XL: Option Base with User-Defined Type Incorrect in Help Topic

ID: Q135879

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Excel for Windows 95, versions 7.0, 7.0a
Microsoft Excel for Windows, versions 5.0, 5.0c
Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh, versions 5.0, 5.0a

SYMPTOMS

In the versions of Microsoft Excel listed above, the Help topic for the Visual Basic Option Base statement contains the following information:

   The Option Base statement has no effect on arrays within user-defined
   types for which the lower bound is always 0.

This information is not entirely correct.

CAUSE

This statement is not true for an array within your user-defined type. For example, when you run the following code, the value 1 is returned, instead of the expected value 0 for the lower bound of the array within the user- defined type Mytype:

   Option Base 1

   Type Mytype
       Machine(2) As String
   End Type

   Sub Test_Mytype()
       Dim Test As Mytype
       MsgBox LBound(Test.Machine)
   End Sub

WORKAROUND

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language being demonstrated and the tools used to create and debug procedures. Microsoft support professionals can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific needs. If you have limited programming experience, you may want to contact the Microsoft fee-based consulting line at (800) 936-5200. For more information about the support options available from Microsoft, please see the following page on the World Wide Web:

   http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/refguide/

If you want the lower bound for an array within your user-defined type to be zero, you can use any of the following methods.

Method 1

Use the "To" clause to explicitly define the upper and lower bounds of your array. This method overrides any Option Base settings in your module. The following is an example of using this method:

   Type Mytype
      Machine(0 To 2) As String
   End Type

Method 2

Use the Option Base statement with the value 0 by adding the following statement at the beginning of your module:

   Option Base 0

Method 3

Do not use the Option Base statement at all; the default base is 0.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was corrected in Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows and Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition.

REFERENCES

For more information about the "Option Base Statement," choose the Search button in the Visual Basic Reference (version 5.0) and type:

    Option Base

Additional query words: 5.00 5.00a 5.00c 7.00 XL5 XL7

Keywords          : kbcode kbprg PgmOthr 
Version           : WINDOWS:5.0,5.0c,7.0; MACINTOSH:5.0,5.0a
Platform          : MACINTOSH WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbfix

Last Reviewed: May 17, 1999