VB & VBA in a Nutshell: The Language

Loc Function

Named Arguments

No

Syntax

Loc(filenumber)

filenumber

Use: Required

Data Type: Integer

Any valid file number.

Return Value

A Long integer.

Description

Determines the current position of the file read/write pointer.

Rules at a Glance

• If you have opened the file in random mode, Loc returns the record number of the last record read or written.

• If you have opened the file in input or output mode (sequential), Loc returns the current byte position in the file divided by 128.

• If you have opened the file in binary mode, Loc returns the position of the last byte read or written.

Example

Dim hFile As Integer
Dim lngPtr As Long, lngFileLen As Long
Dim strBuffer As String

hFile = FreeFile()
Open "loc.bin" For Binary As #hFile
lngFileLen = LOF(hFile)
Do While lngPtr < lngFileLen
   strBuffer = strBuffer & Input(1, hFile)
   lngPtr = Loc(hFile)
Loop
Close #hFile
Text1.Text = strBuffer

Programming Tips and Gotchas

For sequential files, the return value of Loc isn't required and shouldn't be used.

See Also

Open Statement