Removing empty lines in text using Visual Studio

Click ctrl-H to bring up the search window
Click: Use Regular Expressions
For the search term, put in: ^(?([^\r\n])\s)*\r?$\r?\n
For the replace term, delete everything

Thanks to https://stackoverflow.com/questions/12453160/remove-empty-lines-in-text-using-visual-studio

Using AI to assist in Literature Review

How AI technology can tame the scientific literature

Serial Port Access using Excel

This example is mainly taken from :https://strokescribe.com/en/serial-port-vb-winapi.html#code. It uses WinAPI functions https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/172wfck9.aspx, http://www.informit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=366892 Not that the begining of the code is all the declarations more than half the code. The actual usage is in the line: starting with "Private Sub CommandButton1_Click().

'---------------BEGIN-OF-DECLARATIONS------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private Type DCB
  DCBlength As Long
  BaudRate As Long
  fBitFields As Long
  wReserved As Integer
  XonLim As Integer
  XoffLim As Integer
  ByteSize As Byte
  Parity As Byte
  StopBits As Byte
  XonChar As Byte
  XoffChar As Byte
  ErrorChar As Byte
  EofChar As Byte
  EvtChar As Byte
  wReserved1 As Integer
End Type

' The structure of the fBitFields field.
' FieldName             Bit #     Description
' -----------------     -----     ------------------------------
' fBinary                 1       Windows does not support nonbinary mode transfers, so this member must be =1.
' fParity                 2       If =1, parity checking is performed and errors are reported
' fOutxCtsFlow            3       If =1 and CTS is turned off, output is suspended until CTS is sent again.
' fOutxDsrFlow            4       If =1 and DSR is turned off, output is suspended until DSR is sent again.
' fDtrControl             5,6     DTR flow control (2 bits)
' fDsrSensitivity         7       The driver ignores any bytes received, unless the DSR modem input line is high.
' fTXContinueOnXoff       8       XOFF continues Tx
' fOutX                   9       If =1, TX stops when the XoffChar character is received and starts again when the XonChar character is received.
' fInX                   10       Indicates whether XON/XOFF flow control is used during reception.
' fErrorChar             11       Indicates whether bytes received with parity errors are replaced with the character specified by the ErrorChar.
' fNull                  12       If =1, null bytes are discarded when received.
' fRtsControl            13,14    RTS flow control (2 bits)
' fAbortOnError          15       If =1, the driver terminates all I/O operations with an error status if an error occurs.
' fDummy2                16       reserved

'---------fBitFields-------------
Const F_BINARY = 1
Const F_PARITY = 2
Const F_OUTX_CTS_FLOW = 4
Const F_OUTX_DSR_FLOW = 8

'DTR Control Flow Values.
Const F_DTR_CONTROL_ENABLE = &H10
Const F_DTR_CONTROL_HANDSHAKE = &H20

Const F_DSR_SENSITIVITY = &H40
Const F_TX_CONTINUE_ON_XOFF = &H80
Const F_OUT_X = &H100
Const F_IN_X = &H200
Const F_ERROR_CHAR = &H400
Const F_NULL = &H800

'RTS Control Flow Values
Const F_RTS_CONTROL_ENABLE = &H1000
Const F_RTS_CONTROL_HANDSHAKE = &H2000
Const F_RTS_CONTROL_TOGGLE = &H3000

Const F_ABORT_ON_ERROR = &H4000

'---------Parity flags--------
Const EVENPARITY = 2
Const MARKPARITY = 3
Const NOPARITY = 0
Const ODDPARITY = 1
Const SPACEPARITY = 4

'---------StopBits-----------
Const ONESTOPBIT = 0
Const ONE5STOPBITS = 1
Const TWOSTOPBITS = 2

'-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private Type COMMTIMEOUTS
  ReadIntervalTimeout As Long
  ReadTotalTimeoutMultiplier As Long
  ReadTotalTimeoutConstant As Long
  WriteTotalTimeoutMultiplier As Long
  WriteTotalTimeoutConstant As Long
End Type
'-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Constants for the dwDesiredAccess parameter of the CreateFile() function
Const GENERIC_READ = &H80000000
Const GENERIC_WRITE = &H40000000

'Constants for the dwShareMode parameter of the CreateFile() function
Const FILE_SHARE_READ = &H1
Const FILE_SHARE_WRITE = &H2

'Constants for the dwCreationDisposition parameter of the CreateFile() function
Const CREATE_NEW = 1
Const CREATE_ALWAYS = 2
Const OPEN_EXISTING = 3

'Constants for the dwFlagsAndAttributes parameter of the CreateFile() function
Const FILE_ATTRIBUTE_NORMAL = &H80
Const FILE_FLAG_OVERLAPPED = &H40000000

'-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
'Error codes reported by the CreateFile().
'More error codes with descriptions are available at MSDN
Const ERROR_FILE_NOT_FOUND = 2
Const ERROR_ACCESS_DENIED = 5
Const ERROR_INVALID_HANDLE = 6


Private Declare Function CreateFile Lib "kernel32" Alias "CreateFileA" (ByVal lpFileName As String, _
        ByVal dwDesiredAccess As Long, ByVal dwShareMode As Long, ByVal lpSecurityAttributes As Long, _
        ByVal dwCreationDisposition As Long, ByVal dwFlagsAndAttributes As Long, _
        ByVal hTemplateFile As Long) As Long

Private Declare Function CloseHandle Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hObject As Long) As Long
Private Declare Function SetCommState Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, lpDCB As DCB) As Long
Private Declare Function GetCommState Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, lpDCB As DCB) As Long

Private Declare Function SetCommTimeouts Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, _
        lpCommTimeouts As COMMTIMEOUTS) As Long

Private Declare Function GetCommTimeouts Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, _
        lpCommTimeouts As COMMTIMEOUTS) As Long

Private Declare Function ReadFile Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, lpBuffer As Any, _
         ByVal nNumberOfBytesToRead As Long, lpNumberOfBytesRead As Long, ByVal lpOverlapped As Long) _
         As Long

Private Declare Function WriteFile Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hFile As Long, lpBuffer As Any, _
         ByVal nNumberOfBytesToWrite As Long, lpNumberOfBytesWritten As Long, _
         ByVal lpOverlapped As Long) As Long

'---------------END-OF-DECLARATIONS------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Private Sub CommandButton1_Click()

'Public Sub Init_Com()
    Dim rc As Long
    
    Dim h As Long
    h = CreateFile("\\.\COM7", GENERIC_READ Or GENERIC_WRITE, 0, 0, OPEN_EXISTING, _
                                FILE_ATTRIBUTE_NORMAL, 0)
    'For serial port numbers higher than 9 see KB115831

    If h = -1 Then
        rc = Err.LastDllError
        Select Case rc 'Two typical error codes when trying to open a serial port:
         Case ERROR_ACCESS_DENIED  ' - The serial port opened by another application
           MsgBox "The serial port is used by another program"
         Case ERROR_FILE_NOT_FOUND ' - The serial port does not exist, check the port name specified in the CreateFile()
           MsgBox "The serial port does not exist"
         Case Else
           MsgBox "CreateFile failed, the error code is " & Str(rc)
        End Select
        Exit Sub
    End If

    Dim d As DCB 'The DCB structure and the SetCommState() function allow to set the baud rate and the byte size of the serial port.
    rc = GetCommState(h, d)
    d.ByteSize = 8
    d.BaudRate = 19200
    d.fBitFields = F_BINARY 'Windows does not support non-binary data transfers so the flag must always be set in the DCB structure.
    
    'Another example how to set some flags in the DCB.
    'd.fBitFields = F_BINARY Or F_PARITY Or F_RTS_CONTROL_ENABLE
    
    d.StopBits = ONESTOPBIT
    d.Parity = NOPARITY
    rc = SetCommState(h, d)
    If rc = 0 Then
      rc = Err.LastDllError
      MsgBox "SetCommState failed, the error code is " & Str(rc)
    End If
    
    
    Dim timeouts As COMMTIMEOUTS 'Because we don't want communication timeouts to hang the VB code,
    rc = GetCommTimeouts(h, timeouts)  'we need to specify the maximum time Windows will wait for incoming data
    timeouts.ReadIntervalTimeout = 3  'The max. time in milliseconds between arrival of any two bytes
    timeouts.ReadTotalTimeoutConstant = 20 'The max. time the ReadFile() function will wait for data.
    timeouts.ReadTotalTimeoutMultiplier = 0
    rc = SetCommTimeouts(h, timeouts)
    If rc = 0 Then
      rc = Err.LastDllError
      MsgBox "SetCommTimeouts failed, the error code is " & Str(rc)
      GoTo close_and_exit
    End If
    

    Dim bWrite(1 To 10) As Byte 'Sending an array of 3 bytes to a remote device.
    bWrite(1) = &H47
    bWrite(2) = &H50
    bWrite(3) = &H20
    bWrite(4) = &H53
    bWrite(5) = &H54
    bWrite(6) = &H41
    bWrite(7) = &H54
    bWrite(8) = &H55
    bWrite(9) = &H53
    bWrite(10) = &HD
    Dim wr As Long
    rc = WriteFile(h, bWrite(1), 10, wr, 0) 'wr indicates how many bytes went to the port.
    If rc = 0 Then
      rc = Err.LastDllError
      MsgBox "WriteFile failed, the error code is " & Str(rc)
      GoTo close_and_exit
    End If
    
    'Now we want to receive an answer from the remote device.
    Dim bRead(1 To 23) As Byte  'We want to receive up to 10 bytes.
    Dim rd As Long
    rc = ReadFile(h, bRead(1), 23, rd, 0) 'rd indicates how many bytes received from the port.
    If rc = 0 Then
      rc = Err.LastDllError
      MsgBox "ReadFile failed, the error code is " & Str(rc)
      GoTo close_and_exit
    End If
    
    Dim s As String 'Printing the received data in hexadecimal form.
    Dim i As Long
    For i = 1 To rd
      s = s & Chr(bRead(i))
    Next i
    MsgBox s
    
close_and_exit:
    rc = CloseHandle(h) 'In VBA, always execute this call. Or you will receive the ERROR_ACCESS_DENIED next time then opening the port
                        'and you will need to reload Word/Excel/Access to free the port.
End Sub

Losing WiFi on my Dell Studio 1458

The F2 button turns off the wifi radio. Unfortunately, I am always mistakenly hitting F2 when I want to rename a file. I have just discovered through trial and error that it is actually double hitting the F2 that turns off the wifi, and another double hitting that turns it back on. However, when turning it back on, it takes a few seconds before it changes to the * and then show multiple bars.

Personal Faith

If faith is supposed to be personal (unique, private, individual), why do we expect other people to have the exact same beliefs as us?

True Religion

True religion facilitates our connection with God and our care for other people. Connecting with God is not the religion, it is only a tool to help us connect with God. When people use religion as a club to beat on me, even when they say it is for my good so I will repent, they do not get it. True religion values the other person and starts from their perspective in helping them heal and connect with God. True religion does not start with a predetermined notion of what is right for the other person. It starts where the other person is and walks along side them. Very often, organized religion is not true religion, it is only a perpetuation of an institution.

Storing PDFs in MS Access

Store is as a binary:http://stackoverflow.com/questions/858915/storing-pdfs-in-ms-access-database-using-forms

Function LoadFileFromDisk(Bestand, Optional FileName As String = "")
  Dim imgByte() As Byte
  If FileName = "" Then FileName = strFileName
  Open FileName For Binary Lock Read As #1
  ReDim imgByte(1 To LOF(1))
  Get #1, , imgByte
  Close #1
  If Not IsEmpty(imgByte) Then Bestand.Value = imgByte
End Function

This text is after the block

Microsoft website solution is quite long: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/103257


Amara BLOB example:

http://www.ammara.com/access_image_faq/read_write_blob.html

'Read the file 'Image-In.jpg' into the field named 'Image'. FileToBlob "C:\Photos\Image-In.jpg", [Image] 'Extract the file contained in the field named 'Image' to a file named 'Image-Out.jpg'. BlobToFile "C:\Photos\Image-Out.jpg", [Image]

---

'Function:  BlobToFile - Extracts the data in a binary field to a disk file. 'Parameter: strFile - Full path and filename of the destination file. 'Parameter: Field - The field containing the blob. 'Return:    The length of the data extracted. Public Function BlobToFile(strFile As String, ByRef Field As Object) As Long     On Error GoTo BlobToFileError     Dim nFileNum As Integer     Dim abytData() As Byte     BlobToFile = 0     nFileNum = FreeFile     Open strFile For Binary Access Write As nFileNum     abytData = Field     Put #nFileNum, , abytData     BlobToFile = LOF(nFileNum) BlobToFileExit:     If nFileNum > 0 Then Close nFileNum     Exit Function BlobToFileError:     MsgBox "Error " & err.Number & ": " & err.Description, vbCritical, _            "Error writing file in BlobToFile"     BlobToFile = 0     Resume BlobToFileExit End Function 'Function:  FileToBlob - Loads a file into a binary field. 'Parameter: strFile - Full path and filename of the source file. 'Parameter: Field - The binary field into which the file is to be loaded. Public Function FileToBlob(strFile As String, ByRef Field As Object)     On Error GoTo FileToBlobError     If Len(Dir(strFile)) > 0 Then         Dim nFileNum As Integer         Dim byteData() As Byte         nFileNum = FreeFile()         Open strFile For Binary Access Read As nFileNum         If LOF(nFileNum) > 0 Then             ReDim byteData(1 To LOF(nFileNum))             Get #nFileNum, , byteData             Field = byteData         End If     Else         MsgBox "Error: File not found", vbCritical, _                "Error reading file in FileToBlob"     End If FileToBlobExit:     If nFileNum > 0 Then Close nFileNum     Exit Function FileToBlobError:     MsgBox "Error " & err.Number & ": " & err.Description, vbCritical, _            "Error reading file in FileToBlob"     Resume FileToBlobExit End Function

Display BLOB images in MS Access Report
http://bytes.com/topic/access/answers/909583-how-display-blob-images-ms-access-report


http://bytes.com/topic/access/answers/564980-image-blobs-please-help

ADO stream object - this may only work with SQL
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/258038

CodeProject
http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/16851/Uploading-and-Downloading-BLOBs-to-Microsoft-Acces

Opening Excel application using VBA

In the references, add in "Microsoft Excel n Object Library".

Then the code should look as follows:


Dim exApp As Excel.Application
Set exApp = CreateObject("Excel.Application")
exApp.Visible = True


Microsoft Access Dim dbs object

When writing code in previous version of Microsoft Access, the database object could be dimensioned with the following line:

    Dim dbs As Database

That line now cause a compile error. MS Access is able to find the reference by changing it to:

    Dim dbs As DAO.Database

Using a file dialog box in Access 2010

When installing a "Microsoft Common Dialog Control 6.0" in an Access 2010 form, I receive the error "You don't have the license required to use this ActiveX control".

Apparently the ActiveX controls have a lot of new limitations for security reasons in Access 2010.

To work around this, I dimenioned the control directly in the code as follows:


Dim f As FileDialog
Set f = Application.FileDialog(msoFileDialogFilePicker)
f.Show
MsgBox "file choose was " & f.SelectedItems(1)

When doing this, make sure to add "Microsoft Office 14.0 Object Library" to the references.

Adding an overbar to a letter in MS Word

When expressing the average like Y bar, this can be done in word by inserting a field code (CTRL F9), then creating the code as follows: { EQ \O (Y, ¯)}. The way you get the character ¯ to appear is by holding down the alt key, then typing the number sequence 0175. This is the ASCII code for an overbar.