Copy and paste a text string TO or FROM the clipboard.

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Sébastien C
Posts: 111
Joined: Mon Jan 04, 2010 5:06 pm
Location: Meymac, France

Copy and paste a text string TO or FROM the clipboard.

Post by Sébastien C »

It is so often asked but a little bit hard to find a solution that work correctly. Indeed, we have often the case where we want to put a text string from a variable in the clipboard, or, in opposite, to get a text string from the clipboard in a variable.

I have searched a moment here or there. But it is not synthesized in one post, so a bit bad indexed by the usual search engines.

The last demonstration is funny to use it with a lot of shortcuts between Writer and a Web browser:
  • Be in a Writer a type a text as usually. Select several words, for example with a shortcut like [Crtl] + [Shift] + [←] or [Crtl] + [Shift] + [→].
  • Switch on a Web Browser with the shortcut [Alt] + [Tab].
  • Call the URL text field with the shortcut [Crtl] + [L]. As usual, the URL is yet selected.
  • Copy the URL in the clipboard with the shortcut [Crtl] + [C] or [Crtl] + [Ins].
  • Return on Writer with the shortcut [Alt] + [Tab].
  • Call the shortcut for the macro clipBboardToHyperlinkOnSelection() set in Writer like [Crtl] + [Shift] + [K].
When we have so much hyperlinks to put in a text, I think it can help to do not have to display the dialog box and specify, all times and for example, that the target need to be “_blank”.

Code: Select all

' ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
' ║ COPY a text string TO the clipboard.                                         ║█
' ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝█
'  ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

Global clipString As String

Sub stringInTheClipboard()
	Dim cBoard As Object, cTrans As Object, null As Object
	   
	    cBoard = createUnoService (       "com.sun.star.datatransfer.clipboard.SystemClipboard")
	    cTrans = createUnoListener("TR_", "com.sun.star.datatransfer.XTransferable"            )
	cBoard.setContents(cTrans, null)
End Sub

Function TR_getTransferData(aFlavor as com.sun.star.datatransfer.DataFlavor )
	If (aFlavor.MimeType = "text/plain;charset=utf-16") Then TR_getTransferData = clipString
End Function

Function TR_getTransferDataFlavors()
	Dim aF as new com.sun.star.datatransfer.DataFlavor
	
	  aF.MimeType             = "text/plain;charset=utf-16"
	  aF.HumanPresentableName = "Unicode-Text"
	TR_getTransferDataFlavors = Array(aF)
End Function

Function TR_isDataFlavorSupported(aFlavor as com.sun.star.datatransfer.DataFlavor) as Boolean
	TR_isDataFlavorSupported = (aFlavor.MimeType = "text/plain;charset=utf-16")
End Function


' ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
' ║ PASTE a text string FROM the clipboard.                                      ║█
' ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝█
'  ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

Function getClipboardText() As String
	Dim         oClip As Object, oConverter As Object
	Dim oClipContents As Object,     oTypes As Object
	Dim i%

	On Error Resume Next

	        oClip = createUnoService("com.sun.star.datatransfer.clipboard.SystemClipboard")
	   oConverter = createUnoService("com.sun.star.script.Converter")
	oClipContents = oClip.getContents
	       oTypes = oClipContents.getTransferDataFlavors

	For i = LBound(oTypes) To UBound(oTypes)
	 If oTypes(i).MimeType = "text/plain;charset=utf-16" Then Exit For
	Next i

	If (i >= 0) Then
	 On Error Resume Next
	 getClipboardText = oConverter.convertToSimpleType _
	                    (oClipContents.getTransferData(oTypes(i)), com.sun.star.uno.TypeClass.STRING)
	End If
End Function



' ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
' ║ Demonstration of the two preceding procedures.                               ║█
' ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝█
'  ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

' Copy.
Sub callStringInTheClipboard()
	clipString = "A green mouse running in the grass"
	stringInTheClipboard()
End Sub

' Paste.
Sub callGetClipboardText()
	msgBox (getClipboardText(), 64, "TEXTUAL content of the clipboard")
End Sub


' ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
' ║ Practical demonstration in Writer.                                           ║█
' ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝█
'  ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

Sub clipBboardToHyperlinkOnSelection()
	Dim myText As Object, myURL As String

	myText = thisComponent.currentSelection(0)

	If myText.String = "" Then
	 msgBox("Please, do a selection of text.", 16, "No selection.")
	 Exit Sub
	End If

	myURL = getClipboardText()

	If (left(myURL, 6) <> "ftp://"  ) And _
	   (left(myURL, 7) <> "http://" ) And _
	   (left(myURL, 8) <> "https://") Then

	 msgBox("The clipboard do not contain a right URL.", 16, "Bad contain.")
	 Exit Sub
	End If

	' myText.hyperLinkName   = ""
	  myText.hyperLinkTarget = "_blank"
	  myText.hyperLinkURL    = getClipboardText()
End sub
:)
LibreOffice v. 7.3.2.2, under GNU-Linux Mint and, in virtualization and just for tests, LibreOffice v. 7.3.2.2 an OpenOffice v. 4.1.12 under M$-W 10 :ouch: .
DavidHMcCracken
Posts: 44
Joined: Tue Apr 10, 2018 6:15 am

Re: Copy and paste a text string TO or FROM the clipboard.

Post by DavidHMcCracken »

Good job! Thank you for sharing this.
W10 Libre 6.1.5.2 and Ubuntu-Mate 18.04 Libre 6.0.7.3
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