hi,

got a question. When on a form I format a text box to for exemple 'short date' I get an error message to tell me if the format is wrong.

So here I have to input something like 10:00. If the users try to input 10h00 (what can be a notation here in Belgium), the error message appears. Now what I would like to know if it is possible to intercept this message and change it so it would be more clear to understand for the user...

Don't know if this is clear for you and if this can be done... By the way, this is on an unbound form (don't know if this is important here).

In your data table, there are properties for that field called "Validation Rule" and "Validation Text." The rule sets what the user should be typing in. The text sets what error message the user sees if he or she violates the rule. That's where you put your simple error message.

The other way to do it is to know what error number you get with the error, and then use error trapping in your VBA and say

If Err.Number = xxxx Then
    MsgBox "Custom Error Message Here", vbCritical, "Data Entry Error!"
Else
    MsgBox Err.Description, vbCritical, "Error " & Err.Number
End If

Where xxxx is the actual error number you see when it fails.


Greg Serrano
Michigan Dept. of Environmental Quality, Air Quality Division

On the second one, with the vba, I guess it has to be put on the 'form error' event?

For the first one, do I have to give in a 'validation rule' for the 'validation text' to work? Or if I fill in the validation text, will it take this tekst for that particular error?

Thanks already

For the first one, the validation error only works if you put a validation text in. They go together.

For the second, if you put it on the ON ERROR event, then ANY error happening in ANY procedure will default to that event. However, if you want SPECIFIC errors for EACH event (e.g. ON CURRENT, ON OPEN, NameOfControl_AFTERUPDATE, etc.) then you don't put it there. You place it in the specific event itself. For example, suppose you have textbox AfterUpdate event. It'd look something like this:

Private Sub MyTextBox_AfterUpdate()

    On Error GoTo Err_MyTextBox_AfterUpdate

    'Your code here.

Exit_MyTextBox_AfterUpdate:
    Exit Sub

Err_MyTextBox_AfterUpdate:
    If Err.Number = xxxx Then
        MsgBox "Custom Error Message Here", vbCritical, "Error " & Err.Number
    Else
        MsgBox Err.Description, vbCritical, "Error " & Err.Number
    End If
    Resume Exit_MyTextBox_AfterUpdate

End Sub

Greg Serrano
Michigan Dept. of Environmental Quality, Air Quality Division