Library tutorials & articles

Common Dialog Control

By James Crowley, published on 14 Jul 2001
James Crowley James first started this website when learning Visual Basic back in 1999 whilst studying his GCSEs. The site grew steadily over the years while being run as a hobby - to a regular monthly audience ...
Page 3 of 6
  1. Introduction
  2. Using the Control
  3. Using the Open/Save Dialog
  4. Using the Print Dialog
  5. Using the Colour Dialog
  6. A Better Common Dialog Control!

Using the Open/Save Dialog

You can use the open dialog to allow the user to select a file, which your application can then open, or analyse etc. Below are the most common parameters you will need to set before displaying the Open Dialog Box.

Parameter Changes...
DialogTitle the Title displayed in the Dialog Box
Filter the File Types displayed in the file type list.
FilterIndex the default file type
Flags custom settings such as hide read-only files
CancelError whether an error occurs when the dialog box is cancelled.

The following code displays an open Dialog, with read-only files hidden. The extension list is set to allow Word Documents (*.doc) and Excel Spreadsheets (*.xls). The dialog will not allow you to select files that do not exist.

' Sets the Dialog Title to Open File
CommonDialog1.DialogTitle = "Open File"

' Sets the File List box to Word documents and Excel documents
CommonDialog1.Filter = "Word Documents (*.doc)|*.doc|Excel Spreadsheets (*.xls)|*.xls"

' Set the default files type to Word Documents
CommonDialog1.FilterIndex = 1

' Sets the flags - File must exist and Hide Read only
CommonDialog1.Flags = cdlOFNFileMustExist + cdlOFNHideReadOnly

' Set dialog box so an error occurs if the dialogbox is cancelled
CommonDialog1.CancelError = True

' Enables error handling to catch cancel error
On Error Resume Next
' display the dialog box
CommonDialog1.ShowOpen
If Err Then
    ' This code runs if the dialog was cancelled
    Msgbox "Dialog Cancelled"
    Exit Sub
End If
' Displays a message box.
Msgbox "You selected " & CommonDialog1.FileName

The Filter property is a string using the following format:

"FileTypeText1 |FileTypeExtension1 | FileTypeText2 | FileTypeExtension2"

The FileName property stores the selected file's path and name. The FileTitle property stores just the filename, you could use this to set a dialogbox's title:

Form1.Caption = "Text From : " & CommonDialog1.FileTitle

The following code displays an save Dialog. The extension list is set to allow Text File (*.txt) and All Files (*.*). It hides readonly files, prompts if you want to overwrite the existinf files, and only allows the file to be saved in a folder that already exists

' Sets the Dialog Title to Save File
CommonDialog1.DialogTitle = "Save File"

' Sets the File List box to Text File and All Files
CommonDialog1.Filter = "Text File (*.txt)|*."|AllFiles (*.*)|*.*"

' Set the default files type to Text File
CommonDialog1.FilterIndex = 1

' Sets the flags - Hide Read only, prompt to overwrite, and path must exist
CommonDialog1.Flags = cdlOFNHideReadOnly + cdlOFNOverwritePrompt _
+ cdlOFNPathMustExist

' Set dialog box so an error occurs if the dialogbox is cancelled
CommonDialog1.CancelError = True

' Enables error handling to catch cancel error
On Error Resume Next
' display the dialog box
CommonDialog1.ShowSave
If Err Then
    ' This code runs if the dialog was cancelled
    Msgbox "Dialog Cancelled"
    Exit Sub
End If

' Displays a message box.
Msgbox "You saved the files as  " & CommonDialog1.FileName

If you just want to display the open and save dialogs, what's the point of having a control with extra code you don't need? VB Web has the solution! Take a look at our Open/Save Dlg Control (with multi-file select support)

Related tags

visual basic

Comments

  1. ffrreeaakk
    20 Feb 2007 at 20:28

    I know what you're thinking about. I have exactly the same problem. I don't know how to make Common Dialog Box show such window: http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/7206/selectdirectorytt2.jpg

  2. Anas Al-Sebie Yague
    26 Jul 2006 at 09:57

    Dear Sir

    Thanks for you help and I like you way that you got it, but my questation is Can I use Common Dialog without use File Type? because I need only open folder without select file "Only Folder Path"

  3. takedownca
    20 Apr 2004 at 19:45

    Using the FileName (path) and FileTitle (filename) properties of the dialog control,

    Code:

    Dim FilePathOnly As String


    FilePathOnly = Left(FileName, Len(FileName) - Len(FileTitle))
    'or
    FilePathOnly = Left(FileName, InStrRev(FileName, "\"))


    'or if you use a scripting runtime
    Dim fso As FileSystemObject


    FilePathOnly = fso.GetPath(FileName)

  4. Josh Johnson
    24 Dec 2003 at 07:58

    Code:
    OpenPath = App.Path & "\templates\"


    OpenFileWName = TreeView1.SelectedItem


    If OpenFileWName = OpenPath Then
    MsgBox "You can not select a directory.  Please select a template file."
    Else
    frmMain.RichTextBox1.LoadFile OpenPath + OpenWFileName
    'Unload Me
    End If


    And it should be as simple as that


    Any idea on my problem? I posted it on here as darkwolf

  5. Josh Johnson
    20 Dec 2003 at 17:20

    is there a way of getting just the path of the file this way, without the file name in it?
    E.G. if i open
    C:\Windows\Wini.ini
    can i get the program to read just
    C:\Windows
    from that?

  6. Joel Strellner
    24 Sep 2002 at 01:47

    Thanks.


    I have decided to do it a different way though.  I am now using a Tree view to list all files in the directory.  It allows a much better interface for what I am trying to accomplish.


    I do have a new problem though.  The main function of the form (frmNewTemplate) is to open a file an put the contents into a rich textbox on the main form (frmMain) but it doesn't seem to be working.  If I put a RichTextBox on the frmNewTemplate it is able to open the file and put it into the RichTextBox correctly but when I change it to be placed into the frmMain it doesn't update the RichTextBox.


    Do have any ideas on how to pass the information from frmNewTemplate to frmMain?


    I have included the code below.  Again it works until the part of updating frmMain.


    Code:


    OpenPath = App.Path & "\templates\"


    OpenFileWName = TreeView1.SelectedItem


    If OpenFileWName = OpenPath Then
    MsgBox "You can not select a directory.  Please select a template file."
    Else
    Open OpenPath & OpenFileWName For Input As #1
       Do Until EOF(1)
       Line Input #1, lineoftext$
           If frmMain.RichTextBox1.Text = "" Then
           alltext$ = lineoftext$
           Else
           alltext$ = alltext$ & vbCrLf & lineoftext$
           End If
       frmMain.RichTextBox1.Text = alltext$
       Loop
    Close #1


    'Unload Me
    End If




    Thank you in advance for any help that you or anyone else may provide.


    Joel Strellner

  7. nzjonboy
    24 Sep 2002 at 00:25

    if you are using the common dialog control in your app then you can set the initdir property to the folder you want the dialog to default to.


    I think you may need to check the file selected to ensure that it was chosen from the path that your trying to restrict to.


  8. Joel Strellner
    23 Sep 2002 at 18:28

    Is there a way to make it display files in a preselected directory?  In a program I am making I would like for people to only open a file in a certain directory.  I do not want the common dialog to default to their desktop but to a folder in the applications folder.


    Thank you,
    Joel Strellner

  9. Developer Fusion Bot
    01 Jan 1999 at 00:00

    This thread is for discussions of Common Dialog Control.

Leave a comment

Sign in or Join us (it's free).

AddThis

Related articles

Ask a question

Related discussion

Languages

Web Development

Frameworks & Architecture

Other major sections