Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Using Seek In a Macro.
Several other tips in other issues of WordTips discuss opening, reading, writing, appending, and closing text files. Another macro command associated with sequential text files is the Seek command. If used on an open file, it positions the internal file pointer at a specific character number in the file. The following code fragment is an example of how it is used:
Open "DOSTEXT.DAT" for Input as #1 iFileLen = LOF(1) Seek 1, iFileLen / 2
These program lines use the LOF function to determine the length of the file. The last line then positions the internal file pointer half way through the file. All subsequent reading or writing of the file will take place from that position.
You can also use Seek as a function to determine your current position within a text file. This is what this code does:
iCurPos = Seek(1)
This command leaves the internal file pointer where it was, but sets iCurPos to a value representing how many characters into the file the pointer is. The iCurPos value is the position at which all subsequent reading and writing of the file will take place.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1385) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Using Seek In a Macro.
Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!
If you have a Word 2003 document that always seems to open in reading layout mode, you may want to turn that "feature" off. ...
Discover MoreSometimes Word can get confused, and it may think that it needs to recover files that you are sure no longer exist. If you ...
Discover MoreSome people use their computers for little else, other than to work on Word documents. If that is the case with you, then you ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2017 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: 
Comments