WD97: Find/Replace Macros Cannot Find Wingdings Characters (185190)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows
This article was previously published under Q185190

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Word 97, when you run a macro to find or replace a character formatted with a decorative font such as one formatted with a Wingdings character, nothing happens.

CAUSE

This problem occurs if the macro was created in an earlier version of Word (Microsoft Word version 6.0 or Microsoft Word 7.0 for Windows 95) and if that macro uses the Asc function. In Word 97, this function returns the same ANSC (ANSI) or ACSII character code for all special characters.

WORKAROUND

To find and replace Symbol or special characters (characters from fonts not based on the ANSI or ASCII character set), use the FindSymbol macro, which is supplied with Word in the Macros8.dot template. Word Setup places this template in the macros folder of the Office program folder.

To use the FindSymbol macro to find symbol or special characters in the current document, follow these steps:

  1. On the File menu, click Template.
  2. Select Macros8.dot, which is located in the <Word>\Macros directory, and click OK.

    Where <word> is the directory in which your Word program files are located.
  3. On the Tools menu, click Macro.
  4. Select All Active Templates or Macros8.dot in the Macros Available In list.
  5. In the Macro Name box, select FindSymbol, and then click Run.
    1. In the Find And Replace Symbols dialog box, click Find What to select the symbol you want to find.
    2. If you want to replace the Find What character with another symbol, select the Replace With option and then click Replace With to select the replacement symbol.

      -or-

      If you want to replace the Find What character with regular text, select the Text option and type the replacement text in the Text box.
For information about how to add sample macros in Word 97, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

162490 How to Access Sample Macros for Word 97

MORE INFORMATION

The Asc function is used to return an integer representing the ANSI value of a Symbol character in a macro. When this function is used in Microsoft Word 97, it returns the same value (40 or 63 depending on the method you use to insert the character into your document) for all the decorative font characters.

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http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

You can use the following macro to return the ANSI code for a Wingdings character: 
   Sub ShowANSI()
      'Returns a message box with the ANSI value of the selected character.
      MsgBox Str(Asc(Selection.Range))
   End Sub
For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

173707 OFF97: How to Run Sample Code from Knowledge Base Articles

ANSI Value of 40

If you insert a Windgings font from the Symbol dialog box, the ANSI value for that character is always 40.

To insert the Wingdings font from the Symbol dialog box, follow these steps:

  1. On the Insert menu, click Symbol and then click the Symbol tab.
  2. In the Font list, select Wingdings.
  3. Click any symbol, click Insert, and then click Close.
If you select the inserted character and run the ShowANSI macro, Word displays a message box on the screen with the value 40. If you repeat steps 1-3 and insert a different Winding character, the value will remain 40.

ANSI Value of 63

The ANSI character for a Wingdings character is always 63 if you insert the character by doing any of the following:

  • Use the Character Map
  • Use a keystroke (such as ALT+0245)
  • Manually change the character font (using the Font list or dialog box)
To see an example of this, follow these steps:

  1. In blank document, click the drop-down arrow in the Font box, and select the Wingdings font.
  2. Press the "K" key.

    A fancy ampersand is added to your document.
  3. Select the character and run the macro.
The ANSI value returned is 63.

For more information about Unicode, visit the Unicode Web site at:

http://www.unicode.org/

REFERENCES

For more information about the CHRW function, from the Visual Basic Editor, click the Office Assistant, type "CHR function," click Search, and then click to view "CHR function."

For more information about the ASCW function, from the Visual Basic Editor, click the Office Assistant, type ASC function," click Search, and then click to view "ASC function."

NOTE: If the Assistant is hidden, click the Office Assistant button on the Standard toolbar. If the Assistant is not able to answer your query, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

176476 OFF: Office Assistant Not Answering Visual Basic Questions

For more information about getting help with Visual Basic for Applications, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

163435 VBA: Programming Resources for Visual Basic for Applications

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:6/17/2005
Keywords:kbnofix kbprb KB185190
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