OpenOffice.org BASIC Guide.pdf - OpenOffice.org wiki

The StarDesktop 76
The name of the StarDesktop object dates back to StarOffice 5, in which all document
windows were embedded in one common application called StarDesktop. In the present
version of OpenOffice.org, a visible StarDesktop is no longer used. The name StarDesktop
was, however, retained for the frame object of OpenOffice.org because it clearly indicates
that this is a basic object for the entire application.
The StarDesktop object replaces the Application object of StarOffice 5 which previously
applied as a root object. However, unlike the old Application object, StarDesktop is
primarily responsible for opening new documents. The functions resident in the old
Application object for controlling the on-screen depiction of OpenOffice.org (for example,
FullScreen, FunctionBarVisible, Height, Width, Top, Visible) are no longer used.
Whereas the active document in Word is accessed through Application.ActiveDocument and in Excel
through Application.ActiveWorkbook, in OpenOffice.org, the StarDesktop is responsible for this task.
The active document object is accessed in OpenOffice.org through the StarDesktop.CurrentComponent
property, or through ThisComponent.
ThisComponent
The global name ThisComponent generally returns the same object as
StarDesktop.CurrentComponent, with one significant advantage. If you are running from
within the Basic IDE, debugging or exploring, then StarDesktop returns the Basic IDE
itself. This is probably not what you want. ThisComponent returns the last previously active
document.
Basic Information about Documents in OpenOffice. org
When working with OpenOffice.org documents, it is useful to deal with some of the basic
issues of document administration in OpenOffice.org. This includes the way in which file
names are structured for OpenOffice.org documents, as well as the format in which files are
saved.
File Names in URL Notation
Since OpenOffice.org is a platform-independent application, it uses URL notation (which is
independent of any operating system), as defined in the Internet Standard RFC 1738 for file
names. Standard file names using this system begin with the prefix file:/// followed by the
local path. If the file name contains sub-directories, then these are separated by a single
forward slash, not with a backslash usually used under Windows. The following path
references the test.odt file in the doc directory on the C: drive.
file:///C:/doc/test.odt
To convert local file names into an URL, OpenOffice.org provides the ConvertToUrl
function. To convert a URL into a local file name, OpenOffice.org provides the
ConvertFromUrl function:
MsgBox ConvertToUrl("C:\doc\test.odt")
' supplies file:///C:/doc/test.odt
MsgBox ConvertFromUrl("file:///C:/doc/test.odt")