Show all posible combinations of letters according to length

Hi wcoka,

Well, this isn't the most elegant way, but it works.

Private Sub Command1_Click()
    Dim strBuffer As String
    For w = 1 To 26
        For x = 1 To 26
            For y = 1 To 26
                For z = 1 To 26
                    strBuffer = Chr(96 + w) & Chr(96 + x) & Chr(96 + y) & Chr(96 + z)
                    List1.AddItem strBuffer
                    DoEvents
                Next
            Next
        Next
    Next
End Sub

Cheers!

How about something like this:

Option Explicit

Private Sub Form_Load()
    List1.Clear
    LetterCombinations 4, List1
End Sub
Private Sub LetterCombinations(StringLength As String, lbx As ListBox)
    Dim strCombination As String
    Dim strEnd As String

    strEnd = String$(StringLength, "z")

    strCombination = String$(StringLength, "a")

    lbx.AddItem strCombination
    Do
        IncrementString strCombination
        lbx.AddItem strCombination
    Loop Until strCombination = strEnd
End Sub

Private Sub IncrementString(InString As String, Optional ByVal Character As Long)
    Dim strChar As String

    If Character = 0 Then Character = Len(InString)
   
    strChar = Mid$(InString, Character, 1)

    If strChar = "z" Then
        Mid$(InString, Character, 1) = "a"
        IncrementString InString, Character - 1
    Else
        Mid$(InString, Character, 1) = Chr$(Asc(strChar) + 1)
    End If
End Sub

Thanks wcoka.




fds_fatboy,
Interesting how we both came up with something so similar.
Must be the best way of doing it, or did we both learn at the same place?

RobinD - I apologise, but when I started typing into the box, your answer hadn't arrived (and I hadn't refreshed).  The two methods are very similar - I believe it is a good way. The main difference is the method of it iteration in the string incrementation.

I did have another ide first of all which I decided against which was simply to iterate a long integer and convert it to base 26.

no need to apologise, I should perhaps for getting there first. (sorry)
I just found it amazing that we came up with such similar methods, even very close names for the procedures and variables.

If you had replied four hours after you did I might have accused you of copying, but it's impossible for that to have happened here :7)

incrc is short for incr with carry, a hang-over from an earlier attempt (didn't change the name), which had the c added to distinguish it from an even earlier failure called incr.

Also interesting that we both had to add the extra print outside the loop - that annoyed me for a while and I had tried 'loop until' rather than 'do until' but found it made no difference - maybe it should inc one more time, but then you run out of alphabet...

>> Also interesting that we both had to add the extra print outside the loop - that annoyed me for a while and I had tried 'loop until' rather than 'do until' but found it made no difference - maybe it should inc one more time, but then you run out of alphabet...

I grew up with COBOL read ahead data processing. I find it almost natural to put the first process outside the loop. Thinking about it

   strEnd = String$(StringLength + 1, "a")

removing the first additem and moving the increment to the end of the loop would be the way to do it.

>I find it almost natural to put the first process outside the loop

Thank you for that comment. I've always thought it was a failing of mine to not capture the algorithm properly. That single sentence could potentially save me hours of coding time not looking for a solution.