ID: Q143162
The information in this article applies to:
Advanced: Requires expert coding, interoperability, and multiuser skills.
This article shows you how to create a Visual Basic for Applications Sub procedure called GetFormDimensions to get a form window's right and down measurements so that you can use them in the MoveSize macro action. This article also demonstrates how to position a form immediately below or to the right of a second form.
This article assumes that you are familiar with Visual Basic for Applications and with creating Microsoft Access applications using the programming tools provided with Microsoft Access. For more information about Visual Basic for Applications, please refer to your version of the "Building Applications with Microsoft Access" manual.
NOTE: This article explains a technique demonstrated in the sample files, FrmSampl.exe (for Microsoft Access for Windows 95 version 7.0) and FrmSmp97.exe (for Microsoft Access 97). For information about how to obtain these sample files, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
ARTICLE-ID: Q150895
TITLE : ACC95: Microsoft Access Sample Forms Available on MSL
ARTICLE-ID: Q175066
TITLE : ACC97: Microsoft Access 97 Sample Forms Available on MSL
In Microsoft Access, you can use the WindowWidth and WindowHeight form properties to determine the current width and height of the window that a form is contained in. However, there are no properties to determine the window's right and down measurements (these measurements are commonly used in the MoveSize macro action to position a form window).
The right and down measurements, along with the width and height, are useful if you want to position a form side-by-side with another form. The following examples show you how to create and use the GetFormDimensions Sub procedure to get these measurements and to use them to position a form to the right of, and then below, another form by using the MoveSize macro action.
1. Open the sample database Northwind.mdb.
2. Create a new module and enter the following lines in the module's
Declarations section:
Option Explicit
Type RECT_Type
left As Long
top As Long
right As Long
bottom As Long
End Type
Declare Function apiGetWindowRect Lib "user32" Alias _
"GetWindowRect" (ByVal hWnd As Long, lpRect As RECT_Type) As Long
Declare Function apiGetDC Lib "user32" Alias "GetDC" _
(ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
Declare Function apiReleaseDC Lib "user32" Alias "ReleaseDC" (ByVal _
hWnd As Long, ByVal hDC As Long) As Long
Declare Function apiGetDeviceCaps Lib "gdi32" Alias "GetDeviceCaps" _
(ByVal hDC As Long, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
Declare Function apiGetActiveWindow Lib "user32" Alias _
"GetActiveWindow" () As Long
Declare Function apiGetParent Lib "user32" Alias "GetParent" (ByVal _
hWnd As Long) As Long
Declare Function apiGetClassName Lib "user32" Alias "GetClassNameA" _
(ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal lpClassName As String, ByVal _
nMaxCount As Long) As Long
Global Const TWIPSPERINCH = 1440
Sub GetFormDimensions(F As Form, FLeft As Long, FTop As Long, _
FWidth As Long, FHeight As Long)
'*************************************************************
' PURPOSE: Returns the left, top, width, and height
' measurements of a form window in tdwips.
' ARGUMENTS:
' F: The form object whose measurements are to be determined.
' FLeft, FTop, FWidth, FHeight: Measurement variables
' that will return the dimensions of form F "by reference."
' NOTE: The FWidth and FHeight values will be equivalent to
' those provided by the form WindowWidth and WindowHeight
' properties.
'*************************************************************
Dim FormRect As RECT_Type
Dim MDIClient As RECT_Type
Dim MDIClientLeft As Long
Dim MDIClientTop As Long
' Get the screen coordinates and window size of the form.
' The screen coordinates are returned in pixels measured
' from the upper-left corner of the screen.
apiGetWindowRect F.hWnd, FormRect
FLeft = FormRect.left
FTop = FormRect.top
FWidth = FormRect.right - FormRect.left
FHeight = FormRect.bottom - FormRect.top
' Convert the measurements from pixels to twips.
ConvertPIXELSToTWIPS FLeft, FTop
ConvertPIXELSToTWIPS FWidth, FHeight
' If the form is not a pop-up form, adjust the screen
' coordinates to measure from the top of the Microsoft
' Access MDIClient window. Position 0,0 for a pop-up form
' is the upper-left corner of the screen, whereas position
' 0,0 for a normal window is the upper-left corner of the
' Microsoft Access client window below the menu bar.
If GetWindowClass(F.hWnd) <> "OFormPopup" Then
' Get the screen coordinates and window size of the
' MDIClient window.
apiGetWindowRect apiGetParent(F.hWnd), MDIClient
MDIClientLeft = MDIClient.left
MDIClientTop = MDIClient.top
ConvertPIXELSToTWIPS MDIClientLeft, MDIClientTop
' Adjust the form dimensions from the MDIClient
' measurements.
FLeft = FLeft - MDIClientLeft
FTop = FTop - MDIClientTop
End If
End Sub
Sub ConvertPIXELSToTWIPS(X As Long, Y As Long)
'*************************************************************
' PURPOSE: Converts the two pixel measurements passed as
' arguments to twips.
' ARGUMENTS:
' X, Y: Measurement variables in pixels. These will be
' converted to twips and returned through the same
' variables "by reference."
'*************************************************************
Dim hDC As Long, hWnd As Long, RetVal As Long
Dim XPIXELSPERINCH, YPIXELSPERINCH
Const LOGPIXELSX = 88
Const LOGPIXELSY = 90
' Retrieve the current number of pixels per inch, which is
' resolution-dependent.
hDC = apiGetDC(0)
XPIXELSPERINCH = apiGetDeviceCaps(hDC, LOGPIXELSX)
YPIXELSPERINCH = apiGetDeviceCaps(hDC, LOGPIXELSY)
RetVal = apiReleaseDC(0, hDC)
' Compute and return the measurements in twips.
X = (X / XPIXELSPERINCH) * TWIPSPERINCH
Y = (Y / YPIXELSPERINCH) * TWIPSPERINCH
End Sub
Function GetWindowClass(hWnd As Long) As String
'*************************************************************
' PURPOSE: Retrieve the class of the passed window handle.
' ARGUMENTS:
' hWnd: The window handle whose class is to be retrieved.
' RETURN:
' The window class name.
'*************************************************************
Dim Buff As String
Dim BuffSize As Integer
Buff = String$(255, " ")
BuffSize = apiGetClassName(hWnd, Buff, 255)
GetWindowClass = left$(Buff, BuffSize)
End Function
1. Open the sample database Northwind.mdb.
2. Add the following Sub procedure to the module that you created in step 2
of the previous section:
Sub MoveEmployeesAround ()
Dim frmCust As Form
Dim frmEmp As Form
Dim frmCustLeft As Long
Dim frmCustTop As Long
Dim frmCustWidth As Long
Dim frmCustHeight As Long
Dim frmEmpLeft As Long
Dim frmEmpTop As Long
Dim frmEmpWidth As Long
Dim frmEmpHeight As Long
Set frmCust = Forms!Customers
Set frmEmp = Forms!Employees
GetFormDimensions frmCust, frmCustLeft, frmCustTop, _
frmCustWidth, frmCustHeight
GetFormDimensions frmEmp, frmEmpLeft, frmEmpTop, _
frmEmpWidth, frmEmpHeight
frmEmp.SetFocus
MsgBox "Move Employees to the right of Customers!"
DoCmd.MoveSize frmCustLeft + frmCustWidth, frmCustTop
MsgBox "Move Employees below Customers!"
DoCmd.MoveSize frmCustLeft, frmCustTop + frmCustHeight
End Sub
4. Open the Debug window by pressing CTRL+G. Type the following line, and
then press ENTER:
MoveEmployeesAround
positioned immediately to the right of the Customers form, and then
another message box will appear.
positioned immediately below the Customers form.
For more information about how to get form window's right and down measurements in Microsoft Access 2.0, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
ARTICLE-ID: Q121100
TITLE : ACC2: How to Get Form's Right and Down Measurements
For more information about the WindowHeight and WindowWidth properties, search the Help Index for "WindowHeight" or "WindowWidth," or ask the Microsoft Access 97 Office Assistant.
Additional query words:
Keywords : FmsProp
Version : 7.0 97
Platform : WINDOWS
Hardware : x86
Issue type : kbhowtoLast Reviewed: November 21, 1998