WD97: Working with Earlier Version WLLs/DLLs in Word 97

ID: Q176656

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SUMMARY

This article discusses WLL/DLL compatibility between earlier versions of Word, specifically Word versions 6.x, 7.x, and their supportability in Word 97.

MORE INFORMATION

Word add-in libraries (WLLs) written for Word 6.x and 7.x run correctly in Word 97. However, the following should be noted.

New WLL creation

Word Developers writing new WLLs should use Automation rather than the wdCommandDispatch interface to access the new object model in Word 97. The wdCommandDispatch interface only supports WordBasic calls.

For additional information on using Automation with C++, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q152023
   TITLE     : Locating Resources to Study OLE Automation

For more information about programming Automation, in the Visual C++ version 5.0 online documentation, search on "Automation Clients."

For information about wdCommandDispatch see the Word Developer's Kit, Appendix C, "Microsoft Word Application Programming Interface."

Updating String Functions in WLLs and DLLs for Word 97

Visual Basic requires external libraries to use BSTR values in string- related functions. If you have written 32-bit Word add-in libraries (WLLs) or dynamic-link libraries (DLLs) that you need to use or support in Word 97, you need to modify any string-related functions in your library and recompile it.

If you have a dial-up connection to the World Wide Web, use your Internet Browser to connect to the following Microsoft Office Developer Forum Web page to obtain more information about updating string functions in WLLs and DLLs for Word 97:

1. From your Internet browser connect to the following URL:

      http://www.microsoft.com/WordDev/Articles/UpdtWlls.htm

   NOTE: Because the Microsoft Web site is constantly updated, the site
   address may change without notice. If this occurs, link to the Microsoft
   home page at the following address:

      http://www.microsoft.com/

REFERENCES

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

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

Additional query words: wordcon previous

Keywords          : kbprg OffVBA word8 kbwordvba word97 
Version           : WINDOWS:97
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: February 15, 1999