Newbie Questions

[Jim Lyons]

On Jan 10, 2004, at 11:29 AM, Jim Carwardine wrote:

> Short List of Questions...
>
> 1. Is there a search function that searches all the repositories of 
> Rev.
> knowledge... especially the list archives over all years? And, BTW, 
> what are
> all the repositories of knowledge?

I don't know ALL the repositories, but the main one you need to learn 
the answers to most of your other questions is the Rev docs. Use the 
Search feature a lot and ALWAYS look at the See Also menu of the items 
you turn up.

> 2. If I have a button that is grouped so that it behaves like a bg btn 
> in HC
> can I have a different icon for each card in that button?  I know in 
> HC I
> can¹t because the button icon is shared in the background, but how 
> about
> Rev?  Would I have to keep it a card button and copy/paste it 
> explicitly
> when i create a new card under script control?

That would be one way. If you want it to be in a background group and 
have a different icon on each card, you would have to switch the icon 
of the button when the card opens. See Roadmap -> Welcome -> HyperCard 
Developer, About Groups and Backgrounds

> 3. If I give a button a custom icon (like a thumbnail jpg), I notice 
> that
> Rev gives it an icon number.  Is that number unique to the button?  I 
> think
> yes...

Yes. See Roadmap -> Transcript Dictionary -> ID property

> 4. How do I reference a button in a group?... and, related to this, If 
> I
> want to add a button to a scrolling group (the button position may be
> scrolled out of sight when I add it), how do I do it and get the 
> position of
> the new button in the group spaced right?

See the doc ref to question 2 above and also Roadmap -> All Doc by 
Category, Objects and Messages -> About object types and object 
references

> 5. I¹m creating a set of custom nav buttons that allow the user to 
> jump to a
> specific card of their choice.  These buttons have the icon of the card
> button mentioned in question 2, so I¹m transferring the thumbnail icon 
> to
> the nav button, which of course will be seen on every card, by 
> transferring
> the pictPath of the card button.  If the user chooses to place a new 
> picture
> on the original card button, will the thumbnail icon of the nav button
> change as well?

When you ask a question like this, you'll have to give more information 
to get any useful help. Set up simple tests in a separate stack to try 
experiments. I always do this to try new things so that what I'm 
investigating doesn't get clouded by other stuff. Always do this to 
isolate some behavior you think isn't right.

> 6. What¹s a plugin and how do I use it?  The Rev docs doesn¹t give an 
> answer
> as far as I can tell.

Try entering "plugin" to the Roadmap -> Search Rev Docs. There are 
eleven hits including the definition, How to install, and a tip on 
adding your own.

> Sorry for the long list...

We'll let it go this time. ;^) Seriously, it's a good idea to put 
unrelated questions into their own messages, giving each a descriptive 
subject line. It will help us all find things easier in the archives, 
and follow the threads of replies. Welcome to the group!

Jim Lyons