vba - Working with current open email

Question

I would like to get the active opened MailItem (whether it's a new mail or a received mail). I need to add some content to that mail when the user runs my macro. I'm using Outlook 2003 and VBA.

I found this: How do you get a reference to the mail item in the current open window in Outlook using VBA? It doesn't work however because TypeName(Application.ActiveWindow) is set to nothing. I also tried Set Mail = Application.ActiveInspector.currentItem but it doesn't work either.

There must be something I don't understand about the ActiveInspector thing.

As requested, this is the procedure/macro located in a dedicated module, called when the user click on a menu-button added in the Application_Startup() method:

Sub myMacro()
    Dim NewMail As Outlook.MailItem
    Set NewMail = Application.ActiveInspector.currentItem
End Sub

Answer 1

I don't know exactly what's wrong with your code. For one thing, though, you are not validating that a new, editable email is even open. The following proof-of-concept does exactly what I think you're looking to do: insert some text into the active email being composed. If this is not possible it displays a message box explaining why.

The portion that inserts text will only work if Word is being used as the email editor (which will ALWAYS be the case in Outlook 2010+). If it is not you will have to parse and update the Body or HTMLBody text directly.

Sub InsertText()
    Dim myText As String
    myText = "Hello world"

    Dim NewMail As MailItem, oInspector As Inspector
    Set oInspector = Application.ActiveInspector
    If oInspector Is Nothing Then
        MsgBox "No active inspector"
    Else
        Set NewMail = oInspector.CurrentItem
        If NewMail.Sent Then
            MsgBox "This is not an editable email"
        Else
            If oInspector.IsWordMail Then
                ' Hurray. We can use the rich Word object model, with access
                ' the caret and everything.
                Dim oDoc As Object, oWrdApp As Object, oSelection As Object
                Set oDoc = oInspector.WordEditor
                Set oWrdApp = oDoc.Application
                Set oSelection = oWrdApp.Selection
                oSelection.InsertAfter myText
                oSelection.Collapse 0
                Set oSelection = Nothing
                Set oWrdApp = Nothing
                Set oDoc = Nothing
            Else
                ' No object model to work with. Must manipulate raw text.
                Select Case NewMail.BodyFormat
                    Case olFormatPlain, olFormatRichText, olFormatUnspecified
                        NewMail.Body = NewMail.Body & myText
                    Case olFormatHTML
                        NewMail.HTMLBody = NewMail.HTMLBody & "<p>" & myText & "</p>"
                End Select
            End If
        End If
    End If
End Sub