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Replacing special characters with their equivalents in VBScript

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12 Dec 2012 1  
This article will show how to replace special characters (like &) to their equivalents (e) in VBScript.

Introduction

Removing special characters can be useful if you need to use a resource that does not offer UTF-8 support. 

Background 

I needed to send a set of folders to CMD (objShell.Run), but it gave me errors on some folder names. When I checked the problem, there was an "&" in the folder name and the Command Line does not recognize it like a folder. The solution was to rename the folder, replacing "&" with its equivalent ("e").

Using the Code  

WScript.Echo normalize_str("Atualização de segurança para o Windows XP (KB941569)")
' Output: Atualizacao de seguranca para o Windows XP (KB941569)

' Adapted from PHP Function: http://www.phpdevtips.com/2011/08/
'   using-php-to-replace-special-characters-with-their-equivalents/
' Idea from http://www.bigresource.com/VB-Replace-Special-Characters-lt-Resolvedgt--NOXJwMDB19.html
Function normalize_str(strRemove)
    ' Multidimensional array: http://camie.dyndns.org/technical/vbscript-arrays/
    Dim arrWrapper(1)
    Dim arrReplace(94)
    Dim arrReplaceWith(94)
    
    arrWrapper(0) = arrReplace
    arrWrapper(1) = arrReplace
    
    ' Replace
    arrWrapper(0)(0) = "Š"
    arrWrapper(0)(1) = "š"
    arrWrapper(0)(2) = "Ð"
    arrWrapper(0)(3) = "d"
    arrWrapper(0)(4) = "Ž"
    arrWrapper(0)(5) = "ž"
    arrWrapper(0)(6) = "C"
    arrWrapper(0)(7) = "c"
    arrWrapper(0)(8) = "C"
    arrWrapper(0)(9) = "c"
    arrWrapper(0)(10) = "À"
    arrWrapper(0)(11) = "Á"
    arrWrapper(0)(12) = "Â"
    arrWrapper(0)(13) = "Ã"
    arrWrapper(0)(14) = "Ä"
    arrWrapper(0)(15) = "Å"
    arrWrapper(0)(16) = "Æ"
    arrWrapper(0)(17) = "Ç"
    arrWrapper(0)(18) = "È"
    arrWrapper(0)(19) = "É"
    arrWrapper(0)(20) = "Ê"
    arrWrapper(0)(21) = "Ë"
    arrWrapper(0)(22) = "Ì"
    arrWrapper(0)(23) = "Í"
    arrWrapper(0)(24) = "Î"
    arrWrapper(0)(25) = "Ï"
    arrWrapper(0)(26) = "Ñ"
    arrWrapper(0)(27) = "Ò"
    arrWrapper(0)(28) = "Ó"
    arrWrapper(0)(29) = "Ô"
    arrWrapper(0)(30) = "Õ"
    arrWrapper(0)(31) = "Ö"
    arrWrapper(0)(32) = "Ø"
    arrWrapper(0)(33) = "Ù"
    arrWrapper(0)(34) = "Ú"
    arrWrapper(0)(35) = "Û"
    arrWrapper(0)(36) = "Ü"
    arrWrapper(0)(37) = "Ý"
    arrWrapper(0)(38) = "Þ"
    arrWrapper(0)(39) = "ß"
    arrWrapper(0)(40) = "à"
    arrWrapper(0)(41) = "á"
    arrWrapper(0)(42) = "â"
    arrWrapper(0)(43) = "ã"
    arrWrapper(0)(44) = "ä"
    arrWrapper(0)(45) = "å"
    arrWrapper(0)(46) = "æ"
    arrWrapper(0)(47) = "ª"
    arrWrapper(0)(48) = "ç"
    arrWrapper(0)(49) = "è"
    arrWrapper(0)(50) = "é"
    arrWrapper(0)(51) = "ê"
    arrWrapper(0)(52) = "ë"
    arrWrapper(0)(53) = "ì"
    arrWrapper(0)(54) = "í"
    arrWrapper(0)(55) = "î"
    arrWrapper(0)(56) = "ï"
    arrWrapper(0)(57) = "ð"
    arrWrapper(0)(58) = "ñ"
    arrWrapper(0)(59) = "ò"
    arrWrapper(0)(60) = "ó"
    arrWrapper(0)(61) = "ô"
    arrWrapper(0)(62) = "õ"
    arrWrapper(0)(63) = "ö"
    arrWrapper(0)(64) = "ø"
    arrWrapper(0)(65) = "ù"
    arrWrapper(0)(66) = "ú"
    arrWrapper(0)(67) = "û"
    arrWrapper(0)(68) = "ü"
    arrWrapper(0)(69) = "ý"
    arrWrapper(0)(70) = "ý"
    arrWrapper(0)(71) = "þ"
    arrWrapper(0)(72) = "ÿ"
    arrWrapper(0)(73) = "R"
    arrWrapper(0)(74) = "r"
    arrWrapper(0)(75) = "`"
    arrWrapper(0)(76) = "´"
    arrWrapper(0)(77) = "„"
    arrWrapper(0)(78) = "`"
    arrWrapper(0)(79) = "´"
    arrWrapper(0)(80) = "€"
    arrWrapper(0)(81) = "™"
    arrWrapper(0)(82) = "{"
    arrWrapper(0)(83) = "}"
    arrWrapper(0)(84) = "~"
    arrWrapper(0)(85) = "’"
    arrWrapper(0)(86) = "'"
    arrWrapper(0)(87) = "¶"
    arrWrapper(0)(88) = "¼"
    arrWrapper(0)(89) = "µ"
    arrWrapper(0)(90) = "®"
    arrWrapper(0)(91) = "/" 
    arrWrapper(0)(92) = "|"
    arrWrapper(0)(93) = "º"
    arrWrapper(0)(94) = "&"
     
     ' With
    arrWrapper(1)(0) = "S"
    arrWrapper(1)(1) = "s"
    arrWrapper(1)(2) = "Dj"
    arrWrapper(1)(3) = "d"
    arrWrapper(1)(4) = "Z"
    arrWrapper(1)(5) = "z"
    arrWrapper(1)(6) = "C"
    arrWrapper(1)(7) = "c"
    arrWrapper(1)(8) = "C"
    arrWrapper(1)(9) = "c"
    arrWrapper(1)(10) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(11) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(12) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(13) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(14) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(15) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(16) = "A"
    arrWrapper(1)(17) = "C"
    arrWrapper(1)(18) = "E"
    arrWrapper(1)(19) = "E"
    arrWrapper(1)(20) = "E"
    arrWrapper(1)(21) = "E"
    arrWrapper(1)(22) = "I"
    arrWrapper(1)(23) = "I"
    arrWrapper(1)(24) = "I"
    arrWrapper(1)(25) = "I"
    arrWrapper(1)(26) = "N"
    arrWrapper(1)(27) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(28) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(29) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(30) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(31) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(32) = "O"
    arrWrapper(1)(33) = "U"
    arrWrapper(1)(34) = "U"
    arrWrapper(1)(35) = "U"
    arrWrapper(1)(36) = "U"
    arrWrapper(1)(37) = "Y"
    arrWrapper(1)(38) = "B"
    arrWrapper(1)(39) = "Ss"
    arrWrapper(1)(40) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(41) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(42) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(43) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(44) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(45) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(46) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(47) = "a"
    arrWrapper(1)(48) = "c"
    arrWrapper(1)(49) = "e"
    arrWrapper(1)(50) = "e"
    arrWrapper(1)(51) = "e"
    arrWrapper(1)(52) = "e"
    arrWrapper(1)(53) = "i"
    arrWrapper(1)(54) = "i"
    arrWrapper(1)(55) = "i"
    arrWrapper(1)(56) = "i"
    arrWrapper(1)(57) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(58) = "n"
    arrWrapper(1)(59) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(60) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(61) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(62) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(63) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(64) = "o"
    arrWrapper(1)(65) = "u"
    arrWrapper(1)(66) = "u"
    arrWrapper(1)(67) = "u"
    arrWrapper(1)(68) = "u"
    arrWrapper(1)(69) = "y"
    arrWrapper(1)(70) = "y"
    arrWrapper(1)(71) = "b"
    arrWrapper(1)(72) = "y"
    arrWrapper(1)(73) = "R"
    arrWrapper(1)(74) = "r"
    arrWrapper(1)(75) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(76) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(77) = ","
    arrWrapper(1)(78) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(79) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(80) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(81) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(82) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(83) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(84) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(85) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(86) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(87) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(88) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(89) = "u"
    arrWrapper(1)(90) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(91) = "." 
    arrWrapper(1)(92) = "-"
    arrWrapper(1)(93) = ""
    arrWrapper(1)(94) = "e"

    
    'WScript.Echo "Remove str: " & strRemove
    For N = 0 To 94
        'WScript.Echo "Replace " & arrWrapper(0)(N) & " with " & arrWrapper(1)(N)
        ' http://www.w3schools.com/vbscript/func_replace.asp
        ' 1: Start find from 1st character
        ' -1: Find until string does not End
        ' 0: binary comparision. Respect uppercase from lowercase.
        strRemove = Replace(strRemove, arrWrapper(0)(N), arrWrapper(1)(N), 1, -1, 0)
    Next
    
    normalize_str = strRemove
End Function

arrWrapper is a multidimensional array that stores two arrays, arrReplace and arrReplaceWith. Note that they reference each other. arrWrapper(0)(0) will be replaced with arrWrapper(1)(0).

Then we For Each array and use the Replace function to check if strRemove has  arrWrapper(0)(N). If it is true, replace it with arrWrapper(1)(N).

You can use this method to replace special chars on a text file, and save its content to a new text file. 

Const ForReading = 1, ForWriting = 2

strScriptFile = Wscript.ScriptFullName ' C:\normalize_str.vbs
Set objFSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
Set objFile = objFSO.GetFile(strScriptFile) ' Get file information from our Script.
strFolder = objFSO.GetParentFolderName(objFile) ' Get only folder from our script (C:)

' Replace
Set objFile = objFSO.OpenTextFile(strFolder & "\replace_this_text.txt", ForReading)
        
Do
    strLine = strLine & objFile.ReadLine & vbCrLf        
Loop While Not objFile.AtEndOfStream
     
objFile.Close

' Remove last ENTER added by Loop
' http://blogs.technet.com/b/heyscriptingguy/archive/2005/
'  05/20/how-can-i-remove-the-last-carriage-return-linefeed-in-a-text-file.aspx
strLine = Left(strLine, Len(strLine) - 2)

strLine = normalize_str(strLine)

' Saving new file, with replaced text.
If Not (objFSO.FileExists(strFolder & "\replaced.txt")) Then
    objFSO.CreateTextFile(strFolder & "\replaced.txt")
End If

Set objFile = objFSO.OpenTextFile(strFolder & "\replaced.txt", ForWriting)
        
objFile.Write(strLine)

objFile.Close

WScript.Echo strLine

Contents of replace_this_text.txt:

Atualização de segurança para o Windows XP (KB941569)
Atualização de segurança para o Windows Media Player 9, 9.5 & 11

We open replace_this_text.txt, re-pass its contents to a variable, use the normalize_str function, and then save the contents to a new file called replaced.txt.

Points of Interest  

It is an adaptation from PHP Dev Tips.

I think that sometimes it is better to have an easy to understand and maintain code than having faster code. Probably, in processing, this is not the best way to create a multidimensional array in VBScript, but it is really easy to understand.  

History

  • 12 Dec 2012: Added option to replace string from file.
  • 10 Dec. 2012: Tip published.

License

This article has no explicit license attached to it but may contain usage terms in the article text or the download files themselves. If in doubt please contact the author via the discussion board below.

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