Word Document Properties

User folder:
Place user-specific information in the user’s folder, which is
normally the 
\Documents and Settings
(older versions of Windows)
or 
\Users
(Vista) directory of the machine. Every user has a personal
directory, and you can create a subdirectory in that folder for your pro-
gram. Using this technique lets users have their own settings.
230
Part III: Expanding Your VBA Horizons 
16_046500 ch10.qxp 12/5/06 5:36 PM Page 230

---

Document folder:
When a series of settings applies to a specific docu-
ment and not to a particular user, it pays to use a document folder for
configuration storage. Using this technique ensures that any custom
document settings are stored with the document.
Project folder:
A setting can affect all documents in a particular project.
You can store the configuration settings with the project to ensure that
everyone working with the project can access the configuration settings.
Using a project folder also ensures that the settings remain safe because
the same security settings that keep the data safe keep your configura-
tion file safe.
Workgroup folder:
Your program can affect how the members of a work-
group interact. When everyone uses the same settings, you want to be
sure that the settings are in a central place. The question to ask yourself,
in this case, is whether the settings are truly necessary. You might want
to consider writing your program so that it uses those settings by
default rather than stores the settings in a file.
Data translation
Data translation is a task that you might have to perform from time to time.
You might have to transfer information to another system, or you might
simply require the information in another form. Before you break out the VBA
Integrated Development Environment (IDE), though, make sure that the appli-
cation doesn’t provide the required translation for you. Most applications
install with just the most popular data conversion choices and support many
others. In addition, a vendor often creates new translation options for its
application that you can download from a Web site.
After you know that you need to translate the data, try to choose an easy
format. Pure text is the easiest method of transferring information between
two programs. Unfortunately, pure text lacks formatting information. The con-
tent is still intact, but notes and other information that you added in the appli-
cation might not appear with the data. In some cases, transferring the content
is the best you can hope to achieve, but you should look for other options.
Data storage
You might find that you have program data storage needs. This information is
in addition to the data that the program normally tracks. For example, you
might want to create a log file that contains activities performed by your pro-
gram so that you can detect errors or security problems. It also helps to
231