VBA Constants

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A variable’s value may (and usually does) change while your procedure is executing.

That’s why they call it a variable.

Sometimes you need to refer to a value or string that never changes.

In such a case, you need a constant — a named element whose value doesn’t change.

As shown in the following examples, you declare constants by using the Const statement.

The declaration statement also gives the constant its value:

Const BlockLength As Integer = 4.
Const BlockThickness = .5
Const PartName As String = "Part Name:"
Public Const AppName As String = "Part Calculation"

Using constants in place of hard-coded values or strings is an excellent programming practice.

For example, if your procedure needs to refer to a specific value (such as sheet thickness) several times.

It is better to declare the value as a constant and refer to its name rather than the value.

This makes your code more readable and easier to change.

When sheet thickness changes, you have to change only one statement rather than several.

Like variables, constants have a scope. Keep these points in mind:

  • To make a constant available within only a single procedure, declare the constant after the procedure’s Sub or Function statement.
  • To make a constant available to all procedures in a module, declare the constant in the Declarations section for the module.
  • To make a constant available to all modules, use the Public keyword and declare the constant in the Declarations section of any module.

If you attempt to change the value of a constant in a VBA routine, you get an error.

This isn’t too surprising because a Constant is constant.

Unlike a variable, the value of a constant does not vary.

If you need to change the value of a constant while your code is running, what you really need is a variable.

Pre-made constants

Your CAD Application and VBA contain many predefined constants, which you can use without the need to declare them yourself.

The macro recorder (in Solidworks) usually uses constants rather than actual values.

In general, you don’t need to know the value of these constants to use them.

The following simple procedure uses a built-in constant swDefaultTemplatePart to select the default part template while opening a new file.

set swPart = swApp.NewDocument(swApp.GetUserPreferenceStringValue _
    (swUserPreferenceStringValue_e.swDefaultTemplatePart),0,0,0)

In above example, Solidworks did not record these constants.

It simply generates the direct path to open part document.

To find the actual value of a built-in constant, use the “Immediate window” in the VBE, and execute a VBA statement such as the following:

?swDefaultTemplatePart

If the Immediate window isn’t visible, press Ctrl+G. The question mark is a shortcut for typing Print.

Next post will be about VBA Strings Basics.

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