Question

Parse String to extract data between known text delimiters in VB

Asked by: lyteck

Hi, I have 2 versions of a string and I want to extra information (an email address) located either after or between text delimiters.

String1 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before >>aaa@yahoo.com"
Text Delimiter = anything after ">>" to the end of the string
Result1 = "aaa@yahoo.com"

String2 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before (>aaa@yahoo.com<) whatever goes after..."
Text Delimiters = anything between "(>" and "<)"
Result2 = "aaa@yahoo.com"

Can you show me how to code this in VB in each case? (these are 2 separate problems. I have the choice to create the string format as String1 or String2 but haven't decided yet which one is more robust)

Thanks, Lyteck

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Asked On
2009-08-06 at 07:31:53ID24631517
Tags

parse

,

string

,

extract

Topics

Visual Basic Programming

,

VB Script

,

Outlook Groupware Software

Participating Experts
3
Points
500
Comments
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Answers

 

by: rettiseertPosted on 2009-08-06 at 07:57:30ID: 25034153

Hi

Check this...

Option Explicit
 
Private Sub Form_Load()
 
    Dim string1 As String
    Dim string2 As String
 
    string1 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before >>aaa@yahoo.com"
    MsgBox ExtractAnythingAfterDelimiter(string1, ">>")
    
    string2 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before (>aaa@yahoo.com<) whatever goes after..."
    MsgBox ExtractAnythingAfterBetweenDelimiters(string2, ">", "<")
    
    End
 
End Sub
 
Private Function ExtractAnythingAfterDelimiter(Str As String, Delimiter As String)
 
    Dim Pos As Long
    
    Pos = InStr(1, Str, Delimiter)
    
    If Pos Then
    
        If Len(Str) > Pos + Len(Delimiter) Then
            ExtractAnythingAfterDelimiter = Mid(Str, Pos + Len(Delimiter))
        End If
    
    End If
 
End Function
 
Private Function ExtractAnythingAfterBetweenDelimiters(Str As String, Delimiter1 As String, Delimiter2 As String)
 
    Dim Pos As Long
    Dim Result As String
    
    Result = ExtractAnythingAfterDelimiter(Str, Delimiter1)
    
    Pos = InStr(1, Result, Delimiter2)
    
    If Pos > 1 Then
    
        Result = Left(Result, Pos - 1)
        
    Else
    
        Result = ""
    
    End If
    
    ExtractAnythingAfterBetweenDelimiters = Result
 
End Function
                                              
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by: GrahamSkanPosted on 2009-08-06 at 08:04:07ID: 25034251

Two routines in the snippet

p = Instr(String1, ">>")
If p > 0 then
  Result1 = Mid$(String1,p+1)
Endif
 
 
p = InStr(String2, "<")
If p > 0 Then
    q = InStr(p + 1, String2, ">")
    If q > 0 Then
        Result2 = Mid$(String2, p + 1, q - p - 1)
    End If
End If
,

                                              
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by: vbgbPosted on 2009-08-06 at 08:12:34ID: 25034363

You could also experiment with the Split command

Private Sub Form_Load()
 
    Dim string1 As String
    Dim string2 As String
 
    string1 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before >>aaa@yahoo.com"
    dim result as string
dim sSplit() as string
    result = s
    MsgBox ExtractAnythingAfterDelimiter(string1, ">>")
    
    string2 = "whatever $%^#123 can go before (>aaa@yahoo.com<) whatever goes after..."
    MsgBox ExtractAnythingAfterBetweenDelimiters(string2, ">", "<")
    
    End
 
End Sub
                                              
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by: vbgbPosted on 2009-08-06 at 08:15:15ID: 25034392

Ignore the last post - it got submitted before I completed editing the snippet

To get everything after the delimiter you can use

Dim sSplit() as string
sSplit=split(string1,">>")
result = sSplit(1)

The second option is more complex and one of the other solutions already posted might be better.

 

by: lyteckPosted on 2009-08-06 at 17:34:22ID: 31612449

Thank you all. I used rettiseert's solution but GrahamSkan's solution checked out as well.

20120131-EE-VQP-002

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