WD97: How to Play a .wav Sound File Using a Macro

ID: Q170730

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

The following Microsoft Word 97 macro example demonstrates how you can use Visual Basic for Applications to play a .wav sound file.

MORE INFORMATION

Microsoft provides examples of Visual Basic for Applications procedures 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. The Visual Basic procedures in this article are provided 'as is' and Microsoft does not guarantee that they can be used in all situations. While Microsoft support professionals can help explain the functionality of a particular macro, they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality, nor will they help you construct macros to meet your specific needs. If you have limited programming experience, you may want to consult one of the Microsoft Solution Providers. Solution Providers offer a wide range of fee-based services, including creating custom macros. For more information about Microsoft Solution Providers, call Microsoft Customer Information Service at (800) 426-9400.

The following macro uses the Windows API GetWindowDirectory to retrieve the Windows directory. It then uses the Windows API sndPlaySound to play the Chimes.wav file located in that directory.

Place these declarations in the General Declarations section of the Visual Basic for Applications Editor window.

   Declare Function sndPlaySound Lib "winmm.dll" Alias "sndPlaySoundA" _
   (ByVal lpszSoundName As String, ByVal uFlags As Long) As Long
   Declare Function GetWindowsDirectoryA Lib "Kernel32" _
   (ByVal lpBuffer As String, ByVal nSize As Long) As Long

   Sub PlayWav()
      Dim sBuf As String
      Dim cSize As Long
      Dim retval As Long
      Dim Windir As String
      'Create a variable large enough to store the Windows path.
      sBuf = String(255, 0)
      cSize = 255
      'Get Windows Directory
      retval = GetWindowsDirectoryA(sBuf, cSize)
      'Strip buffer from Windows directory
      Windir = Left(sBuf, retval)
      'Load and Play the sound.
      N = sndPlaySound(Windir + "\Media\Chimes.wav", 0)
   End Sub

Additional query words: 8.0 8.0 vb vba vbe offcon wordcon
Keywords          : kbmacro kbprg kbsound kbdtacode kbwordvba 
Version           : WINDOWS:97
Platform          : WINDOWS

Last Reviewed: April 8, 1999