ShapeRange Collection Object

Article
07/11/2006

Multiple objects

Represents a shape range, which is a set of shapes on a document. A shape range can contain as few as one shape or as many as all the shapes in the document. You can include whichever shapes you want — chosen from among all the shapes in the document or all the shapes in the selection — to construct a shape range. For example, you could construct a ShapeRange collection that contains the first three shapes in a document, all the selected shapes in a document, or all the freeform shapes in a document.

Note Most operations that you can do with a Shape object, you can also do with a ShapeRange object that contains only one shape. Some operations, when performed on a ShapeRange object that contains more than one shape, will cause an error.

Using the ShapeRange Collection

This section describes how to:

Return a set of shapes you specify by name or index number.
Return a ShapeRange object within a selection or range.

Returning a Set of Shapes You Specify by Name or Index Number

Use Shapes.Range(index), where index is the name or index number of the shape or an array that contains either names or index numbers of shapes, to return a ShapeRange collection that represents a set of shapes on a document. You can use Visual Basic's Array function to construct an array of names or index numbers. The following example sets the fill pattern for shapes one and three on the active document.

ActiveDocument.Shapes.Range(Array(1, 3)).Fill.Patterned _
    msoPatternHorizontalBrick

The following example selects the shapes named "Oval 4" and "Rectangle 5" on the active document.

ActiveDocument.Shapes.Range(Array("Oval 4", "Rectangle 5")).Select

Although you can use the Range method to return any number of shapes, it's simpler to use the Item method if you want to return only a single member of the collection. For example, Shapes(1) is simpler than Shapes.Range(1).

Returning a ShapeRange Object Within a Selection or Range

Use Selection.ShapeRange(index), where index is the name or the index number, to return a Shape object that represents a shape within a selection. The following example sets the fill for the first shape in the selection, assuming that the selection contains at least one shape.

Selection.ShapeRange(1).Fill.ForeColor.RGB = RGB(255, 0, 0)

This example selects all the shapes in the first section of the active document.

Set myRange = ActiveDocument.Sections(1).Range
myRange.ShapeRange.Select

Aligning, Distributing, and Grouping Shapes in a ShapeRange Object

Use the Align , Distribute , or ZOrder method to position a set of shapes relative to each other or relative to the document.

Use the Group , Regroup , or UnGroup method to create and work with a single shape formed from a shape range. The GroupItems property for a Shape object returns the GroupShapes object, which represents all the shapes that were grouped to form one shape.

Remarks

The recorder always uses the ShapeRange property when recording shapes.

A ShapeRange object doesn't include InlineShape objects.

Parent Objects | Range Object | Selection Object