Startapp and setting focus

[Murph]

I got a simple routine that starts up the expressviewer being called from a menu. It works other than the Viewer is not the active window, (sits in the taskbar) AutoCAD stays as the main window. Anyone know a way to set focus. Vlisp and using Active.app visible = True maybe?

(defun showSpec (unit / page )
(setq page (strcat "F://web_http//specbook//" unit ".dwf")) (startapp "ExpressViewer.exe" page)
)

Murph

 

[R.K. McSwain]

I got a simple routine that starts up the expressviewer being called from a menu. It works other than the Viewer is not the active window, (sits in the taskbar) AutoCAD stays as the main window. Anyone know a way to set focus. Vlisp and using Active.app visible = True maybe?

(defun showSpec (unit / page )
(setq page (strcat "F://web_http//specbook//" unit ".dwf"))

)

How about:

(defun showSpec (unit)
(startapp "ExpressViewer.exe" (strcat "F://web_http//specbook//" unit ".dwf")) (vlax-put (vlax-get-acad-object) "WindowState" 2)
)

 

[Murph]

That works, of course AutoCAD is minimized now (when Expressviewer is closed) but they can live with that for right now.
Thanks

Murph

I got a simple routine that starts up the expressviewer being called from a menu. It works other than the Viewer is not the active window, (sits in the taskbar) AutoCAD stays as the main window. Anyone know a way to set focus. Vlisp and using Active.app visible = True maybe?

(defun showSpec (unit / page )
(setq page (strcat "F://web_http//specbook//" unit ".dwf"))

)

How about:

(defun showSpec (unit)
(startapp "ExpressViewer.exe" (strcat "F://web_http//specbook//" unit ".dwf")) (vlax-put (vlax-get-acad-object) "WindowState" 2)
)

 

[R.K. McSwain]

That is the only simple way I could think of.
I suppose you could use VB or C++ to get the handle of the applicable windows, and change the Z order so that ExpressViewer on top, but AutoCAD stays just under it.

 

[James Murphy]

The simple way is fine for right now. If the idea of the parts catalog accessible from ACAD verses going to a 3" binder somewhere in a drawer or on a shelf somewhere works for my users and they use it then I'll pretty things up and spend the time to it in VB.

Murph

That is the only simple way I could think of.
I suppose you could use VB or C++ to get the handle of the applicable windows, and change the Z order so that ExpressViewer on top, but AutoCAD stays just under it.

 

[Jimmy Bergmark]

Using VLisp:
(setq WshShell (vlax-create-object "WScript.Shell"))
(setq oExec (vlax-invoke-method WshShell 'Exec "C:\\Program Files\\Autodesk\\Autodesk Express Viewer\\ExpressViewer.exe C:\\TEST.DWF"))

Using VBA:
Public Sub test
Dim WshShell
Set WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
WshShell.Run """C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Autodesk Express Viewer\ExpressViewer.exe"" "" C:\TEST.DWF""", 3 End Sub

 

[Jimmy Bergmark]

This VBA equivalent does also work if the path to the exe file is using short names

(vlax-invoke-method wshshell 'Run
"C:/Progra~1/Autodesk/Autode~1/Expres~1.exe C:\\New Folder\\Test.DWF" 3 :vlax-false)

 

[Murph]

I like it Of course you are making hit the help files so I know what it is doing but it works great. Thanks Jimmy

Murph