Q154517: HOWTO: Use the DrawText API Call from Visual Basic

Article: Q154517
Product(s): Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows
Version(s): WINDOWS:4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbprogramming kbVBp400 kb32bitOnly
Last Modified: 11-JAN-2001

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual Basic Standard Edition, 32-bit, for Windows, version 4.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition, 32-bit, for Windows, version 4.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise Edition, 32-bit, for Windows, version 4.0 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY
=======

The DrawText API gives users the ability to write text to a Device context
giving various alignment and word-wrapping features. This article provides a
code sample showing how to achieve these effects under the 32-bit Edition of
Visual Basic 4.0.

MORE INFORMATION
================

1. Start a new project in Visual Basic. Form1 is created by default.

2. Add a Command button to Form1.

3. Place the following code in the General Declarations section of Form1:

        Option Explicit

        Private Declare Function DrawText Lib "user32" Alias "DrawTextA" _
          (ByVal hdc As Long, ByVal lpStr As String, ByVal nCount As Long, _
          lpRect As RECT, ByVal wFormat As Long) As Long

        Private Const DT_BOTTOM = &H8
        Private Const DT_CENTER = &H1
        Private Const DT_LEFT = &H0
        Private Const DT_RIGHT = &H2
        Private Const DT_TOP = &H0
        Private Const DT_VCENTER = &H4
        Private Const DT_WORDBREAK = &H10

        Private Type RECT
           Left As Long
           Top As Long
           Right As Long
           Bottom As Long
        End Type

        Private Sub Command1_Click()
          Dim lSuccess As Long
          Dim sPrintText As String
          Dim MyRect As RECT
          Form1.Font.Size = 12
          Form1.ScaleMode = vbPixels
          MyRect.Left = 0
          MyRect.Right = Form1.ScaleWidth
          MyRect.Top = 20
          MyRect.Bottom = 60
          sPrintText = "Print this text"
          lSuccess = DrawText(Form1.hdc, sPrintText, Len(sPrintText), _
          MyRect, DT_CENTER or DT_WORDBREAK)
        End Sub

4. Press the F5 key to run the project, and press the Command button. Text
  should appear in the middle of the form and be word-wrapped. If you Resize
  the form and run the project again, you will note that the text still appears
  in the middle of the form on the horizontal axis.

Following is a list of all the constants that can be used with the DrawText API
to give the various effects documented in the Win32 SDK:

  Global Const DT_TOP = &H00000000
     Global Const DT_LEFT = &H00000000
     Global Const DT_CENTER = &H00000001
     Global Const DT_RIGHT = &H00000002
     Global Const DT_VCENTER = &H00000004
     Global Const DT_BOTTOM = &H00000008
     Global Const DT_WORDBREAK = &H00000010
     Global Const DT_SINGLELINE = &H00000020
     Global Const DT_EXPANDTABS = &H00000040
     Global Const DT_TABSTOP = &H00000080
     Global Const DT_NOCLIP = &H00000100
     Global Const DT_EXTERNALLEADING = &H00000200
     Global Const DT_CALCRECT = &H00000400
     Global Const DT_NOPREFIX = &H00000800
     Global Const DT_INTERNAL = &H00001000
     Global Const DT_EDITCONTROL = &H00002000
     Global Const DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS = &H00004000
     Global Const DT_END_ELLIPSIS = &H00008000
     Global Const DT_MODIFYSTRING = &H00010000
     Global Const DT_RTLREADING = &H00020000
     Global Const DT_WORD_ELLIPSIS = &H00040000

REFERENCES
==========

The Win32 SDK has a comprehensive summary of Drawtext and other Drawing and Text
functions.

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbprogramming kbVBp400 kb32bitOnly 
Technology        : kbVBSearch kbAudDeveloper kbVB400Search kbVB400
Version           : WINDOWS:4.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

=============================================================================

THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THE MICROSOFT KNOWLEDGE BASE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. MICROSOFT DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES SO THE FOREGOING LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY.

Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1986-2002.