Using ArcCatalog

Working with UIControls
If you create a macro and add it to a toolbar, you’ve essentially
customized what happens when you click the button. UIControls,
however, let you create custom commands with VBA that work
similarly to the buttons, tools, combo boxes, and edit boxes that
come with ArcCatalog.
Typically in ArcCatalog, you use buttons to start, end, or
interrupt an action or a series of actions. When you create a
button, you write code that sets its properties including its
ToolTip, the message that appears in the status bar describing
what the button does, and whether it’s enabled. You also define
the code that responds to the button’s click event; this is the
code that runs when you click the button on a toolbar.
Though similar to buttons, tools let you interact with the display—for
example, you can zoom in or pan around your map in
Geography view. In addition to setting the tool’s properties, your
code can respond to mouse and key events—clicking a mouse
button or pressing a key—and to someone selecting, doubleclicking,
or right-clicking the tool. A tool can respond when the
display refreshes or when it is deactivated.
A combo box combines the features of a text box and a list box.
You can use combo boxes to provide a set of items to choose
from, or you can let someone type a value that isn’t in the list.
You can add or remove entries from the list using the combo box.
Its properties let you work with the selected item or the text in the
edit box as well as determine how many entries are in the list. The
combo box can respond to several events such as changing the
current selection or changing the text in the edit box. As with
buttons and tools, you can also set the control’s ToolTip and
provide a status bar message.
Edit boxes let you display information entered by the user or data
derived from an external source. The Clear method removes the
contents of the edit box, while the Text property provides access
to the text that’s displayed. You can specify whether or not the
control is enabled and have the tool respond when someone
changes the text or presses a key. You can set the control’s
ToolTip and its status bar message.
Writing code for a command’s event procedures lets the command
respond to user interaction or the current state of the
Catalog. And, by using combo and edit boxes in ArcCatalog, you
might be able to avoid using a dialog box or UserForm to get
information. UIControls let you create sophisticated custom
commands that make ArcCatalog an efficient and powerful way
to create and finish your projects.
CUSTOMIZING ARCCATALOG 253