Using Events with the Application Object

To create an event handler for an event of the Application object, you need to complete the following three steps:

1. Declare an object variable in a class module to respond to the events.
2. Write the specific event procedures.
3. Initialize the declared object from another module.

Declare the Object Variable

Before you can write procedures for the events of the Application object, you must create a new class module and declare an object of type Application with events. For example, assume that a new class module is created and called EventClassModule. The new class module contains the following code.

Public WithEvents App As Word.Application

Write the Event Procedures

After the new object has been declared with events, it appears in the Object drop-down list box in the class module, and you can write event procedures for the new object. (When you select the new object in the Object box, the valid events for that object are listed in the Procedure drop-down list box.) Select an event from the Procedure drop-down list box; an empty procedure is added to the class module.

Private Sub App_DocumentChange()

End Sub

Initialize the Declared Object

Before the procedure will run, you must connect the declared object in the class module (App in this example) with the Application object. You can do this with the following code from any module.

Dim X As New EventClassModule
Sub Register_Event_Handler()
    Set X.App = Word.Application
End Sub

Run the Register_Event_Handler procedure. After the procedure is run, the App object in the class module points to the Microsoft Word Application object, and the event procedures in the class module will run when the events occur.