Feedback

Below is just some of the feedback we've recently received.

Feedback

Greg writes...

I recently read your excellent article on creating dynamic user forms for VBA with Word. First, I want to thank you for this article. It helped me understand how to do something like this in another application I am working on. The article was written very well, and clearly explained with comments what the code was doing. (i.e. this article http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=259)

Now I have a question. I want to do something very similar to this, except I would like the cars to be inside a frame that has vertical scroll bars, since I my app will be populating a large number rows retrieved from a database and resizing the form would not be visually appealing, nor would it always fit on the user's screen. I have slightly modified your app to use a frame (see enclosed zip file) and removed the 20 cars restriction. After many hours of trying to get the frame to scroll when the number of cars goes past 7, I have have been unsuccessful.

Would you mind taking a look at the enclosed code and telling me if this is even possible, and if so, how would I go about doing something like this? It doesn't matter to me whether the scroll bars are inside the frame, or part of the form itself, the only constraint I need is to be able to keep the form size fixed and use vertical scroll bars to display cars past the bottom boundary of the frame. Thanks for any help or insight you can provide

David Horowitz, author of Dynamic UserForms, replies...

Hi Greg,

I'm glad you enjoyed the article, have found it useful, and have been modifying the code to suit your needs. And that you took the time to write.

Try adding the code below to the end of the AddCars method.

Me.carFrame.ScrollHeight = controlTop + theTextBox.Height + 3

Also, try setting the KeepScrollBarsVisible property of carFrame to fmScrollBarsNone instead of fmScrollBarsBoth in the properties window at design time (do you know what I mean?). This will make the scroll bars only appear when they're needed, not all the time.

Nice design, using the frame, BTW. Looks good.

David Horowitz
Lead Technologist
Soundside Inc.
http://www.soundsidesoftware.com/

Greg's further reply...

Excellent! That was it! Thank you very much. I truly appreciate you taking the time to take a look at this and helping me out. Sometimes it's really nice to have another pair of eyes looking at things when you've looked at it over and over. Again, thank you very much ! I'm going to read some more of your articles now...

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Tri writes...

Hi Mike, i have read your articles about Microsoft Project at this website : http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/pub0009/LPMFrame.asp?CMD=AuthorDetail&ID=23 It's interesting and helps me so much. Now I have a problem with the settings in Microsoft Project. Would you please to help me?

Question : I want to save the settings for Bars, Filter, Font .... as standard so that I can use afterward these settings. But I don't know how to save these settings: in an external file or direct in project? Can you give me a hint? Thank you and sorry for my bad english.

Tri

Mike Glen, author of the Microsoft Project article series, replies...

Hi Tri,

Thanks for your kind comments - it's always nice to have feedback.

Project does not have a way to save changes to default settings of this nature. The way round this is to create a file with all your settings you
want and save it as a template. Then you can open the template and then save it with the new project name, which will leave the original template alone. For more details see the MVP FAQs here: http://project.mvps.org/faqs.htm#New%20project%20Template

Hope this helps,

Mike

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Cayle Downs from Olathe KS, writes..

I recieved the same photograph a couple of months ago, but it can actually be credited back to a photoshop manipulation that was created for the forums on www.fark.com. The person who did the manipulation did a wonderful job, and his work has been passed around the internet as a result.

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/computer.asp

Great site btw. I've learned alot from your articles. Have a great day.

--Cayle

Dave Roberts from Orlando, FL, writes...

The picture that depicts what folks from the late 50's thought a computer would look like in 2004 is a bit of a hoax. The teletype in the front is fairly standard, but the machinery in the back is nothing more than the control panel for a shipboard propulsion system. The giveaway is the two wheels on the left. The large wheel if for opening steam ports to make the turbine turn the propellor forward and the small wheel is for going in reverse. Other parts of the panel show the electrical system controls. Electricity is developed from steam as well. I think RAND was having fun with the readers.

Dian Chapman, Editor/TechTrax writes...

RE: http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=678#pc

Yeah, I got suckered into that one cos' I didn't take the time to check it out, as I should have and usually do. I think I fell for the funny aspect of it and hoped it was true!<g> Thanks for clearing this one up (AND for the great comments about TechTrax!).

Dian ~

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Linda writes...

Thank-you for this SnagIt article: http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=676

I just upgraded to SnagIt 8 and was searching for how to set the defaults and your article is just so easy to understand - the kind where not only did I find the exact answer I wanted, but it is clear how to apply other options now too.

Thank-you.
Linda

Dian Chapman, author of Custom Profiles with SnagIt, replies...

Thanks so much, Linda. Glad to hear it helped. There will be more articles on it cos' I love the program and it has saved me HOURS from how I used to handle similar work prior to learning to use SnagIt. So I've got to "share the wealth" to let others learn from my experiences.

Dian ~

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William writes...

Greg, thanks for your scripts. I tried your ListAllPrograms tool, but was unable to get it to work. It says that the macros in the project were disabled and I don't know how to enable them. I could not find any information in Word's Help. Can you help me?

Greg Chapman, developer of the great, free tools you can download here:
http://www.mousetrax.com/downloads.html, replies...

Here's what you ought to be able to do:

1. Open Word
2. Click the Tools menu, go down to Macros and then click Security
3. Change your security settings from High to Medium
4. Click OK until all the dialogs have closed
5. Close Word
6. Double click the template again
7. Tell me if it still doesn't work!

Good luck, sir!

Greg Chapman
http://www.mousetrax.com
http://www.layer1wireless.com

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A subscriber writes...

The Computer Mechanics, a Cable show also hosts a web/help site. A question there was about time in excel. I along with others on the forumasked to be told if anyone had a solution. Voila! We were all directed to TechTrax.

Great site!

Joanne Swensrude, author of Time Calculations in Excel, replies...

Wow that is very cool! Glad it helped. Thanks for letting me know.

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A subscriber writes...

[Regarding your apologies for TechTrax being late in the month...] Just a note to let you know that I actually like the mid-month publication date. With so many other newsletters arriving at the beginning of the month I have to quickly make a judgment call to either assign a task to read and review the newsletter or to hit the delete button. Too often, I fear, that moment of overwhelm has led to an itchy finger.

Sorry [to hear] about the plagiarism. I'm a writer by profession and I seriously considered not starting a web site for that exact reason. As I learned more about web site content and weblogs, I discovered actual programs complete with a wide-audience instruction database on how to successfully steal content and grab the resultant ad revenue. We should all speak loudly, uncomplainingly and clearly about the wrong nature of contact grabbing. With it as such a standard practice, people who have not thought deeply may not even be aware of an alternate view.

Dian Chapman, Editor/TechTrax replies...

Thanks for that feedback. Good to know it's appreciated even when I'm running late. (Although I think I over did it this month! Sheesh!). Humm, maybe I SHOULD just shoot for the 15th of the month??? I'll have to consider that fact. Nice to know your thoughts and that IS good reasoning why it might be better. I think it may run in the family...mom was always late and dad used to say "you'll probably be late for your own funeral!" Of course, mom's reply was "I hope so!" Dad died at 57. Mom is now 86. Maybe dad shouldn't have always rushed so much??? Or, as the T-Shirt says that my daughter's boss gave her..."I may be late, but I'm worth the wait!"<g>

As for the plagiarism...I have to agree. I think it's like software licensing...so many people don't read the license so they are ignorant of the laws and then see everyone else doing it and don't know that it is not only against many laws around the world...but is also a lazy and SLEAZY thing to do.

Feedback

David writes...

Mark,

Your [Excel VBA] lessons are incredible.  I have spent many a days learning Excel and macro's, but your lessons are clear correct and top notch value.  I have only got through lesson 2 so far, but will continue for sure.

Here is my problem...

There is a CSV file that gets placed in a folder from a webtime module and is named by the date all the way down to the second to eliminate the possibility of overwrite.  I need to access this file from my macro.  The name will continually change, but it should always be the last updated file in the folder.  I have tried the recent list, but does not work because the computer completes the task, therefore not allowing it to show there.

Any thoughts???

Mark Thorpe, author of the Excel VBA: No Experience Required series, replies...

Hi David -

I don't know of a simple way to do this in VBA. (There may be one, but I don't know of it.) I believe you will may need to use Windows API calls, specifically FindFirstFile and FindNextFile. The attached spreadsheet [download attachment here, 21k] contains a macro called FileList. If you enter a path in the yellow cell (make sure to put a backslash at the end) and run the macro (by clicking the button), it will list all of the files in that directory, giving the size and date/time stamp for each. To get these properties it also uses API calls GetFileSize, GetFileTime, FileTimeToLocalFileTime, and FileTimeToSystemTime.

You should be able to modify this code to keep track of the file that has the most recent file time. Instead of displaying them in the spreadsheet, just keep LatestFileName and LatestFileDate variable that, as you loop through each file, you reset each time you find a later file.

I hope that helps you out. Let me know if you run into any problems.

Mark

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A member writes...

I am new to watching videos and have a newbie question. When watching your training videos, my screen is so small that I cannot make out the wording in your extremely wonderful videos.

Is there something at my end that I need to do to be able to see what is going on in the video?

Thank you

Dian Chapman, author of the subscriber and member videos, replies...

Hi...

Sorry, but there really isn't anything you can do to enlarge the video itself. I do know that the newest versions of my video outputs, while they have better controls for reviewing, have been warped a bit in size, so I will soon be working to adjust their sizes some.

If you have a small screen, the best you can do is make things (everything) larger by bring down the resolution, which will make things larger (fewer pixels). If you want to do that...you can click the DISPLAY icon within the Start > Control Panel. From there, click the SETTINGS tab and lower the resolution (if you have any room to do so).

That said...there is one other thing you might be able to make use of??? Windows has a magnifier mode. I haven't tried this on the videos, but it MIGHT work. You can learn how to do this in this article...

Windows Magnifier
http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=90

That's the best I can offer...hope it helps...

Member's further reply...

Thank you. This is exceptional information. I will check out the Windows Magnifier link. I appreciate your quick response and helpful info.

Feedback

A subscriber writes...

I have a favor to ask. I'm submitting an article to our Intranet about creating Outlook Rules. My words could never compare to the fantastic article you wrote (and, no, I'm not just stroking your ego...I think you're wonderful). May I pluck major portions of this article to share with my users? I will, of course, give you all the credit.

Dian Chapman, Editor/TechTrax and author of Creating Outlook Rules, replies...

First, thanks so much for taking the time to ask for permission! Seems the meaning of copyright is a vague notion these days! ;-)

Yes, if this is for your company intranet and will not be posted to an Internet web site ...you have my permission to use this article (or portions thereof).

Please be sure to post my name as the original author and include this line:

"This article is reprinted with the author's permission from TechTrax Ezine at http://www.MouseTrax.com/TechTrax"

And please make a note in YOUR article reminding readers that this is copyrighted material and should not be used further without permission.

Thanks and good luck with your article...(Oh and thanks much for the kind words!<smile>)

Dian ~

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Irene Holmes from Paradise, CA, writes...

What an awesome program!!! Love this program and you get the credit for sending me to their site! My boss immediately purchased it for me to use at work. Extremely easy program to learn in a few moments! Thanks!

Dian Chapman, author of SnagIt - It Ain't Your Daddy's Screen Capture Program!, replies...

Thanks for the great comments. I passed them on to Betsy at TechSmith (the makers of SnagIt and Camtasia)...and you made her day! ;-)

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(Former) Subscriber, STANLEY, writes...(upon receiving his monthly TechTrax notice)...

EAT [expletive removed] AND DIE. YOU [expletive removed] LEAVE ME THE [expletive removed] ALONE ... YOU DO NOT HAVE A [expletive removed] THING I HAVE ASKED FOR NOR ANYTHING I WANT.

MAY THE DEATH SQUADS FIND ALL YOUR FEMALE RELATIVES BEFORE THIS WEEK IS
OVER...

SERENITY NOW

Dian Chapman, Editor/TechTrax replies (here and via email)...

Very mature!<sigh>

You DID sign up to receive our notice. In fact, here's what YOU SAID when you signed up on August 21, 2005 at 7:32 PM...

"I WAS GOING NUTS OVER HOW TO CUSTOMIZE THE QUICK LAUNCH AREA AND OTHERS. A GOOGLE SEARCH LUCKILY FOUND YOUR TERRIFIC SITE. AFTER READINT OUT WINXP_02 (MESSING WITH THE DISPLAY) I WAS HOOKED.. WONDER SITE, KEEP IT UP !!

But not to worry, after this childish email, I will HAPPILY remove you from our magazine subscription list!

Next time...before you chastise an innocent person with your filth, you might want to take a moment to remember things YOU SIGNED UP FOR!

By the way, allow me to give you one piece of advice (it's obvious you could use some)...do NOT type in all caps. It is not only rude (which you obviously didn't care about here, since that was the LEAST of your ignorance), but it also tells the world that you are a NEWBIE on a computer and don't understand that all caps is difficult to read and only those folks who know little about computers type that way...which labels you as not knowing much!

Good luck...I hope you DO find a useful place to learn how to use computers, you can clearly use the help!

Dian D. Chapman, Technical Consultant
Microsoft MVP, MOS Certified, Editor/TechTrax
Free Tutorials: http://www.mousetrax.com/techtrax

Editor's note: Realize we would NEVER spam you or give your email address to anyone else!

If you ever receive junk mail from MouseTrax.com, realize that it is NOT legit...someone forged that email address to spoof in an attempt to hide their own identity, as they do with banks addresses, Microsoft and other legit companies.

Additionally, if you ever decide you no longer wish to receive email from TechTrax, you need only remove your address from our database, which you can do through this link: http://www.mousetrax.com/TechTrax_Manage_Profile.asp

Feedback

Erwin writes...

Hi Dian,

Had to send a note of thanx for the Bark in the Park photos.

I have been looking for a magazine like TechTrax for quite a while and your word groups are the "icing on the cake."

Your work is very much appreciated by those of us who enjoy learning. As a very, very newbie attending the Scottsdale (AZ) Community College to obtain MOS certification, I look forward to hangin' out quite a lot.

Again, thanx, Erwin

Dian Chapman, Editor/TechTrax, replies...

Thanks for the thanks, Erwin! Yes, I love dogs and take every opportunity to slip in dog related stuff.<smile> Bark in the Park is not only a fun "doggie day," but an incredibly worthy cause that helps to provide healthcare and find homes for hundreds of thousands of wonderful, but homeless dogs and cats, who would otherwise be destroyed!