FIX: Developer Studio Macro Constants Not Defined (183813)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Enterprise Edition 5.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Professional Edition 5.0
This article was previously published under Q183813

SYMPTOMS

Developer Studio macros use constants to modify the behavior of certain methods. On some machines that have regional settings set to anything other than "English (United States)," these constants are zero or blank.

CAUSE

Typically, this problem surfaces after installing Internet Explorer version 4.0. The installation updates an important file: Vbscript.dll.

All the Developer Studio type libraries (labeled Visual Studio 97 in the registry) were created with the locale identifier for U.S. English, which is 0x409. The registry refers to them under a "409" subkey. Developer Studio macros use Vbscript.dll to access and use the information stored in the type libraries. Past versions of Vbscript.dll accessed the information under 0x409 for all regional settings. The newer version of Vbscript.dll loads only type libraries registered under either of the following:

  • The current system locale identifier.
  • A language neutral locale identifier.
This new behavior of Vbscript.dll prevents Developer Studio from gaining access to the appropriate constants.

RESOLUTION

Although Developer Studio can't access the constants in a VBScript macro, it can execute the methods. It is possible to define the constants manually and use these definitions in place of the predefined constants. Use the following table to manually define the constants: 

   Constant              Value
   ---------------------------
   dsMove                  0
   dsExtend                1
   dsFirstColumn           0
   dsFirstText             1
   dsLowercase             1
   dsUppercase             2
   dsCapitalize            3
   dsHorizontal            0
   dsVertical              1
   dsLastLine              -1
   dsDevStudio             0
   dsVC2                   1
   dsBrief                 2
   dsEpsilon               3
   dsCustom                4
   dsMatchWord             2
   dsMatchCase             4
   dsMatchNoRegExp         0
   dsMatchRegExp           8
   dsMatchRegExpB          16
   dsMatchRegExpE          32
   dsMatchRegExpCur        64
   dsMatchForward          0
   dsMatchBackward         128
   dsMatchFromStart        256
   dsWindowStateMaximized  1
   dsWindowStateMinimized  2
   dsWindowStateNormal     3
   dsMinimize              1
   dsTileHorizontal        2
   dsTileVertical          3
   dsCascade               4
   dsGlyph                 1
   dsText                  2
   dsSaveChangesYes        1
   dsSaveChangesNo         2
   dsSaveChangesPrompt     3
   dsSaveSucceeded         1
   dsSaveCanceled          2
   dsTextDocument          "Text"
   dsVBSMacro              "VBS Macro"
   dsJava                  "Java"
   dsCPP                   "C/C++"
   dsIDL                   "ODL/IDL"
   dsHTML_IE3              "HTML - IE 3.0"
   dsHTML_RFC1866          "HTML 2.0 (RFC 1866)"
   dsFortran_Fixed         "Fortran Fixed"
   dsFortran_Free          "Fortran Free"


For example, consider the following macro: 

   Sub HighLightLeft()
   'Highlights the character to the left of the cursor.
      ActiveDocument.Selection.CharLeft dsExtend
   End Sub


On a system that has a regional setting other than "English (United States)" and Internet Explorer 4.0 installed, this macro may not work properly; it just moves the cursor left one character without selecting it.

Using the table above, note that the constant "dsExtend" has an assigned value of 1 (one). Instead of using "dsExtend", you can manually define your own constant. The following code corrects the problem: 

   Sub HighLightLeft()
   'Highlights the character to the left of the cursor.
      Dim myDsExtend
      myDsExtend = 1
      ActiveDocument.Selection.CharLeft myDsExtend
   End Sub

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was corrected in Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0.

MORE INFORMATION

To modify the current regional settings:

  1. From the Start menu, point to Settings.
  2. Click Control Panel.
  3. Select Regional Settings, then click the Regional Settings tab.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:12/2/2003
Keywords:kbBug kbDSSTools kbfix kbVC600fix KB183813
©2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.