Question

What does putting an exclamation point (!) in front of an object reference variable do in Visual Basic 6.0?

For example, I see the following in code:

    !RelativePath.Value = mstrRelativePath

What does the ! mean?

Answer 1

It is almost certainly a statement inside a With block:

  With blah
    !RelativePath.Value = mstrRelativePath
  End With 

which is syntax sugar for

  blah("RelativePath").Value = mstrRelativePath

which is syntax sugar for

  blah.DefaultProperty("RelativePath").Value = mstrRelativePath

where “DefaultProperty” is a property with dispid zero that’s indexed by a string. Like the Fields property of an ADO Recordset object.

Somewhat inevitable with sugar is that it produces tooth decay. This is the reason you have to use the Set keyword in VB6 and VBA. Because without it the compiler doesn’t know whether you meant to copy the object reference or the object’s default property value. Eliminated in vb.net.