist A comma-separated list of expressions to be compared against
testexpression using any of the following syntaxes:
expression [,expression]...
expression To expression
Is relational_operator expression
The resultant type of expression in expressionlist must be the
same as that of testexpression.
Multiple expression ranges can be used within a single Case clause. For example:
Case 1 to 10,12,15, Is > 40
Only the statement_block associated with the first matching expression will be
executed. If no matching statement_block is found, then the statements following the
Case Else will be executed.
A Select...End Select expression can also be represented with the If...Then expression.
The use of the Select statement, however, may be more readable.
Example 'This example uses the Select...Case statement to output the
'current operating system.
Sub Main()
OpSystem% = [Link]
Select Case OpSystem%
Case 0,2
s = "Microsoft Windows"
Case 3 to 8, 12
s = "UNIX"
Case 10
s = "IBM OS/2"
Case Else
s = "Other"
End Select
MsgBox "This version of BasicScript is running on: " & s

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End Sub
See Also Choose (function); Switch (function); IIf (function); If...Then...Else (statement).
Platform(s) All.

SelectBox (function)
Syntax SelectBox([title],prompt,ArrayOfItems [,helpfile,context])

Description Displays a dialog box that allows the user to select from a list of choices and returns an
Integer containing the index of the item that was selected.
Comments The SelectBox statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
title Title of the dialog box. This can be an expression convertible
to a String. A runtime error is generated if title is Null.
If title is missing, then the default title is used.
prompt Text to appear immediately above the list box containing the
items. This can be an expression convertible to a String. A
runtime error is generated if prompt is Null.
ArrayOfItems Single-dimensioned array. Each item from the array will
occupy a single entry in the list box. A runtime error is
generated if ArrayOfItems is not a single-dimensioned array.
ArrayOfItems can specify an array of any fundamental data
type (structures are not allowed). Null and Empty values are
treated as zero-length strings.
helpfile Name of the file containing context-sensitive help for this
dialog. If this parameter is specified, then context must also
be specified.
context Number specifying the ID of the topic within helpfile for this
dialog's help. If this parameter is specified, then helpfile must
also be specified.
The value returned is an Integer representing the index of the item in the list box that
was selected relative to the lower bound of ArrayOfItems. If the user selects Cancel, a
value 1 less than the lower bound of the array is returned.
If both the helpfile and context parameters are specified, then a Help button is added in
addition to the OK and Cancel buttons. Context-sensitive help can be invoked by
selecting this button or using the help key (F1 on most platforms). Invoking help does
not remove the dialog.

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SelectButton (statement) 429

Example 'This example gets the current apps running, puts them in to an
'array and then asks the user to select one from a list.
Sub Main()
Dim a$()
AppList a$
result% = SelectBox("Picker","Pick an application:",a$)
If Not result% = -1 then
Msgbox "User selected: " & a$(result%)
Else
Msgbox "User canceled"
End If
End Sub
See Also MsgBox (statement); AskBox, AskBox$ (functions); AskPassword, AskPassword$
(functions); InputBox, InputBox$ (functions); OpenFileName$ (function);
SaveFileName$ (function); AnswerBox (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32, Macintosh, OS/2, UNIX.

SelectButton (statement)
Syntax SelectButton name$ | id

Description Simulates a mouse click on the a push button given the push button's name (the name$
parameter) or ID (the id parameter).
Comments The SelectButton statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description

name$ String containing the name of the push button to be selected.

id Integer representing the ID of the push button to be selected.
A runtime error is generated if a push button with the given name or ID cannot be found
in the active window.

Note: The SelectButton statement is used to select a button in another application's

dialog box. This command is not intended for use with built-in or dynamic dialog
boxes.

Example 'This example simulates the selection of several buttons in a

'dialog.
Sub Main()
SelectButton "OK"
SelectButton 2
SelectButton "Close"
End Sub

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Example 'This example simulates the selection of a couple of combo boxes.

Sub Main()
SelectComboBoxItem "ComboBox1","Item4"
SelectComboBoxItem 1,2,TRUE

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SelectListBoxItem (statement) 431

End Sub
See Also ComboBoxEnabled (function); ComboBoxExists (function); GetComboBoxItem$
(function); GetComboBoxItemCount (function).
Platform(s) Windows.

SelectListBoxItem (statement)
Syntax SelectListBoxItem {name$ | id},{ItemName$ | ItemNumber}
[,isDoubleClick]
Description Selects an item from a list box given the name or ID of the list box and the name or line
number of the item.
Comments The SelectListBoxItem statement accepts the following parameters:
Parameter Description
name$ String indicating the name of the list box containing the item to
be selected.
The name of a list box is determined by scanning the window
list looking for a text control with the given name that is
immediately followed by a list box. A runtime error is
generated if a list box with that name cannot be found within
the active window.
id Integer specifying the ID of the list box containing the item to
be selected.
ItemName$ String specifying which item is to be selected. The string is
compared without regard to case. If ItemName$ is a zero-length
string, then all currently selected items are deselected. A
runtime error results if ItemName$ cannot be found in the list
box.
ItemNumber Integer containing the index of the item to be selected. A
runtime error is generated if ItemNumber is not within the
correct range.
isDoubleClick Boolean value indicating whether a double click of that item is
to be simulated.
The list box must exist within the current window or dialog box; otherwise, a runtime
error will be generated.

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For multiselect list boxes, SelectListBoxItem will select additional items (i.e., it will
not remove the selection from the currently selected items).

Note: The SelectListBoxItem statement is used to select an item in a list box of

another application's dialog box. Use the DlgText statement to change the selected
item in a list box within a dynamic dialog box.

Example 'This example simulates a double click on the first item in list
'box 1.
Sub Main()
SelectListBoxItem "ListBox1",1,TRUE
End Sub
See Also GetListBoxItem$ (function); GetListBoxItemCount (function); ListBoxEnabled
(function); ListBoxExists (function).
Platform(s) Windows.

SendKeys (statement)
Syntax SendKeys string [, [wait] [,delay]]

Description Sends the specified keys to the active application, optionally waiting for the keys to be
processed before continuing.
Comments The SendKeys statement accepts the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
string String containing the keys to be sent. The format for string is
described below.
wait Boolean value. If True, then BasicScript waits for the keys to
be completely processed before continuing. The default value
is False, which causes BasicScript to continue script execution
while before SendKeys finishes.
delay Integer specifying the number of milliseconds devoted for the
output of the entire string parameter. It must be within the
following range:
0 <= delay <= 32767
For example, if delay is 5000 (5 seconds) and the string
parameter contains ten keys, then a key will be output every
1/2 second. If unspecified (or 0), the keys will play back at full
speed.
The SendKeys statement will wait for a prior SendKeys to complete before executing.

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SendKeys (statement) 433

Specifying Keys
To specify any key on the keyboard, simply use that key, such as "a" for lowercase a, or
"A" for uppercase a.
Sequences of keys are specified by appending them together: "abc" or "dir /w".
Some keys have special meaning and are therefore specified in a special way—by
enclosing them within braces. For example, to specify the percent sign, use "{%}". The
following table shows the special keys:
Key Special Meaning Example
+ Shift "+{F1}" Shift+F1
^ Ctrl "^a" Ctrl+A
~ Shortcut for Enter "~" Enter
% Alt "%F" Alt+F
[] No special meaning "{[}" Open bracket
{} Used to enclose special keys "{Up}" Up arrow
() Used to specify grouping "^(ab)" Ctrl+A, Ctrl+B
Keys that are not displayed when you press them are also specified within braces, such
as {Enter} or {Up}. A list of these keys follows:
{BkSp} {BS} {Break} {CapsLock} {Clear}

{Delete} {Del} {Down} {End} {Enter}

{Escape} {Esc} {Help} {Home} {Insert}

{Left} {NumLock} {NumPad0} {NumPad1} {NumPad2}

{NumPad3} {NumPad4} {NumPad5} {NumPad6} {NumPad7}

{NumPad8} {NumPad9} {NumPad/} {NumPad*} {NumPad-}

{NumPad+} {NumPad.} {PgDn} {PgUp} {PrtSc}

{Right} {Tab} {Up} {F1} {Scroll

Lock}

{F2} {F3} {F4} {F5} {F6}

{F7} {F8} {F9} {F10} {F11}

{F12} {F13} {F14} {F15} {F16}

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Keys can be combined with Shift, Ctrl, and Alt using the reserved keys "+", "^", and
"%" respectively:
For Key Combination Use
Shift+Enter "+{Enter}"
Ctrl+C "^c"
Alt+F2 "%{F2}"
To specify a modifier key combined with a sequence of consecutive keys, group the key
sequence within parentheses, as in the following example:
For Key Combination Use
Shift+A, Shift+B "+(abc)"
Ctrl+F1, Ctrl+F2 "^({F1}{F2})"
Use "~" as a shortcut for embedding Enter within a key sequence:
For Key Combination Use
a, b, Enter, d, e "ab~de"
Enter, Enter "~~"
To embed quotation marks, use two quotation marks in a row:
For Key Combination Use
"Hello" ""Hello""
a"b"c "a""b""c"
Key sequences can be repeated using a repeat count within braces:
For Key Combination Use
Ten "a" keys "{a 10}"
Two Enter keys "{Enter 2}"
Example 'This example runs Notepad, writes to Notepad, and saves the new
'file using the SendKeys statement.
Sub Main()
id = Shell("[Link]")
AppActivate "Notepad"
SendKeys "Hello, Notepad.",True 'Write some text.
SendKeys "%fs",True 'Save File as "[Link]"
SendKeys "[Link]{ENTER}",True
AppClose "Notepad"
End Sub
See Also DoKeys (statement); QueKeys (statement); QueKeyDn (statement); QueKeyUp
(statement).

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Set (statement) 435

Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

Set (statement)
Syntax 1 Set object_var = object_expression

Syntax 2 Set object_var = New object_type

Syntax 3 Set object_var = Nothing

Description Assigns a value to an object variable.

Comments Syntax 1
The first syntax assigns the result of an expression to an object variable. This statement
does not duplicate the object being assigned but rather copies a reference of an existing
object to an object variable.
The object_expression is any expression that evaluates to an object of the same type as
the object_var.
With data objects, Set performs additional processing. When the Set is performed, the
object is notified that a reference to it is being made and destroyed. For example, the
following statement deletes a reference to object A, then adds a new reference to B.
Set a = b
In this way, an object that is no longer being referenced can be destroyed.

Syntax 2
In the second syntax, the object variable is being assigned to a new instance of an
existing object type. This syntax is valid only for data objects.
When an object created using the New keyword goes out of scope (i.e., the Sub or
Function in which the variable is declared ends), the object is destroyed.

Syntax 3
The reserved keyword Nothing is used to make an object variable reference no object.
At a later time, the object variable can be compared to Nothing to test whether the
object variable has been instantiated:
Set a = Nothing
:
If a Is Nothing Then Beep

Example 'This example creates two objects and sets their values.
Sub Main()
Dim document As Object
Dim page As Object
Set document = GetObject("c:\[Link]")

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Set page = [Link]

MsgBox [Link]
End Sub

ebNormal 0 Turns off all attributes

ebReadOnly 1 Read-only files
ebHidden 2 Hidden files
ebSystem 4 System files
ebVolume 8 Volume label
ebArchive 32 Files that have changed since the last backup
ebNone 64 Files with no attributes
The attributes can be combined using the + operator or the binary Or operator.
Example 'This example creates a file and sets its attributes to
'Read-Only and System.
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" For Output Access Write As #1
Close
MsgBox "The current file attribute is: " & GetAttr("[Link]")
SetAttr "[Link]",ebReadOnly Or ebSystem
MsgBox "The file attribute was set to: " & GetAttr("[Link]")
End Sub

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442 BasicScript Language Reference

3. In the unlikely event that a shell was not located with the above rules, BasicScript
will search for sh in the following areas:
/bin
/usr/bin
/usr/sbin
Once a suitable shell has been located, it is executed with pathname as a parameter. The
environment of the calling process is made available to the new process and will be use
by the shell in a manner specific to that shell.
Due to the asynchronous nature of the shell process, failure to find and start the program
is not reported to BasicScript.
OS/2: Under OS/2, the Shell function is capable of running both Presentation Manager
applications and command line applications. When running command line applications,
the Shell function always returns 0.

Sin (function)
Syntax Sin(number)

Description Returns a Double value specifying the sine of number.

Comments The number parameter is a Double specifying an angle in radians.
Example 'This example displays the sine of pi/4 radians (45 degrees).
Sub Main()
c# = Sin(Pi / 4)
MsgBox "The sine of 45 degrees is: " & c#
End Sub
See Also Tan (function); Cos (function); Atn (function).
Platform(s) All.

Single (data type)

Syntax Single

Description A data type used to declare variables capable of holding real numbers with up to seven
digits of precision.
Comments Single variables are used to hold numbers within the following ranges:
Sign Range
Negative -3.402823E38 <= single <= -1.401298E-45
Positive 1.401298E-45 <= single <= 3.402823E38

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Sleep (statement) 443

The type-declaration character for Single is !.

Storage
Internally, singles are stored as 4-byte (32-bit) IEEE values. Thus, when appearing
within a structure, singles require 4 bytes of storage. When used with binary or random
files, 4 bytes of storage is required.
Each single consists of the following
• A 1-bit sign
• An 8-bit exponent
• A 24-bit mantissa
See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type); Long
(data type); Object (data type); String (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean (data
type); DefType (statement); CSng (function).
Platform(s) All.

Sleep (statement)
Syntax Sleep milliseconds

Description Causes the script to pause for a specified number of milliseconds.

Comments The milliseconds parameter is a Long in the following range:
0 <= milliseconds <= 2,147,483,647
Example 'This example displays a message for 2 seconds.
Sub Main()
[Link] "Waiting 2 seconds",0,False,False
Sleep(2000)
[Link]
End Sub

Platform(s) All.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the accuracy of the system clock is modulo 55
milliseconds. The value of milliseconds will, in the worst case, be rounded up to the
nearest multiple of 55. In other words, if milliseconds is 1, it will be rounded to 55 in the
worst case.

Sln (function)
Syntax Sln(cost, salvage, life)

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Description Returns the straight-line depreciation of an asset assuming constant benefit from the
asset.
Comments The Sln of an asset is found by taking an estimate of its useful life in years, assigning
values to each year, and adding up all the numbers.
The formula used to find the Sln of an asset is as follows:
(Cost - Salvage Value) / Useful Life
The Sln function requires the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
cost Double representing the initial cost of the asset.
salvage Double representing the estimated value of the asset at the end
of its useful life.
life Double representing the length of the asset's useful life.
The unit of time used to express the useful life of the asset is the same as the unit of time
used to express the period for which the depreciation is returned.
Example 'This example calculates the straight-line depreciation of an
'asset that cost $10,000.00 and has a salvage value of $500.00
'as scrap after ten years of service life.
Sub Main()
dep# = Sln(10000.00,500.00,10)
MsgBox "The annual depreciation is: " &
Format(dep#,"Currency")
End Sub

Space, Space$ (functions)

Syntax Space[$](number)

Description Returns a string containing the specified number of spaces.

Comments Space$ returns a String, whereas Space returns a String variant.
The number parameter is an Integer between 0 and 32767.
Example 'This example returns a string of ten spaces and displays it.
Sub Main()
ln$ = Space$(10)
MsgBox "Hello" & ln$ & "over there."
End Sub

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Comments The following table describes the named parameters to the SQLBind function:
Named Parameter Description
connectionnum Long parameter specifying a valid connection.
array Any array of variants. Each call to SQLBind adds a new
column number (an Integer) in the appropriate slot in the array.
Thus, as you bind additional columns, the array parameter
grows, accumulating a sorted list (in ascending order) of bound
columns.
If array is fixed, then it must be a one-dimensional variant array
with sufficient space to hold all the bound column numbers. A
runtime error is generated if array is too small.
If array is dynamic, then it will be resized to exactly hold all the
bound column numbers.
column Optional Long parameter that specifies the column to which to
bind data. If this parameter is omitted, all bindings for the
connection are dropped.
This function returns the number of bound columns on the connection. If no columns
are bound, then 0 is returned. If there are no pending queries, then calling SQLBind
will cause an error (queries are initiated using the SQLExecQuery function).
If supported by the driver, row numbers can be returned by binding column 0.
BasicScript generates a trappable runtime error if SQLBind fails. Additional error
information can then be retrieved using the SQLError function.
Example 'This example binds columns to data.
Sub Main()
Dim columns() As Variant
id& = SQLOpen("dsn=SAMPLE",,3)
t& = SQLExecQuery(id&,"Select * From c:\[Link]")
i% = SQLBind(id&,columns,3)
i% = SQLBind(id&,columns,1)
i% = SQLBind(id&,columns,2)
i% = SQLBind(id&,columns,6)
For x = 0 To (i% - 1)
MsgBox columns(x)
Next x
id& = SQLClose(id&)
End Sub
See Also SQLRetrieve (function); SQLRetrieveToFile (function).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

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SQLClose (function)
Syntax SQLClose(connectionnum)

Description Closes the connection to the specified data source.

Comments The unique connection ID (connectionnum) is a Long value representing a valid
connection as returned by SQLOpen. After SQLClose is called, any subsequent calls
made with the connectionnum will generate runtime errors.
The SQLClose function returns 0 if successful; otherwise, it returns the passed
connection ID and generates a trappable runtime error. Additional error information can
then be retrieved using the SQLError function.
BasicScript automatically closes all open SQL connections when either the script or the
application terminates. You should use the SQLClose function rather than relying on
BasicScript to automatically close connections in order to ensure that your connections
are closed at the proper time.
Example 'This example disconnects the the data source sample.
Sub Main()
id& = SQLOpen("dsn=SAMPLE",,3)
id& = SQLClose(id&)
End Sub

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SQLOpen (function)
Syntax SQLOpen(connectionstr [, [outputref] [, driverprompt]])

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Comments The StrConv function takes the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
string A String expression specifying the string to be converted.
conversion An Integer specifying the types of conversions to be
performed.

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The conversion parameter can be any combination of the following constants:

Constant Value Description

ebUpperCase 1 Converts string to uppercase. This constant is

supported on all platforms.

ebLowerCase 2 Converts string to lowercase. This constant is

supported on all platforms.

ebProperCase 3 Capitalizes the first letter of each word and

lower-cases all the letters. This constant is supported
on all platforms.

ebWide 4 Converts narrow characters to wide characters. This

constant is supported on Japanese locales only.

ebNarrow 8 Converts wide characters to narrow characters. This

constant is supported on Japanese locales only.

ebKatakana 16 Converts Hiragana characters to Katakana characters.

This constant is supported on Japanese locales only.

ebHiragana 32 Converts Katakana characters to Hiragana characters.

This constant is supported on Japanese locales only.

ebUnicode 64 Converts string from MBCS to UNICODE. (This

constant can only be used on platforms supporting
UNICODE.)

ebFromUnicode 128 Converts string from UNICODE to MBCS. (This

constant can only be used on platforms supporting
UNICODE.)

A runtime error is generated when a conversion is requested that is not supported on the
current platform. For example, the ebWide and ebNarrow constants can only be used
on an MBCS platform. (You can determine platform capabilities using the
[Link] method.)
The following groupings of constants are mutually exclusive and therefore cannot be
specified at the same time:
ebUpperCase, ebLowerCase, ebProperCase
ebWide, ebNarrow
ebUnicode, ebFromUnicode
Many of the constants can be combined. For example, ebLowerCase Or ebNarrow.

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When converting to proper case (i.e., the ebProperCase constant), the following are
seen as word delimiters: tab, linefeed, carriage-return, formfeed, vertical tab, space,
null.
Example Sub Main()
a = InputBox("Type any string:")
MsgBox "Upper case: " & StrConv(a,ebUpperCase)
MsgBox "Lower case: " & StrConv(a,ebLowerCase)
MsgBox "Proper case: " & StrConv(a,ebProperCase)
If [Link](10) And [Link] = ebWin16 Then
'This is an MBCS locale
MsgBox "Narrow: " & StrConv(a,ebNarrow)
MsgBox "Wide: " & StrConv(a,ebWide)
MsgBox "Katakana: " & StrConv(a,ebKatakana)
MsgBox "Hiragana: " & StrConv(a,ebHiragana)
End If
End Sub
See Also UCase, UCase$ (functions); LCase, LCase$ (functions); [Link] (method).
Platform(s) All.

String (data type)

Syntax String

Description A data type capable of holding a number of characters.

Comments Strings are used to hold sequences of characters, each character having a value between
0 and 255. Strings can be any length up to a maximum length of 32767 characters.
Strings can contain embedded nulls, as shown in the following example:
s$ = "Hello" + Chr$(0) + "there" 'String with embedded
'null
The length of a string can be determined using the Len function. This function returns
the number of characters that have been stored in the string, including unprintable
characters.
The type-declaration character for String is $.
String variables that have not yet been assigned are set to zero-length by default.
Strings are normally declared as variable-length, meaning that the memory required for
storage of the string depends on the size of its content. The following BasicScript
statements declare a variable-length string and assign it a value of length 5:
Dim s As String
s = "Hello" 'String has length 5.

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Fixed-length strings are given a length in their declaration:

Dim s As String * 20
s = "Hello" 'String length = 20 with spaces to
'end of string.
When a string expression is assigned to a fixed-length string, the following rules apply:
• If the string expression is less than the length of the fixed-length string, then the
fixed-length string is padded with spaces up to its declared length.
• If the string expression is greater than the length of the fixed-length string, then the
string expression is truncated to the length of the fixed-length string.
Fixed-length strings are useful within structures when a fixed size is required, such as
when passing structures to external routines.
The storage for a fixed-length string depends on where the string is declared, as
described in the following table:
Strings Declared Are Stored
In structures In the same data area as that of the structure. Local
structures are on the stack; public structures are stored in
the public data space; and private structures are stored in
the private data space. Local structures should be used
sparingly as stack space is limited.
In arrays In the global string space along with all the other array
elements.
In local routines On the stack. The stack is limited in size, so local
fixed-length strings should be used sparingly.
See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type); Long
(data type); Object (data type); Single (data type); Variant (data type); Boolean (data
type); DefType (statement); CStr (function).
Platform(s) All.

String, String$ (functions)

Syntax String[$](number, character)

Description Returns a string of length number consisting of a repetition of the specified filler
character.
Comments String$ returns a String, whereas String returns a String variant.

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These functions take the following named parameters:

Named Parameter Description
number Long specifying the number of repetitions.
character Integer specifying the character code to be used as the filler
character. If character is greater than 255 (the largest
character value), then BasicScript converts it to a valid
character using the following formula:
character Mod 256
If character is a string, then the first character of that string is
used as the filler character.
Example 'This example uses the String function to create a line of "="
'signs the length of another string and then displays the
'character string underlined with the generated string.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
a$ = "This string will appear underlined."
b$ = String$(Len(a$),"=")
MsgBox a$ & crlf & b$
End Sub
See Also Space, Space$ (functions).
Platform(s) All.

Sub...End Sub (statement)

Syntax [Private | Public] [Static] Sub name[(arglist)]
[statements]
End Sub
where arglist is a comma-separated list of the following (up to 30 arguments are
allowed):
[Optional] [ByVal | ByRef] parameter[()] [As type]

Description Declares a subroutine.

Comments The Sub statement has the following parts:
Part Description

Private Indicates that the subroutine being defined cannot be called

from other scripts.
Public Indicates that the subroutine being defined can be called from
other scripts. If the Private and Public keywords are both
missing, then Public is assumed.

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Part Description

Static Recognized by the compiler but currently has no effect.

name Name of the subroutine, which must follow BasicScript naming
conventions:
1. Must start with a letter.
2. May contain letters, digits, and the underscore character
(_). Punctuation and type-declaration characters are not
allowed. The exclamation point (!) can appear within the
name as long as it is not the last character.
3. Must not exceed 80 characters in length.
Optional Keyword indicating that the parameter is optional. All optional
parameters must be of type Variant. Furthermore, all
parameters that follow the first optional parameter must also be
optional.
If this keyword is omitted, then the parameter is required.
Note: You can use the IsMissing function to determine whether
an optional parameter was actually passed by the caller.
ByVal Keyword indicating that the parameter is passed by value.
ByRef Keyword indicating that the parameter is passed by reference. If
neither the ByVal nor the ByRef keyword is given, then ByRef
is assumed.
parameter Name of the parameter, which must follow the same naming
conventions as those used by variables. This name can include a
type-declaration character, appearing in place of As type.
type Type of the parameter (i.e., Integer, String, and so on). Arrays
are indicated with parentheses. For example, an array of
integers would be declared as follows
Sub Test(a() As Integer)
End Sub
A subroutine terminates when one of the following statements is encountered:
End Sub
Exit Sub
Subroutines can be recursive.

Passing Parameters to Subroutines

Parameters are passed to a subroutine either by value or by reference, depending on the
declaration of that parameter in arglist. If the parameter is declared using the ByRef
keyword, then any modifications to that passed parameter within the subroutine change

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the value of that variable in the caller. If the parameter is declared using the ByVal
keyword, then the value of that variable cannot be changed in the called subroutine. If
neither the ByRef nor the ByVal keyword is specified, then the parameter is passed by
reference.
You can override passing a parameter by reference by enclosing that parameter within
parentheses. For instance, the following example passes the variable j by reference,
regardless of how the third parameter is declared in the arglist of UserSub:
UserSub 10,12,(j)

Optional Parameters
BasicScript allows you to skip parameters when calling subroutines, as shown in the
following example:
Sub Test(a%,b%,c%)
End Sub
Sub Main
Test 1,,4 'Parameter 2 was skipped.
End Sub
You can skip any parameter with the following restrictions:
1. The call cannot end with a comma. For instance, using the above example, the
following is not valid:
Test 1,,
2. The call must contain the minimum number of parameters as required by the called
subroutine. For instance, using the above example, the following are invalid:
Test ,1 'Only passes two out of three required
'parameters.
Test 1,2 'Only passes two out of three required
'parameters.
When you skip a parameter in this manner, BasicScript creates a temporary variable and
passes this variable instead. The value of this temporary variable depends on the data
type of the corresponding parameter in the argument list of the called subroutine, as
described in the following table:
Value Data Type
0 Integer, Long, Single, Double, Currency
Zero-length string String
Nothing Object (or any data object)
Error Variant
December 30, 1899 Date
False Boolean

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Within the called subroutine, you will be unable to determine whether a parameter was
skipped unless the parameter was declared as a variant in the argument list of the
subroutine. In this case, you can use the IsMissing function to determine whether the
parameter was skipped:
Sub Test(a,b,c)
If IsMissing(a) Or IsMissing(b) Then Exit Sub
End Sub

Example 'This example uses a subroutine to calculate the area of a circle.

Sub Main()
r! = 10
PrintArea r!
End Sub
Sub PrintArea(r as single)
area! = (r! ^ 2) * Pi
MsgBox "The area of a circle with radius " & r! & " = " & area!
End Sub
See Also Main (statement); Function...End Function (statement).
Platform(s) All.

Switch (function)
Syntax Switch(condition1,expression1 [,condition2,expression2 ...
[,condition7,expression7]])
Description Returns the expression corresponding to the first True condition.
Comments The Switch function evaluates each condition and expression, returning the expression
that corresponds to the first condition (starting from the left) that evaluates to True. Up
to seven condition/expression pairs can be specified.
A runtime error is generated it there is an odd number of parameters (i.e., there is a
condition without a corresponding expression).
The Switch function returns Null if no condition evaluates to True.
Example 'This code fragment displays the current operating platform. If
'the platform is unknown, then the word "Unknown" is displayed.
Sub Main()
Dim a As Variant
a = Switch([Link] = 0,"Windows 3.1", _
[Link] = 2,"Win32",[Link] = 11,"OS/2")
MsgBox "The current platform is: " & _
IIf(IsNull(a),"Unknown",a)
End Sub

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[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link]

Description Exits the operating environment.

Example 'This example asks whether the user would like to restart
'Windows after exiting.
Sub Main
button = MsgBox("Restart Windows on exit?" _
,ebYesNo,"Exit Windows")
If button = ebYes Then [Link] 'Yes button selected.
If button = ebNo Then [Link]'No button selected.
End Sub

Description Returns a Long indicating the number of bytes of free memory.

Example 'The following example gets the free memory and converts it to
'kilobytes.
Sub Main()
FreeMem& = [Link]
FreeKBytes$ = Format(FreeMem& / 1000,"##,###")
MsgBox FreeKbytes$ & " Kbytes of free memory"
End Sub

Description Returns an Integer representing the percentage of free system resources.

Comments The returned value is between 0 and 100.
Example 'This example gets the percentage of free resources.

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Sub Main()
FreeRes% = [Link]
MsgBox FreeRes% & "% of memory resources available."
End Sub

Description Toggles mouse trails on or off.

Comments If isOn is True, then mouse trails are turned on; otherwise, mouse trails are turned off.
A runtime error is generated if mouse trails is not supported on your system.
Example 'This example turns on mouse trails.
Sub Main
[Link] 1
End Sub
Platform(s) Windows.
Platform Notes Windows: Under Windows, the setting is saved in the INI file permanently. Setting
isOn to True restores the mouse trails setting as configured by the system (i.e., if your
mouse trails is set to 4, then setting isOn to True sets the mouse trails to 4).
Win32: Under Win32, the setting is saved in the system registry. Setting isOn to True
sets the mouse trails to 7. Setting isOn to False turns mouse trails off. Setting isOn to
any value between 1 and 7 sets the mouse trails to that number of trails.

[Link] (method)
Syntax [Link]

Description Restarts the operating environment.

Example 'This example asks whether the user would like to restart
'Windows after exiting.
Sub Main
button = MsgBox ("Restart Windows on exit?",ebYesNo, _
"Exit Windows")
If button = ebYes Then [Link] 'Yes button selected.

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If button = ebNo Then [Link]'No button selected.

End Sub
See Also [Link] (method).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

[Link] (property)
Syntax [Link]

Description Returns a Long representing the number of bytes of available free memory in Windows.
Example 'This example displays the total system memory.
Sub Main()
TotMem& = [Link]
TotKBytes$ = Format(TotMem& / 1000,"##,###")
MsgBox TotKbytes$ & " Kbytes of total system memory exist"
End Sub

Description Returns the home directory of the operating environment.

Example 'This example displays the Windows directory.
Sub Main
MsgBox "Windows directory = " & [Link]$
End Sub
See Also [Link]$ (property).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

[Link]$ (property)
Syntax [Link]$

Description Returns the version of the operating environment, such as "3.0" or "3.1."
Example 'This example sets the UseWin31 variable to True if the Windows

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'version is greater than or equal to 3.1; otherwise, it sets the

'UseWin31 variable to False.
Sub Main()
If Val([Link]$) > 3.1 Then
MsgBox "You are running a Windows version later than 3.1"
Else
MsgBox "You are running Windows version 3.1 or earlier"
End If
End Sub

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Syntax Time[$][()]

Description Returns the system time as a String or as a Date variant.

Comments The Time$ function returns a string that contains the time in a 24-hour time format,
whereas Time returns a Date variant.
To set the time, use the Time/Time$ statements.
Example 'This example returns the system time and displays it in a
'dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()

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oldtime$ = Time$
message = "Time was: " & oldtime$ & crlf
Time$ = "10:30:54"
message = message & "Time set to: " & Time$ & crlf
Time$ = oldtime$
message = message & "Time restored to: " & Time$
MsgBox message
End Sub
See Also Time, Time$ (statements); Date, Date$ (functions); Date, Date$ (statements); Now
(function).
Platform(s) All.

Time, Time$ (statements)

Syntax Time[$] = newtime

Description Sets the system time to the time contained in the specified string.
Comments The Time$ statement requres a string variable in one of the following formats:
HH
HH:MM
HH:MM:SS
where HH is between 0 and 23, MM is between 0 and 59, and SS is between 0 and 59.
The Time statement converts any valid expression to a time, including string and
numeric values. Unlike the Time$ statement, Time recognizes many different time
formats, including 12-hour times.
Example 'This example returns the system time and displays it in a
'dialog box.
Const crlf = Chr$(13) + Chr$(10)
Sub Main()
oldtime$ = Time$
message = "Time was: " & oldtime$ & crlf
Time$ = "10:30:54"
message = message & "Time set to: " & Time$ & crlf
Time$ = oldtime$
message = message & "Time restored to: " & Time$
MsgBox message
End Sub
See Also Time, Time$ (functions); Date, Date$ (functions); Date, Date$ (statements).
Platform(s) All.

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Platform Notes UNIX, Win32, OS/2: On all UNIX platforms, Win32, and OS/2, you may not have
permission to change the time, causing runtime error 70 to be generated.

Timer (function)
Syntax Timer

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TypeName (function)
Syntax TypeName(varname)

Description Returns the type name of the specified variable.

Comments The returned string can be any of the following:
Returned String Returned if varname is

"String" A String.
objecttype A data object variable. In this case, objecttype is the name of
the specific object type.
"Integer" An integer.
"Long" A long.
"Single" A single.
"Double" A double.
"Currency" A currency value.
"Date" A date value.
"Boolean" A boolean value.
"Error" An error value.
"Empty" An uninitialized variable.
"Null" A variant containing no valid data.
"Object" An OLE automation object.
"Unknown" An unknown type of OLE automation object.
"Nothing" An uninitialized object variable.
class A specific type of OLE automation object. In this case, class
is the name of the object as known to OLE.
If varname is an array, then the returned string can be any of the above strings follows
by a empty parenthesis. For example, "Integer()" would be returned for an array of
integers.
If varname is an expression, then the expression is evaluated and a String representing
the resultant data type is returned.
If varname is an OLE collection, then TypeName returns the name of that object
collection.
Example 'The following example defines a subroutine that only accepts
'Integer variables. If not passed an Integer, it will inform
'the user that there was an error, displaying the actual type
'of variable that was passed.

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The LSet statement can be used to copy a UDT variable of one type to another:
LSet variable1 = variable2
LSet cannot be used with UDTs containing variable-length strings. The smaller of the
two structures determines how many bytes get copied.

Passing Structures
UDTs can be passed both to user-defined routines and to external routines, and they can
be assigned. UDTs are always passed by reference.
Since structures are always passed by reference, the ByVal keyword cannot be used
when defining structure arguments passed to external routines (using Declare). The
ByVal keyword can only be used with fundamental data types such as Integer and
String.
Passing structures to external routines actually passes a far pointer to the data structure.

Size of Structures
The Len function can be used to determine the number of bytes occupied by a UDT:
Len(udt_variable_name)
Since strings are stored in BasicScript's data space, only a reference (currently, 2 bytes)
is stored within a structure. Thus, the Len function may seem to return incorrect
information for structures containing strings.

Val (function)
Syntax Val(string)

Description Converts a given string expression to a number.

Comments The string parameter can contain any of the following:
• Leading minus sign (for nonhex or octal numbers only)
• Hexadecimal number in the format &Hhexdigits
• Octal number in the format &Ooctaldigits
• Floating-point number, which can contain a decimal point and an optional exponent
Spaces, tabs, and line feeds are ignored.
If string does not contain a number, then 0 is returned.
The Val function continues to read characters from the string up to the first nonnumeric
character.
The Val function always returns a double-precision floating-point value. This value is
forced to the data type of the assigned variable.

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Example 'This example inputs a number string from an InputBox and

'converts it to a number variable.
Sub Main()
a$ = InputBox$("Enter anything containing a number", _
"Enter Number")
b# = Val(a$)
MsgBox "The value is: " & b#
End Sub

Variant (data type)

Syntax Variant

Description A data type used to declare variables that can hold one of many different types of data.
Comments During a variant's existence, the type of data contained within it can change. Variants
can contain any of the following types of data:
Type of Data BasicScript Data Types
Numeric Integer, Long, Single, Double, Boolean, Date, Currency.
Logical Boolean.
Dates and times Date.
String String.
Object Object.
No valid data A variant with no valid data is considered Null.
Uninitialized An uninitialized variant is considered Empty.
There is no type-declaration character for variants.
The number of significant digits representable by a variant depends on the type of data
contained within the variant.
Variant is the default data type for BasicScript. If a variable is not explicitly declared
with Dim, Public, or Private, and there is no type-declaration character (i.e., #, @, !, %,
or &), then the variable is assumed to be Variant.

See Also Currency (data type); Date (data type); Double (data type); Integer (data type); Long
(data type); Object (data type); Single (data type); String (data type); Boolean (data
type); DefType (statement); CVar (function); VarType (function).
Platform(s) All.

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Sleep 2000
[Link]
End Sub

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VScroll (statement) 499

Sub Main()
[Link] "BasicScript Viewport",100,100,500,200
For i = 1 to 500
Print "This will be displayed on line#: " & i
Next i
MsgBox "We will now go back 5 pages..."
VLine -5
MsgBox "...and here we are!"
[Link]
End Sub

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Description Returns an Integer value representing the day of the week given by date. Sunday is 1,
Monday is 2, and so on.
The Weekday function takes the following named parameters:
Named Parameter Description
date Any expression representing a valid date.
firstdayofweek Indicates the first day of the week. If omitted, then sunday is
assumed (i.e., the constant ebSunday described below).
The firstdayofweek parameter, if specified, can be any of the following constants:
Constant Value Description

ebUseSystem 0 Use the system setting for firstdayofweek.

ebSunday 1 Sunday (the default)
ebMonday 2 Monday
ebTuesday 3 Tuesday
ebWednesday 4 Wednesday
ebThursday 5 Thursday
ebFriday 6 Friday
ebSaturday 7 Saturday
Example 'This example gets a date in an input box and displays the day
'of the week and its name for the date entered.
Sub Main()
Dim a$(7)
a$(1) = "Sunday"
a$(2) = "Monday"
a$(3) = "Tuesday"
a$(4) = "Wednesday"
a$(5) = "Thursday"
a$(6) = "Friday"
a$(7) = "Saturday"
Reprompt:
bd = InputBox$("Please enter your birthday.","Enter Birthday")
If Not(IsDate(bd)) Then Goto Reprompt
dt = DateValue(bd)
dw = WeekDay(dt)
Msgbox "You were born on day " & dw & ", which was a " & a$(dw)
End Sub

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WinList (statement) 505

Comments The name$ parameter is specified using the same format as that used by the
WinActivate statement.
Example 'This example closes Microsoft Word if its object reference is
'found.
Sub Main()
Dim WordHandle As HWND
Set WordHandle = WinFind("Word")
If (WordHandle Is Not Nothing) Then WinClose WordHandle
End Sub
See Also WinActivate (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.

WinList (statement)
Syntax WinList ArrayOfWindows()

Description Fills the passed array with references to all the top-level windows.
Comments The passed array must be declared as an array of HWND objects.
The ArrayOfWindows parameter must specify either a zero- or one-dimensioned
dynamic array or a single-dimensioned fixed array. If the array is dynamic, then it will
be redimensioned to exactly hold the new number of elements. For fixed arrays, each
array element is first erased, then the new elements are placed into the array. If there are
fewer elements than will fit in the array, then the remaining elements are unused. A
runtime error results if the array is too small to hold the new elements.
After calling this function, use the LBound and UBound functions to determine the
new size of the array.
Example 'This example minimizes all top-level windows.
Sub Main()
Dim a() As HWND
WinList a
For i = 1 To UBound(a)
WinMinimize a(i)
Next i
End Sub

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WinMaximize (statement)
Syntax WinMaximize [window_name$ | window_object]

Description Maximizes the given window.

Comments The WinMaximize statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description
window_name$ String containing the name that appears on the desired
application's title bar. Optionally, a partial name can be used,
such as "Word" for "Microsoft Word."
A hierarchy of windows can be specified by separating each
window name with a vertical bar (|), as in the following
example:
WinActivate "Notepad|Find"
In this example, the top-level windows are searched for a
window whose title contains the word "Notepad". If found, the
windows owned by the top level window are searched for one
whose title contains the string "Find".
window_object HWND object specifying the exact window to activate. This
can be used in place of the window_name$ parameter to
indicate a specific window to activate.
If window_name$ and window_object are omitted, then the window with the focus is
maximized.
This command differs from the AppMaximize command in that this command operates
on the current window rather than the current top-level window.
Example 'This example maximizes all top-level windows.
Sub Main()
Dim a() As HWND
WinList a
For i = 1 To UBound(a)
WinMaximize a(i)
Next i
End Sub

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WinMinimize (statement) 507

WinMinimize (statement)
Syntax WinMinimize [window_name$ | window_object]

Description Minimizes the given window.

Comments The WinMinimize statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description
window_name$ String containing the name that appears on the desired
application's title bar. Optionally, a partial name can be used,
such as "Word" for "Microsoft Word."
A hierarchy of windows can be specified by separating each
window name with a vertical bar (|), as in the following
example:
WinActivate "Notepad|Find"
In this example, the top-level windows are searched for a
window whose title contains the word "Notepad". If found, the
windows owned by the top level window are searched for one
whose title contains the string "Find".
window_object HWND object specifying the exact window to activate. This
can be used in place of the window_name$ parameter to
indicate a specific window to activate.
If window_name$ and window_object are omitted, then the window with the focus is
minimized.
This command differs from the AppMinimize command in that this command operates
on the current window rather than the current top-level window.
Example See example for WinList (statement).
See Also WinMaximize (statement); WinRestore (statement).
Platform(s) Windows, Win32.
Platform Notes Windows, Win32: On all Windows platforms, the current window can be an MDI child
window, a pop-up window, or a top-level window.

WinMove (statement)
Syntax WinMove x,y [window_name$ | window_object]

Description Moves the given window to the given x,y position.

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Word$ (function)
Syntax Word$(text$,first[,last])

Description Returns a String containing a single word or sequence of words between first and last.
Comments The Word$ function requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description
text$ String from which the sequence of words will be extracted.
first Integer specifying the index of the first word in the sequence to
return. If last is not specified, then only that word is returned.
last Integer specifying the index of the last word in the sequence to
return. If last is specified, then all words between first and last
will be returned, including all spaces, tabs, and end-of-lines that
occur between those words.
Words are separated by any nonalphanumeric characters such as spaces, tabs,
end-of-lines, and punctuation. On multi-byte and wide character platforms, double-byte
spaces are treated as separators as well. Embedded null characters are treated as regular
characters.
If first is greater than the number of words in text$, then a zero-length string is returned.
If last is greater than the number of words in text$, then all words from first to the end of
the text are returned.
Example 'This example finds the name "Stuart" in a string and then
'extracts two words from the string.
Sub Main()
s$ = "My last name is Williams; Stuart is my surname."
c$ = Word$(s$,5,6)
MsgBox "The extracted name is: " & c$
End Sub
See Also Item$ (function); ItemCount (function); Line$ (function); LineCount (function);
WordCount (function).
Platform(s) All.

WordCount (function)
Syntax WordCount(text$)

Description Returns an Integer representing the number of words in the specified text.

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Comments Words are separated by spaces, tabs, and end-of-lines. Embedded null characters are
treated as regular characters.
Example 'This example counts the number of words in a particular string.
Sub Main()
s$ = "My last name is Williams; Stuart is my surname."
i% = WordCount(s$)
MsgBox "'" & s$ & "' has " & i% & " words."
End Sub
See Also Item$ (function); ItemCount (function); Line$ (function); LineCount (function);
Word$ (function).
Platform(s) All.

Write# (statement)
Syntax Write [#]filenumber [,expressionlist]

Description Writes a list of expressions to a given sequential file.

Comments The file referenced by filenumber must be opened in either Output or Append mode.
The filenumber parameter is an Integer used by BasicScript to refer to the open file—
the number passed to the Open statement.
The following summarizes how variables of different types are written:
Data Type Description
Any numeric type Written as text. There is no leading space, and the period is
always used as the decimal separator.
String Written as text, enclosed within quotes.
Empty No data is written.
Null Written as #NULL#.
Boolean Written as #TRUE# or #FALSE#.
Date Written using the universal date format:
#YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS#
User-defined errors Written as #ERROR ErrorNumber#, where ErrorNumber
is the value of the user-defined error. The word ERROR is
not translated.
The Write statement outputs variables separated with commas. After writing each
expression in the list, Write outputs an end-of-line.
The Write statement can only be used with files opened in Output or Append mode.

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WriteIni (statement) 513

Example 'This example opens a file for sequential write, then writes ten
'records into the file with the values 10...50. Then the file is
'closed and reopened for read, and the records are read with the
'Input statement. The results are displayed in a dialog box.
Sub Main()
Open "[Link]" For Output Access Write As #1
For x = 1 To 10
r% = x * 10
Write #1,x,r%
Next x
Close
Open "[Link]" For Input Access Read As #1
For x = 1 To 10
Input #1,a%,b%
message = message & "Record " & a% & ": " & b% & [Link]$
Next x
MsgBox message
Close
End Sub

Description Writes a new value into an ini file.

Comments The WriteIni statement requires the following parameters:
Parameter Description

section$ String specifying the section that contains the desired variables,
such as "Windows." Section names are specified without the
enclosing brackets.
ItemName$ String specifying which item from within the given section you
want to change. If ItemName$ is a zero-length string (""), then
the entire section specified by section$ is deleted.
value$ String specifying the new value for the given item. If value$ is a
zero-length string (""), then the item specified by ItemName$ is
deleted from the ini file.
filename$ String specifying the name of the ini file.
Example 'This example sets the txt extension to be associated with
'Notepad.

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Sub Main()
WriteIni "Extensions","txt", _
"c:\windows\[Link] ^.txt","[Link]"
End Sub

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Year (function) 515

Example 'This example builds a logic table for the XOR function and
'displays it.
Sub Main()
For x = -1 To 0
For y = -1 To 0
z = x Xor y
message = message & Format(x,"True/False") & " Xor "
message = message & Format(y,"True/False") & " = "
message = message & Format(z,"True/False") & [Link]$
Next y
Next x
MsgBox message
End Sub
See Also Operator Precedence (topic); Or (operator); Eqv (operator); Imp (operator); And
(operator).
Platform(s) All.

Year (function)
Syntax Year(date)

Description Returns the year of the date encoded in the specified date parameter. The value returned
is between 100 and 9999 inclusive.
The date parameter is any expression representing a valid date.
Example 'This example returns the current year in a dialog box.
Sub Main()
tdate$ = Date$
tyear! = Year(DateValue(tdate$))
MsgBox "The current year is: " & tyear$
End Sub
See Also Day (function); Minute (function); Second (function); Month (function); Hour
(function); Weekday (function); DatePart (function).
Platform(s) All.

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This section contains lists of all the error messages that BasicScript may display at
runtime. It is divided into two subsections, the first describing errors messages
compatible with “standard” Basic as implemented by Microsoft Visual Basic and the
second describing error messages specific to BasicScript.
A few error messages contain placeholders, which get replaced by the runtime when
forming the completed runtime error message. These placeholders appear in the
following list as the italicized word placeholder.

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Visual Basic–Compatible Error Messages

Error
Number Error Message
3 Return without GoSub
5 Invalid procedure call
6 Overflow
7 Out of memory
9 Subscript out of range
10 This array is fixed or temporarily locked
11 Division by zero
13 Type mismatch
14 Out of string space
18 User interrupt occurred
20 Resume without error
26 Dialog needs End Dialog or push button
28 Out of stack space
35 Sub or Function not defined
48 Error in loading DLL
49 Bad DLL calling convention
51 Internal error
52 Bad file name or number
53 File not found
54 Bad file mode
55 File already open
57 Device I/O error
58 File already exists
59 Bad record length
61 Disk full
62 Input past end of file
63 Bad record number
67 Too many files
68 Device unavailable
70 Permission denied
71 Disk not ready
74 Can’t rename with different drive
75 Path/File access error
76 Path not found
91 Object variable or With block variable not set
92 For loop not initialized

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Error
Number Error Message
93 Invalid pattern string
94 Invalid use of Null
139 Only one user dialog may be up at any time
140 Dialog control identifier does not match any current control
141 The placeholder statement is not available on this dialog control type
143 The dialog control with the focus may not be disabled or hidden
144 Focus may not be set to a hidden or disabled control
150 Dialog control identifier is already defined
163 This statement can only be used when a user dialog is active
260 No timer available
281 No more DDE channels
282 No foreign application responded to a DDE initiate
283 Multiple applications responded to a DDE initiate
285 Foreign application won’t perform DDE method or operation
286 Timeout while waiting for DDE response
287 User pressed Escape key during DDE operation
288 Destination is busy
289 Data not provided in DDE operation
290 Data in wrong format
291 Foreign application quit
292 DDE conversation closed or changed
295 Message queue filled; DDE message lost
298 DDE requires [Link]
380 Invalid property value
423 Property or method not found
424 Object required
429 OLE Automation server can’t create object
430 Class doesn’t support OLE Automation
431 OLE Automation server cannot load file
432 File name or class name not found during OLE Automation operation
438 Object doesn’t support this property or method
440 OLE Automation error
442 Connection to type library or object library for remote process has been
lost. Press OK for dialog to remove reference.
443 Object does not have a default value
445 Object doesn’t support this action
446 Object doesn’t support named arguments
447 Object doesn’t support current locale setting

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Error
Number Error Message
448 Named argument not found
449 Argument not optional
450 Wrong number of arguments or invalid property assignment
451 Object not a collection
452 Invalid ordinal
453 Specified DLL function not found
454 Code resource not found
455 Code resource lock error
460 Invalid Clipboard format
481 Invalid picture
520 Can’t empty clipboard
521 Can’t open clipboard
600 Set value not allowed on collections
601 Get value not allowed on collections
603 ODBC - SQLAllocEnv failure
604 ODBC - SQLAllocConnect failure
608 ODBC - SQLFreeConnect error
610 ODBC - SQLAllocStmt failure
3129 Invalid SQL statement; expected 'DELETE', 'INSERT', 'PROCEDURE',
'SELECT', or 'UPDATE'
3146 ODBC -- call failed.
3148 ODBC -- connection failed.
3276 Invalid database ID

BasicScript-Specific Error Messages

Error Number Error Message
800 Incorrect Windows version
801 Too many dimensions
802 Can’t find window
803 Can’t find menu item
804 Another queue is being flushed
805 Can’t find control
806 Bad channel number
807 Requested data not available

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Error Number Error Message

808 Can’t create popup menu

810 Command failed
811 Network error
812 Network function not supported
813 Bad password
814 Network access denied
815 Network function busy
816 Queue overflow
817 Too many dialog controls
818 Can’t find listbox/combobox item
819 Control is disabled
820 Window is disabled
821 Can’t write to INI file
822 Can’t read from INI file
823 Can’t copy file onto itself
824 OLE Automation unknown object name
825 Redimension of a fixed array
826 Can’t load and initialize extension
827 Can’t find extension
828 Unsupported function or statement
829 Can’t find ODBC libraries
830 OLE Automation Lbound or Ubound on non-Array value
831 Incorrect definition for dialog procedure
832 Incorrect number of arguments for intermodule call
833 OLE Automation object does not exist
834 Access to OLE Automation object denied
835 OLE initialization error
836 OLE Automation method returned unsupported type
837 OLE Automation method did not return a value
838 OLE automation error - the remote procedure call connection
terminated
839 OLE automation error - the RPC server is unavailable

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Error Number Error Message

840 OLE automation error - the RPC server is too busy to
complete this operation
841 OLE automation error - the remote procedure call failed
842 OLE automation error - the remove procedure call failed and
did not execute

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Note: The application hosting BasicScript may increase the size of the stack up
to a maximum of 8K.

• The data area that holds each script’s private variables is limited to 16K per script.
This data space contains all private variables defined within the script
(variable-length strings and arrays require only 2 bytes of storage in the private
variable space, as their contents are stored in the string space).
• The data area that holds public variables is limited to 16K. This data space contains
all public variables defined by all scripts (variable-length strings and arrays require
only 2 bytes of storage in the public variable space, as their contents are stored in
the string space).
• Fixed-length strings have the same maximum size as variable-length strings, but
have a practical limit which is imposed by the data area from which they are
allocated.
Local fixed-length strings: If the maximum size of the stack is 2,048 bytes, then
the largest local fixed-length string will be slightly less than 2,048 bytes. On Win32
platforms, since each character is 2 bytes, this translates to slightly less than 1,024
characters.
Private and Public fixed-length strings: Since the maximum size of the storage
for private and public variables is 16K, this means that the largest fixed-length
string stored in either of these data areas is 16,384 characters. On Win32 platforms,
this translates to 8192 characters, since each character is 2 bytes. Considering that
there is likely to be other variables contained in these data areas, the actual limit
may be much less.
Fixed-length strings contained in arrays and structures are stored along with the
other members of these compound data items, and are thus restricted in size to the
limits from which their containing data items are allocated.
• The Visual Basic declaration modifiers Static and Shared are not supported.
• The size of a source script is limited to 65,534 characters under Windows 3.1. This
limitation can be avoided by breaking up large scripts into smaller ones.
On all other platforms, script size is limited by available memory.
• The maximum number of lines in a script is limited to 65,535 lines.
• A compiled script consists of p-code, constant initialized data, and symbolic
information. On all platforms, the maximum size of the constant data is limited to
65,535 bytes. Similarly, the maximum size of the symbolic information is 65,535
bytes. (These limitations are rarely encountered, if ever.)
Under Windows, the maximum size of the code is 65,535 bytes. On all other
platforms, the maximum size of the code is limited only by available memory.

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The 64K limitations under Windows can be avoided by breaking up large scripts
into smaller ones, which is rarely necessary.
• Arrays can have up to 60 dimensions.
• Variable names are limited to 80 characters.
• Labels are limited to 80 characters.
• Each executing script contains a table of structures that track calls made to external
routines. Each structure is approximately 88 bytes with an overall size limited to
64K.
• The number of open DDE channels is not fixed; rather, it is limited only by
available memory and system resources.
• The number of open files is limited to 512 or the operating system limit, whichever
is less.
• The maximum size of a string literal (a string enclosed within quotation marks) is
limited to 1,024 bytes. (Strings can be concatenated using the concatenation [&]
operator with the normal string limit of 32,764 bytes.)
On wide-character systems (i.e., UNICODE on Win32 platforms), 1024 bytes
ranslates to 512 characters. On single-byte, this translates to 1,024 characters. On
multibyte systems, the maximum length depends on the number of 2-byte
characters.
• The number of nesting levels (i.e., loops within loops) is limited by compiler
memory.
• Queue playback buffer size is limited to 64K. With 10 bytes per event, this allows
for 6,553 events.
• Each GoSub requires 4 bytes of the BasicScript runtime stack.
• Arrays and user-defined types cannot be passed to a method of an OLE Automation
object.
• Arrays and user-defined types cannot be set as the value of a property of an OLE
Automation object.
• Arrays and user-defined types cannot be returned from a method or property of an
OLE Automation object.
• Array indexes must be in the following range:
-32,768 <= array-index <=32,767
• The size of an array cannot exceed 32K. For example, an array of integers, each of
which requires 2 bytes of storage, is limited to the following maximum number of
elements:
max_num_elements = (32,767 - overhead) / 2

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where overhead is currently approximately 16 bytes.

• A maximum of 128 fonts can be used within a single user dialog, although the
practical limitation imposed by the operating system may be less.

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551

APPENDIX E

BasicScript/Visual Basic
Differences

This appendix describes the differences between Visual Basic 4.0 and BasicScript
version 2.2.
The following topics are covered:
• Arrays
• Constants
• Data Types
• Debugging
• Declarations
• Declare Statement
• Error Handling
• Floating-Point Numbers
• Currency Numbers
• Language Element Differences
• Natural Language Support
• Objects
• Parameter Passing
• Strings
• Variants
• Stack Size
• Expression Evaluation
• File Searching

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Arrays
Visual Basic supports huge arrays, BasicScript does not.
BasicScript and Visual Basic differ in the way that elements are stored in memory.
Visual Basic stores elements in column-major order such as FORTRAN, meaning that
the leftmost dimension changes first. For example, consider the following statement:
Dim a(1 To 3,1 To 2)
In Visual Basic, the elements are stored in memory as follows:
a(1,1)
a(2,1)
a(3,1)
a(1,2)
a(2,2)
a(3,2)
BasicScript uses the same element ordering as C where the lower dimension changes
first, as shown below:
a(1,1)
a(1,2)
a(2,1)
a(2,2)
a(3,1)
a(3,2)
This difference impacts code that passes arrays to external routines using Declare and
the use of the For...Each statement.

Constants
Visual Basic supports shared constants (using the Public keyword). In BasicScript,
constants must be repeated within each script in which they are used.
Visual Basic does not allow the concatenation of constant elements. For example, the
following script compiles in BasicScript but not in Visual Basic:
Const t$ = "Hello" & Chr$(9) & "there."
Sub Main()
MsgBox t$
End Sub
Visual Basic allows a user to redefine global constants at the subroutine/function level
without affecting their global values; BasicScript does not. For example, the following
script will compile and execute in Visual Basic but not in BasicScript:
Const t$ = "Hello"

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Sub Main()
Const t$ = "Good-bye"
MsgBox t$
End Sub

Declarations
Visual Basic supports the Static keyword as a modifier for the Sub and Function
statements. BasicScript supports use of this keyword with these statements syntactically,
but has no effect symantecally.
A variable used in a comparison expression that hasn't been declared will be implicitly
declared in Visual Basic. In BasicScript, this will be seen as an unresolved function:
Sub Main
If a$ = "Hello" Then Beep
End Sub
In BasicScript, the above script will compile, but it gives a Sub or Function not defined
error when executed. In Visual Basic, this will automatically declare a variable called a$
as a String.

Debugging
While debugging, the trace function will execute a single-line If...Then statement as
multiple units, requiring two presses of the F8 key. The first trace will execute the
condition and the second will execute one of the statements.

Declare Statements
Visual Basic supports shared Declare statements (using the Public keyword). In
BasicScript, these must be declared in every script in which they are used.
BasicScript supports a superset of that functionality available in Visual Basic—namely,
the additional calling conventions.
BasicScript and Visual Basic pass values to external routines in the same manner, with
the following exceptions:
• BasicScript passes True or False as Boolean values (signed short in C). Visual Basic
passes these as Boolean variants.
• Arrays are passed to external routines as OLE safearrays. BasicScript passes arrays
as a pointer to the first array element.

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• Variants are passed as internal variant structures in both BasicScript and Visual
Basic. For all numeric values, the types are the same.
The variant structure in both systems is a 4-byte type (a 32-bit integer—the same
value as returned by the VarType function), followed by 4 bytes of slop, followed by
the value of the variable, as shown below:

Bytes 0–3 Bytes 4–7 Bytes 8–15

VarType Alignment slop Value

Error Handling
The On Error Resume Next statement causes execution to continue on the next line
rather than at the next statement. This difference is only visible when you have placed
more than one statement on the same line, separated with a colon. For example, the
following code displays nothing in BasicScript, while, in Visual Basic, will display a
dialog:
Sub Main
On Error Resume Next
Error 10 : MsgBox "Hello, world."
End Sub

Floating-Point Numbers
In Visual Basic, floating-point numbers are interpreted as doubles unless they are
explicitly accompanied by a type-declaration character. Thus, the following line assigns
a Double in Visual Basic, whereas in BasicScript, it assigns a Single:
a = 0.00001
In BasicScript, additional checking is performed to determine whether a floating-point
number can be accurately represented as a Single. If so, then the number is stored as a
Single, requiring 4 bytes rather than 8.
The implications of this difference can be seen in the following code:
Dim a As Variant,b As Variant
a = 1000
b = .00001
a=a+b
MsgBox a

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In Visual Basic, since the variables a and b are assigned Double values, the addition is
performed between two doubles, resulting in the value 1000.00001. In BasicScript, on
the other hand, a and b are assigned Single values, resulting in an addition between two
singles. When these two singles are added, there is a loss of precision resulting in the
value 1000.
In situations such as this, you should explicitly force the types using type-declaration
characters. The above code can be rewritten as follows:
Dim a As Variant,b As Variant
a = 1000#
b = .00001#
a=a+b
MsgBox a 'BasicScript displays 1000.00001.

Currency Numbers
In Visual Basic, Double numbers do not convert to Currency numbers the same way. In
Visual Basic, for example, the following script will fail:
Sub Main
result = CCur("-1.401298E-45")
End Sub
The above fails in Visual Basic because the number being converted is known to be a
Double. In BasicScript, any number between the valid range supported by Currency is
convertible to Currency, even if the number is expressed in scientific notation or is
extremely small (approaching zero).

Language Element Differences

Visual Basic and BasicScript use a slightly different syntax for the following SQL
functions (due to BasicScript's lack of support for variant arrays):
SQLError
SQLGetSchema
SQLRetrieve
SQLRequest
In Visual Basic, the GetAllSettings function returns a variant containing an array.
BasicScript does not support arrays within variants, and therefore takes an array
variable as its last parameter.
The Visual Basic Write statement accepts commas, semi-colons, and spaces as
parameter separators, much like the Print statement. In BasicScript, the Write statement

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cannot accept semi-colons as space separators, nor will it accept trailing commas or
semi-colons. Both the Print and Write statements in BasicScript reject spaces as
parameters separators.
The Const statement in BasicScript can only be used outside the scope of any subroutine
or function declaration. In Visual Basic, Const statements appearing within the
definition of a subroutine or function have scope local to that routine.
BasicScript does not support any of the following Visual Basic language elements:

Language Element Type

Array Function
Exit Property Statement
For Each...Next Statement
LoadPicture Function
On...Gosub Statement
On...Goto Statement
Option Private Statement
Property Get...End Property Statement
Property Let...End Property Statement
Property Set...End Property Statement
SavePicture Statement
[Link] Property
Static Statement
With...End With Statement

Objects
BasicScript does not support any of Visual Basic's objects (except Clipboard, Screen,
and a few others).

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Strings
In BasicScript, variable-length strings within structures require 2 bytes of storage. In
Visual Basic, variable-length strings within structures require 4 bytes of storage.
The implications of this difference can be seen in the following code:
Type Sample
LastName As String
End Type
Sub Main
Dim a As Sample
MsgBox Len(a)
End Sub
In the above code, Visual Basic displays 4, whereas BasicScript displays 2.
In BasicScript, variable-length strings are limited to 32K in length. In Visual Basic,
variable-length strings have no limits on their lengths.
Visual Basic will not accept strings in some functions expecting numbers such as Int and
Fix. BasicScript allows strings as long as they are convertible to numbers.
Dim A As Variant
Abs(19) 'OK.
A = "10"
Abs(A) 'OK.
Abs("10") 'Works in BasicScript, not in Visual Basic
In BasicScript, these functions will accept any data type convertible to a number. If the
data type is a String, BasicScript converts it to a Double.
Fixed-length strings within structures are size-adjusted upward to an even size. Thus,
structures in BasicScript are always even-sized. Visual Basic allows fixed-length strings
within structures to maintain an odd size.

Variants
Passing variants either by value or by reference to external routines (using the Declare
statement) passes either the entire variant structure (ByVal) or a pointer to a variant
structure (ByRef) used internally by BasicScript. This means that passing variants to an
externally declared routine can only be done if that routine is aware of the internal
variant structure used by BasicScript.
Visual Basic supports variant arrays; BasicScript does not. This includes use of the
Array function.

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558 BasicScript Language Reference

Passing Variants by Reference

In Visual Basic, variants cannot be passed by reference to user-defined routines
accepting nonvariant parameters. For example, the following will not work in Visual
Basic:
Sub Test(ByRef a As Integer)
End Sub
Sub Main
Dim v As Variant
v=5
Test v 'Visual Basic gives error here
End Sub
In BasicScript, the above example works as expected. BasicScript actually performs a
conversion of the Variant v to a temporary Integer value and passes this temporary value
by reference. Upon return from the call to Test, BasicScript converts the temporary
Integer back to a Variant.

Passing Optional Variants to

Forward-Declared Routines
BasicScript does not catch the following error:
Declare Sub Test(Optional v As Variant) 'LINE 1
Sub Main
Test
End Sub
Sub Test(v As Variant) 'LINE 5
End Sub
In the above script, the Declare statement on line 1 defines a prototype for the Test
function that is incompatible with the actual declaration on line 5.

Stack Size
BasicScript uses a default stack of 2K, expandable to 8K. Visual Basic use a much
larger stack size (approximately 48K).

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Since the stack for BasicScript is smaller, you may have to be more attentive when
using local variables, especially fixed-length strings and structures, since storage for all
local variables comes from the stack.

Note: Variable-length strings only require 2 bytes of storage on the stack. Wherever
possible, use variable-length strings in place of fixed-length strings.

Expression Evaluation
With Boolean expressions (i.e., expressions involving And, Or, Xor, Eqv, and Imp), if one
operand is Null and the other argument is numeric, then Null is returned regardless of the
value of the other operand. For example, the following expression returns Null:
Null And 300000
Despite the fact that the expression returns Null, Visual Basic evaluates the numeric
operand anyway, converting it to a Long. If an overflow occurs during conversion, a
trappable runtime error is generated. In BasicScript, the expression returns Null
regardless of the value of the numeric operand. For example, the following expression
will overflow in Visual Basic but not in BasicScript:
Null And 5E200

File Searching
The filename-matching algorithm used by BasicScript is different from that used by
Visual Basic. This affects commands that perform directory searching, such as Dir, Kill,
and FileList. The following differences exist:
• In Visual Basic, an asterisk within the filename matches any characters up to the
end of the filename or up to the period, whichever comes first.
• In Visual Basic, the period is a separator between the filename and the extension. In
BasicScript, the period is treated as a normal filename character.
The following table describes the meaning of some common file specifications.:

Specification Meaning in Visual Basic Meaning in BasicScript

* All files. All files.

. All files. All files that have an extension.

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Specification Meaning in Visual Basic Meaning in BasicScript

s*e All files that begin with "s". All files that begin with "s" and
end with "e".

s*.* All files that begin with "s". All files that begin with "s" and
have an extension.

test. The file "test" with no The file called "test.".

extension. BasicScript will never find this
file under Windows or DOS.

test.* All files having the root name All files having the root name
"test" with any extension, such "test" with an extension. The
as "test", "[Link]", and so on. file "test" with no extension will
not be found.

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Index 583

showing 186 printing 384–385

Text (statement) 477–478 reading from sequential files 282–284
TextBox (statement) 478–480 storage requirements of 493
user-defined errors testing for
converting to 131 Empty 294
generating 218–219 Error 294–295
testing for 294–295 Null 296
user-defined types 489–490 objects 297
copying 489 types of 491, 495
declaring 489 ebBoolean (constant) 121
defining 484–485 ebCurrency (constant) 121
getting size of 305–307, 490 ebDate (constant) 121
passing 490 ebDouble (constant) 121
ebEmpty (constant) 120
ebError (constant) 121
V ebInteger (constant) 121
Val (function) 490–491 ebLong (constant) 121
Value (property) 275–276 ebNull (constant) 120
variables ebObject (constant) 121
assigning objects 435–436 ebSingle (constant) 121
declaring ebString (constant) 121
as local 171–174 ebVariant (constant) 121
as private 389–390 Variant (data type) 491–495
as public 391–392 writing to sequential files 385–387, 512–513
with Dim 171–174 VarType (function) 495–496
with Private (statement) 389–390 version, of
with Public (statement) 391–392 BasicScript 80
getting storage size of 305–307 Windows 474–475
implicit declaration of 173 [Link] (method) 496
initial values of 173, 390 [Link] (method) 496
naming conventions of 174 [Link] (method) 497–498
Variant (data type) 491–495 viewports
variants clearing 496
adding 37, 493 closing 496
assigning 492 keys used in 497
automatic promotion of 367 opening 497–498
containing no data 113, 493 printing to 384–385
converting to 130–131 Visual Basic
disadvantages 494 differences between BasicScript and Visual
Empty (constant) 113 Basic 551
getting error messages 536
length of 305–307 VLine (statement) 498
types of 492, 495–496 VPage (statement) 498–499
Null (constant) 113 VScroll (statement) 499
operations on 492
passing W
nonvariant data to routines taking variants 494
to routines taking nonvariants 494 wallpaper, changing desktop 166–167

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waveform audio, Mci (function) 323–325

Weekday (function) 499–500 X
While...Wend (statement) 501
Xor (operator) 514–515
Width# (statement) 501–502
width, of screen 424
wildcards, used with Dir, Dir$ (functions) 176 Y
[Link] file 141, 167, 248, 388, 410, 411, 483, 514
WinActivate (statement) 502–503 Year (function) 515
WinClose (statement) 503–504, 504–505 yielding 198–199, 199–200, 443
Windows
directory of 474
version of 474–475
windows
activating 502–503
capturing 167–168
closing 503–504
constants used with
ebMaximized (constant) 113
ebMinimized (constant) 113
ebRestored (constant) 113
finding 504–505
getting
list of 505
value of 275–276
maximizing 506
minimizing 507
moving 507–508
resizing 510
restoring 508–509
scrolling 273, 274, 274, 498, 498–499, 499
Windows, BasicScript language elements supported
on 517
WinFind (function) 504–505
WinList (statement) 505, 506
WinMaximize (statement) 506
WinMinimize (statement) 507, 507–508
WinMove (statement) 507–508
WinRestore (statement) 508–509, 510
WinSize (statement) 510
Win32, BasicScript language elements supported on 517
Word$ (function) 511
word-wrapping, in MsgBox (statement) 338
WordCount (function) 511–512
Write (keyword) 362–364
Write# (statement) 512–513
WriteIni (statement) 513–514

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Lr225 Language Ref BasicScript

Uploaded by

Lr225 Language Ref BasicScript

Uploaded by

BasicScript 2.

September 25, 1996

Copyright © 1992–1996 Summit Software Company. All rights reserved.

BasicScript is a registered trademark of Summit Software Company. All other

Language Summary ..............................................................................................................3

A-Z Reference ......................................................................................................................25

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Do...Loop Words in this typeface indicate elements of the BasicScript

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Note: In BasicScript, you cannot end a statement with a

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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BasicScript Functions, Statements, and Methods by Category and Task (Continued)

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See Also Rem (statement); Comments (topic).

Long Single Double

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A runtime error is generated if the result overflows its legal range.

Example 'This example assigns values to two numeric variables and

See Also Operator Precedence (topic).

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Description Defines a preprocessor constant for use in the #If...Then...#Else statement.

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Irix True if development environment is Irix.

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#ElseIf VERSION = 2 Then

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#If Win16 Then

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Comments Parentheses within Expressions

Parentheses Used in Parameter Passing

Note: The result of an expression is always passed by value.

Example 'This example uses parentheses to clarify an expression.

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