Word macro experts needed - for SIMPLE problem!

Factual Questions
1

This should be the simplest thing, but it is not working (perhaps because I’m using a Mac?)

I am trying to make a Macro in MS Word that creates a button that when I press it, does the Tools: Word Count function. I have done this in the past on a PC with no problem. However, despite trying to record the action, the resulting macro is blank:

If I just knew what the syntax/command is for Word Count I could edit it in manually, only I don’t. The Visual Basic help doesn’t seem to be installed, and nowhere on the internet can I find a list of simple commands. Googling “Word count macro” and similar keeps throwing up results for some downloadable program, which isn’t what I want (nor will it work on my Mac).

If anyone can help I would be exremely grateful!

2

This isn’t a way to actually activate the word count function in the tools menu but it’s what I’ve come up with so far…

MsgBox (ActiveDocument.Words.Count)

3

Oh that is kewl - thanks! I substituted ActiveDocument for Selection and it does exactly what I want!

How do you find out the syntax/commands in the first place? If I could find a simple list, with some examples of very basic macros, I could do so much more. (As the Record function isn’t working I sadly can’t create any basic ones myself to pick apart and fiddle with).

Thanks SO much :wink:

4

I’m very rusty on VB. for instance I would put some words like “there are " before and " words in the selection” after, but I don’t know how to join strings in vb (I know quite well in C++)

I found the answer just by messing about with word. I did a search for ‘count’ and eventually found that. I have a feeling it might not be possible to run word’s own word count dialog but I could easily be wrong.

5

Not to nitpick Lobsang’s method too much (it was my first attempt as well) but it counts punctuation and spaces as words too, which may throw off your stats.

I suggest something along the lines of:

Public Sub view_WC()
MsgBox “There are " & ActiveDocument.ComputeStatistics(wdStatisticWords) & " words.”
End Sub

which I found by looking in Tools->macros->macros in (word commands) noting that ToolsWordCount did what I wanted and typing that into the VB help, which gave me the code above. A mine of useful info that particular method.

The example above works under Word 2003, I don’t have another machine about with an older version to test on, sorry.

6

P.s. the record macro did the same thing for me, so I don’t think it’s because you are on a Mac.