Using outside objects and libraries

[S]

Can anyone suggest a good starting point on learning how to use outside
objects/controls. ie, Adobe Acrobat, Dragon Naturally Speaking, etc.
Many programs make their controls available to Access and VBA, but I've
never really figured how to go about adding their functionality to an
Access Database.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Douglas J. Steele]

The fact that they show up in the list of controls doesn't actually mean
that they're available for use in Access: Access is a lot pickier about
which controls it can use than, say, Visual Basic.
(http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=202104 explains the restrictions that
apply to all versions of Access, not just Access 2000 as indicated in the
article).

And unfortunately, there's really no generic set of instructions you can
follow: each control is going to have its own methods and properties that
you'll have to learn.

For many of the controls, you may be able to find instructions in how to use
Automation at the vendor's site. Otherwise, if you have a specific question,
try asking in microsoft.public.access.activexcontrols