ACC: "Can't Hide a Control That Has the Focus" Error Message

• Microsoft Access versions 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 7.0, 97

SUMMARY

Moderate: Requires basic macro, coding, and interoperability skills.

If you try to change the Visible property of a control to False while that control has the focus, you may receive the following error message:

You can't hide a control that has the focus.

MORE INFORMATION

The following example uses two command buttons to demonstrate how to generate the error message by trying to change the Visible property of a control that has the focus, and how to avoid the error by setting the focus elsewhere.

CAUTION: Following the steps in this example will modify the sample database Northwind.mdb (or NWIND.MDB in version 2.0 or earlier). You may want to back up the Northwind.mdb (or NWIND.MDB) file and perform these steps on a copy of the database.

1. Open the sample database Northwind.mdb (or NWIND.MDB in versions 1.x and 2.0).



2. Open the Customers form in Design view, and add the following two command buttons to the form:




      Form: Customers
      --------------------------------------------------------
      Command Button:
         Name: Button1
         Caption: Error
         OnClick (or OnPush in version 1.x): [Event Procedure]
      Command Button:
         Name: Button2
         Caption: Success
         OnClick: [Event Procedure] 

3. Set the OnClick property for Button1 to the following event procedure:
   
   NOTE: In Microsoft Access 1.x and 2.0, the word Private before Sub is omitted by default.




Private Sub Button1_Click()
   On Error GoTo errhandler
      'Set the focus on the City control
      Me!City.Setfocus
      'Make the City control invisible
      Me!City.Visible=False
      Exit Sub
   errhandler:
      'Trap the Control Has Focus error
      If Err = 2165 Then
         MsgBox "Can't Make Control Invisible"
      Else
         MsgBox Err & " " & Err.Description
      End If
      Exit Sub
End Sub 

4. Set the OnClick property for Button2 to the following event procedure:




Private Sub Button2_Click()
   On Error GoTo errhandler
      'Set the focus on the Region control
      Me!Region.Setfocus
      'Make the City control invisible
      Me!City.Visible=False
      Exit Sub
   errhandler:
      'Trap the Control Has Focus error
      If Err = 2165 Then
         MsgBox "Can't Make Control Invisible"
      Else
         MsgBox Err & " " & Err.Description
      End If
      Exit Sub
End Sub 

5. Open the Customers form in Form view. Click the Error button and note that you receive the message "Can't Make Control Invisible." Click the Success button and note that the City field disappears.

Additional query words:

Keywords          : kberrmsg kbusage McrActn 
Version           : WINDOWS:1.0,1.1,2.0,7.0,97
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbinfo 

Last Reviewed: July 13, 1999