Neat Dialog Boxes in COM-aware Scripting Languages

COM-visible DialogBoxes.dll

Version 0.18.1 beta

Besides as true command line tools, the dialogboxes are available in a DLL too, to allow their use in COM-aware scripting languages (e.g. VBScript, KiXtart).

Early during development, I wrote each dialog as a method (function) with lots of arguments.
Whereas in batch files I could use switches to allow skipping arguments, in the DLL's early development versions one had to supply all arguments in the exact order!
Besides, just like the command line tools, these methods were limited to returning a single string only.
So the current DLL version uses a different approach:

1. a script creates an instance of a dialog
2. the script sets only those properties that should not use their default values
3. the script executes the dialog object's Show( ) method
4. the script reads all the property values it requires

The following dialog boxes are available in the current version:

• ColorSelectBox
• DateTimeBox
• DropDownBox
• FontSelectBox
• InputBox
• MessageBox
• MultipleChoiceBox
• OpenFileBox
• OpenFolderBox
• PrinterSelectBox
• RadioButtonBox
• SaveFileBox
• SystemTrayMessage (not a dialog box, but like dialog boxes it can be used to display a message in the GUI)
• Classic Dialogs, or "Wrappers"
• Shared Code
• Credits
• Related Stuff

ColorSelectBox

Use ColorSelectBox to present either a "full features" Windows native color picker, or a really minimalistic one to select one of the available standard console colors.
For the console colors picker only, you can optionally set a timeout and the color picker's window title.
The selected color is saved as string ("selectedcolorname" and "selectedcolorRGB" properties) and as integer R, G, and B values.

Help for ColorSelectBox class

Present a color picker dialog, and return the selected color

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.ColorSelectBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objColorSelectBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.ColorSelectBox" )

With objColorSelectBox
	.allowcustomcolors = 1
	.consolecolorsonly = 0
	.Show
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
	WScript.Echo
	.consolecolorsonly = 1
	.Show
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objColorSelectBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

DateTimeBox

Use DateTimeBox to select a date and/or time within the specified range and return the selected value(s) in the specified output format.
You can specify the window title, date or time only, input and output formats, and date range.
The selected date/time is saved as a property in the specified output format.

Help for DateTimeBox class

Present a dialog with date and/or time picker, and return the selected date and/or time values

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.DateTimeBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objDateTimeBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.DateTimeBox" )

With objDateTimeBox
	.top     = 200
	.left    = 300
	.timeout = 15
	.title   = "Pick a Date and Time"
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected date and time: " & .selecteddate & " " & .selectedtime
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objDateTimeBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

DropDownBox

Use DropDownBox to present a list of choices, and return the selected one; like CHOICE with a GUI.
You must enter a list of choices, separated by a delimiter. You can optionally add a prompt, set the window title, preselected item, and window dimensions, change the delimiter, and more.
The selected text is saved as a property.

Help for DropDownBox class

Present a dropdown list of choices, and return the selected value

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.DropDownBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objDropDownBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.DropDownBox" )

With objDropDownBox
	.list         = "Amsterdam;London;Paris;Tokyo"
	.defaultindex = 1
	.prompt       = "Choose a destination"
	.title        = "Destination"
	.top          = 200
	.left         = 300
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Your selected destination is " & .selecteditem
End With

Set objDropDownBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

FontSelectBox

Use FontSelectBox to present a font selection dialog.
You can optionally enable several "bells and whistles" like color selection, effects (strikeout and underline) and charactersets.
Several property values for the selected font are saved as properties.

Help for FontSelectBox class

Present a font dialog, and return the selected font

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.FontSelectBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objFontSelectBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.FontSelectBox" )

With objFontSelectBox
	.Show
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objFontSelectBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

InputBox

InputBox was first built using the .NET FrameWork's Interaction.InputBox Method, but I found it too ugly.
A dynamically created Windows Form allowed me more freedom in design.
A large part of the C# code for InputBox comes from Gorkem Gencay on StackOverflow.com.
You can specify the "prompt" text, the window title, the default value (already entered in the input text field, option not available for masked password input), an optional timeout in seconds, and the dialog box width and height, disable filtering of "risky" characters & < > | and ", add regular expression based filtering and/or an input mask (input text template), whether or not to hide (mask) the input text (for password input) and whether or not to insert a "Show password" checkbox.
When the "OK" button is clicked, the entered text is saved as a property.
If the dialog times out and a default text was specified, that default text is saved.

Help for InputBox class

Present a prompt for input dialog, and return the text entered

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.InputBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objInputBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.InputBox" )

With objInputBox
	.prompt = "Enter a MAC address"
	.title = "MAC Address"
	.initialinput = "0022446688AACCEE"
	.mask = ">CC\:CC\:CC\:CC\:CC\:CC\:CC\:CC"
	.regexendresult = "[\dA - F]{16}"
	.regexonthefly = "[\dA-F]{0,16}"
	.regexcasesensitive = 0
	.timeout = 120
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "New MAC address: " & .input & " (" & .maskedinput & ")"
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objInputBox = Nothing

If you intend to use an input mask, use dialog's MaskLanguageTable( ) method to show detailed help for the mask "language".

View this dialog's source code

MessageBox

MessageBoxdoes what its name suggests: it shows a simple message in a popup window.
Like its VBScript counterpart it returns the "answer", i.e. a code for the button that was clicked.
But unlike its VBScript counterpart, the answer isn't returned as an integer, but as a string, i.e. the (English, lower case) caption of the button that was clicked.
You can specify the message text, the window title, the buttons and icon, the default button, even right alignment or rigt-to-left reading, and an optional timeout.

Help for MessageBox class

Present a message dialog, and return the caption of the button clicked

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.MessageBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objMessageBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.MessageBox" )

With objMessageBox
	.message = "This MessageBox is more or less obsolete in VBScript," & vbCrLf _
	         & "as it is almost identical to VBScript's own MsgBox," & vbCrLf _
	         & "but it may be useful in other COM-aware scripting languages."
	.title = "MessageBox Demo"
	.buttons = "OK"
	.icon = "Information"
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "You clicked: " & .buttonclicked
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objMessageBox = Nothing

MessageBox.exe is built using the .NET FrameWork's MessageBox Class.

View this dialog's source code

MultipleChoiceBox

Use MultipleChoiceBox to present a list of choices grouped as checkboxess, and return the selected items; derived from RadioButtonBox, but allowing multiple choices, hence its name.
You must enter a list of choices, separated by a delimiter. You can optionally add a prompt, set the window title, preselected items, and window layout, or change the delimiter.
The selected items are saved in a semicolon-delimited string.

Help for MultipleChoiceBox class

Present a dialog with a group of checkboxes, and return the selected items

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.MultipleChoiceBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objMultipleChoiceBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.MultipleChoiceBox" )

With objMultipleChoiceBox
	.list        = "Bungeejump from helicopter;Firewalk;Paraglide into an active volcan"
	.preselected = "0;1;2"
	.prompt      = "15 seconds to pick your favorites:"
	.title       = "My Bucket List"
	.top         = 200
	.left        = 300
	.timeout     = 15
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected bucket list items: " & .selecteditems
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objMultipleChoiceBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

OpenFileBox

Use OpenFileBox to select an existing file.
You can specify the required file type, the start folder, and the window title.
The full path to the selected file is saved as a property.

Help for OpenFileBox class

Present an Open File dialog, and return the selected file path

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.OpenFileBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objOpenFileBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.OpenFileBox" )

With objOpenFileBox
	.startfolder = "D:\"
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected file: " & .selectedfile
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objOpenFileBox = Nothing

OpenFileBox.exe was built using the .NET FrameWork's OpenFileDialog Class, which implies that it can be used to manipulate files and folders.
Always use permissions to manage user access to files and folders.

View this dialog's source code

OpenFolderBox

Use OpenFolderBox to select an existing folder.
You can specify the start folder, the description above the tree view, and whether or not to hide the "Make New Folder" button.
The full path to the selected folder is saved as a property.

Help for OpenFolderBox class

Present a Browse Folder dialog, and return the selected folder path

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.OpenFolderBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objOpenFolderBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.OpenFolderBox" )

With objOpenFolderBox
	.rootfolder = "MyDocuments"
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected folder: " & .selectedfolder
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objOpenFolderBox = Nothing

OpenFolderBox.exe was built using the .NET FrameWork's FolderBrowserDialog Class, which implies that it can be used to manipulate folders, even with the "Make New Folder" button hidden (try Shift+F10 or right-click).
Always use permissions to manage user access to (files and) folders.

View this dialog's source code

PrinterSelectBox

Use PrinterSelectBox to select an installed printer.
You can specify the window title, the preselected printer (either by its full name or with a regular expression), and the dialog box width.
The name of the selected printer is saved as a property.
The original version used Windows' own Print dialog from the .NET FrameWork's PrintDialog Class, which has a lot of features we won't need in this utility.
The current version has a more "Spartan" interface without the bells and whistles that didn't work in the old version.

Help for PrinterSelectBox class

Present a basic print dialog, and return the selected printer name

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.PrinterSelectBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objPrinterSelectBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.PrinterSelectBox" )

With objPrinterSelectBox
	.printercategory = "Physical"
	.top             = 200
	.left            = 300
	.timeout         = 15
	.title           = "Select a Physical Printer"
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo "Printers to choose from:"
	WScript.Echo "========================"
	WScript.Echo .ListCategory( )
	WScript.Echo
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected printer: " & .selectedprinter
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo "Default printer:  " & .defaultprinter
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objPrinterSelectBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

RadioButtonBox

Use RadioButtonBox to present a list of choices grouped as radio buttons, and return the selected one; equivalent to DropDownBox with radio buttons instead of a dropdown list.
You must enter a list of choices, separated by a delimiter. You can optionally add a prompt, set the window title, preselected item, and window dimensions, change the delimiter, and choose if you want the selected index to be returned as "ErrorLevel".
The selected text is saved as a property.

Help for RadioButtonBox class

Present a dialog with a group of radio buttons, and return the text for the selected item

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.RadioButtonBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objRadioButtonBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.RadioButtonBox" )

With objRadioButtonBox
	.list         = "Arizona;Texas;California;Washington;Montana;Utah"
	.defaultindex = 4
	.prompt       = "You have 15 seconds to select a state"
	.top          = 200
	.left         = 300
	.timeout      = 15
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected state: " & .selecteditem
End With

Set objRadioButtonBox = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

SaveFileBox

Use SaveFileBox to select a target file to save to, existing or not.
Besides the required file type, start folder, and window title, you can also specify the behaviour when the selected file already exists, or when the specified file does not exist.
The full path to the selected file, existing or not, is saved as a property.

Help for SaveFileBox class

Present a Save File dialog, and return the selected file path

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.SaveFileBox

VBScript usage example:

Set objSaveFileBox = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.SaveFileBox" )

With objSaveFileBox
	.startfolder = "D:\"
	.Show
	WScript.Echo "Selected target file: " & .selectedfile
	WScript.Echo
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
End With

Set objSaveFileBox = Nothing

SaveFileBox.exe was built using the .NET FrameWork's SaveFileDialog Class, which implies that it can be used to manipulate files and folders.

View this dialog's source code

SystemTrayMessage

Unlike the previous dialog boxes, SystemTrayMessage displays a tooltip message in the system tray's notification area.
By default it starts displaying a tooltip which will be visible for 10 seconds (or any timeout specified), or until the icon or tooltip balloon is clicked.
With the "wait" property set to 0 (false) the program will terminate immediately after starting the tooltip, but there will be no status update of the "balloonclicked" property. The icon will remain in the notification area after the timeout elapsed, until the mouse pointer hovers over it.

Help for SystemTrayMessage class

Present an icon in the notification area (system tray) with an optional tooltip balloon, and return whether the icon or tooltip were clicked

COM ProgID: RobvanderWoude.SystemTrayMessage

VBScript usage example:

Set objSystemTrayMessage = CreateObject( "RobvanderWoude.SystemTrayMessage" )

With objSystemTrayMessage
	.message = "It is time for your daily backup." & vbCrLf & "Please save and close all documents," & vbCrLf & "and click this message when ready."
	.title = "Backup Time"
	.timeout = 1800
	.wait = 1
	WScript.Echo .ListProperties( )
	WScript.Echo
	.Show
	If .balloonclicked Then
		WScript.Echo "You clicked the tooltip balloon before the timeout elapsed"
	End If
End With

Set objSystemTrayMessage = Nothing

View this dialog's source code

Classic Dialogs, or "Wrappers"

Besides the dialog classes, each dialog also comes as a method (function) in the RobvanderWoude.DialogBoxes "wrapper" object.
The "wrapper" methods use only a subset of a dialog's available properties, and can return only one single propertey, whereas for the dialog classes all properties are available, before as well as after showing the dialog.

View the "classic" dialogs' source code

Shared Code

Each dialog has its own code file, but also uses some shared code.

View the dialogs' shared source code

Credits

Building COM Objects in C# by Mubbasher Adeel:
https://www.codeproject.com/Articles/7859/Building-COM-Objects-in-C

On-the-fly forms by Gorkem Gencay on StackOverflow.com:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/97097#17546909

Localize captions by Martin Stoeckli:
http://martinstoeckli.ch/csharp/csharp.html#windows_text_resources

Extract icons from Shell32.dll by Thomas Levesque on StackOverflow.com:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/6873026

Get ISO week of year by "il_guru" on StackOverflow.com:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/11155102

Check if a font is a fixed pitch font, tip from Hans Passant on StackOverflow.com:
https://stackoverflow.com/q/21965321

Extension method to limit number to range by "dtb" on StackOverflow.com:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/3176628

Mask language table by Microsoft:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.windows.forms.maskedtextbox.mask.aspx

And last but not least, thanks for Wolfgang Struensee, for testing the many pre-release versions of this DLL

Thanks!!

Related Stuff

For use in batch files, check the separate dialog batch tools.