XL: Sample Macro That Won't Allow User to Cancel Dialog Box

ID: Q142137

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

In Microsoft Excel, you can create a Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications macro to display built-in dialog boxes, such as the Open or the Save As dialog box. Once this type of dialog box is displayed, a user can cancel it by clicking the Cancel button, pressing the ESC key, or by clicking the control menu. If you want to force a user to take a certain action in the dialog box, you can "trap" the cancellation process; that is, you can design the macro so it will not allow the user to cancel the dialog box.

The "More Information" section of this article contains a macro that requires a user to select a file to be opened in the Open dialog box.

MORE INFORMATION

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/

Sample Visual Basic Procedure

   Sub Test()

       Dim X As Boolean

       Do
           X = Application.Dialogs(xlDialogOpen).Show

           ' X returns False if the box is canceled.
           If X = False Then MsgBox "Please select a file to open."

       ' X equals True when you open the file.
       Loop Until X = True

   End Sub
When you run this sample macro, the Open dialog box is displayed. If you try to cancel the dialog box, the macro prompts you with a message box. When you click OK in this message box, you are returned to the Open dialog box. This process continues until you select a file to open.

For additional information on how you can display the Open or the Save As dialog boxes in a Visual Basic for Applications macro, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 

   ARTICLE-ID: Q139723
   TITLE     : How to Display the Open and Save As Dialog Boxes
Additional query words: 5.00 5.00a 5.00c 7.00 XL97 XL98 XL7 XL5 
Keywords          : kbprg kbdta kbdtacode PgmHowto KbVBA 
Version           : MACINTOSH:5.0,5.0a; WINDOWS:5.0,5.0c,7.0,7.0a
Platform          : MACINTOSH WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: May 28, 1999