Newbie in Need of Direction

[Carol Steinel]

I want to delve into some simple Outlook 2000 programming, am
more-than-average computer-literate, but have no programming background.

The question is -- where should I start? I have downloaded a couple of
really basic VBA Pdfs, and read through them for a grasp of the concepts
involved, and have also purchased a hands-on cd tutorial of Visual Basic
which I am beginning to work with now to get some time with the concepts in
action. Any other essential training tools I should check into?

What I want to start with is fairly simple. I've designed a couple of
custom forms that give me some basic tracking information on customers like
the date they began a certain program, but want to create an "if/then" type
script which will auto-enter information in another much more basic field on
the form -- like "If there is a date in field A, then insert YES in Field
B" -- so that I can sort and manage the data in different ways. Am I headed
in the right direction for training myself to handle these simple
programming feats, or is there something way less/more advanced I might need
to learn in addition?

Thanks for any help.

Carol Steinel

 

[Sue Mosher [MVP]]

Unfortunately, neither basic nor advanced general VBA guides will tell you what you need to know about Outlook. I've written a bunch of little tutorial lessons (see http://www.slipstick.com/dev/vb.htm#tutorials) and a book (see signature) to try to convey the two skill sets in parallel.

BTW, something like your if/then example below might be done with an Outlook formula, with no coding involved at all.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers

 

[Carol Steinel]

Thanks Sue -- I've benefited often from your advice here and at slipstick.
I'll get your book (do you make better money if I buy it direct from
slipstick?) -- Always glad to buy direct if it profits the actual authors
Where's my best link to study Outlook formulas?

Thanks again and thanks for saving me VB training time,
Carol Steinel

 

[Sue Mosher [MVP]]

It's six of one, half dozen of the other for where you buy the book. If you like to use Amazon, you can use the link on my site.

For formulas, see http://www.slipstick.com/dev/forms.htm#key
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers

 

[Carol Steinel]

I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of my book, and have created a formula
field to handle this. However, I'm having a problem -- I've put the
following Iif formula in my field:

IIf([Karma Club Membership Started]>0,"Yes", "No" )

When I run the field, it works fine with "Yes" -- if there's a date in the
first field. If the date in the first field is "None", I don't return a
"No", but an "#Error". I've searched high and low for a basic explanation
of the Iif function and proper syntax. I'd love direct help, or even
better, point me toward an online source for a succinct basic description of
the basic Outlook functions and their appropriate syntax options.

Thanks
Carol Steinel

 

[Sue Mosher [MVP]]

I've tried to cover some of the nuances of formulas in several articles (links at http://www.slipstick.com/dev/forms.htm, but there's still a lot of trial and error involved. One key issue is that you need to use values appropriate to the type of data. For example, if your field is a date field, then 0, as in the formula below, isn't an appropriate value. I'm not even sure what logic you're trying to capture with your formula below.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers

 

[Carol Steinel]

Thanks for responding Sue -- your book arrived last week and, of course, the
answer was there

I was, indeed, using the wrong value -- solved the problem with the correct
operator and value. Thanks
Carol

I've tried to cover some of the nuances of formulas in several articles
(links at http://www.slipstick.com/dev/forms.htm, but there's still a lot of
trial and error involved. One key issue is that you need to use values
appropriate to the type of data. For example, if your field is a date field,
then 0, as in the formula below, isn't an appropriate value. I'm not even
sure what logic you're trying to capture with your formula below.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers