How to Get Selected text from Word or Excel?

[BigDaddyO]

I am writing a little script that will be launched via a windows Shortcut HotKey that will grab the selected text from any open window, Verify if it's an IP address by looking for . . . and then Ping that address.

I got it to work from Notepad and WordPad but Office products do not seem to work. Does anybody have a clue on how to read Selected text from Word and Excel, I am hoping I don't have to use COM but i'm starting to think it will come to that.

Below is the current code, I'm using HotKeySet right now just for testing. eventually the _Selected() will be the only code in the script.

EDIT: I figured it out with COM and it was really easy, but it fails the first time through...

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_Selected()

Func _Selected()
$w_Title = WinGetTitle("")
$Control = ControlGetFocus($w_Title, "")
if StringInStr($w_Title, "Microsoft Word") Then
    $oWord = ObjGet("", "Word.Application")
    if @error Then
        MsgBox(0, "Word Connection", "Error connecting to the Word COM object")
        Exit
    EndIf
    $c_Text = $oWord.Selection.text
elseif StringInStr($w_Title, "Microsoft Excel") Then
;Retrieve selected text from Excel
    $oExcel = ObjGet("", "Excel.Application")
    if @error Then
        MsgBox(0, "Excel Connection", "Error connecting to the Excel COM object")
        Exit
    EndIf
    $c_Text = $oExcel.Selection.text
Else
$c_Text = ControlCommand($w_Title, "", $Control, "GetSelected", "")
EndIf
if StringInStr($c_Text, ".", 0, 3) Then; There are 3 . so should be an IP address
    $c_Text2 = StringStripWS($c_Text, 8)
;~  MsgBox(0, $w_Title, "Control = " & $Control & @CRLF & "Text = " & $c_Text2)
    $Ping = Ping($c_Text2, 2000)
    If @error Then
        $err = @error
        if $err = 1 then $err = "Host is offline"
        if $err = 2 then $err = "Host is unreachable"
        if $err = 3 then $err = "Bad destination"
        if $err = 4 then $err = "Unknown error"
        MsgBox(0, "Ping Failed", "Ping Returned Error:  " & $err)
    Else
        MsgBox(0, "Ping Successfull", "Ping of " & $c_Text2 & " replied in " & $Ping & "ms")
    EndIf
EndIf
EndFunc

Edited February 1, 2006 by MikeOsdx

[flaxcrack]

I know you could do it from a CSV file. Maybe that will work instead of a XLS.

[BigDaddyO]

OK,

I got it to retrieve from Word and Excel the selected text but it always seems to fail the ObjGet during the first time through.

Example.

Launch Excel, select a cell with an IP then hit F4 (my shortcut HotKey).

The ObJGet fails.

Hit F4 to launch the script again and it works fine.

I even tried to put the ObjGet into a loop and if it fails wait 1 second and try again for a max of 5 tries and that didn't work. for some reason the script has to fail, then Exit, and then Launch the script again to connect to the COM object.

WEIRD!!!

EDIT: More info, turns out if I launch Excel, change focus to any other window then go back into excel, then launch the script it will work fine...

Any ideas?

Mike

Edited February 1, 2006 by MikeOsdx

[trids]

Have you tried sending just CTRL+C? .. should work on all apps wherever you can select text

HTH