Scripting what should be a simple loop...

Richmond richmondmathewson at gmail.com
Sat Jul 10 04:45:31 EDT 2010


On 07/10/2010 02:23 AM, David C. wrote:
> Good grief! Will someone be so kind as to show me the proper way to
> format my script...
>    

'the proper way" . . . Um; that is  slightly funny as, unlike
Fortran IV (what a pain it was) there is no strict set of
rules as to how to format a script.

This is both RunRev's strength and its weakness; insofar
as there are multiple solutions to almost everything.

> Let's say I have the following
>
> 1 group named "AllFields" containing:
> 10 text fields, named Field1...Field10
> 10 temporary variables named tVar1...tVar10
>
> All I want to do, using a loop, is to put the user supplied data
> contained in each field into the corresponding, like-named variable. I
> thought I could do something easy like this
>    

"All I want is a room with a view . . . " (mind you, from what I know of 
lunatic asylums,
not many of them have cells with nice views).

Let's see:

1. Ugh: 'repeat for i = 1 to 10' throws a bluey.

Oh, bu**er, I had forgotten that the Linux version of RunRev 4.0 has a 
serious SLOWNESS problem
with the Dictionary; half a mo; turning on the Mac - boy, do I miss Bill 
Marriott.

Well, talk about "bloody silly"; here I am progging with RunRev on the 
Linux box while consulting
the RunRev dictionary on the Mac . . .  :)

Ahah:

2. repeat WITH . . . .

THAT could make all the difference: I'm off back to my padded cell.

> repeat for i = 1 to 10
>   put fld "Field"&  i of grp "AllFields" into tVar&  i
> end repeat
>
> I know that I've done this before, but so far I've yet to find the
> right format that will not cause an error when compiling the script
> -and- would greatly appreciate it if some kind soul would rescue me
> from this madness.
>
>    

Well; if it gives you any comfort at all (which it won't), yesterday I had
a "battle" as the script editor kept telling me a rather long and winding
script (about 500 lines) was alright everytime I compiled it.

However, when I tried to run the script it "threw a bluey" and opened
the script editor in that rather unhelpful way where it marks the problem
but doesn't allow you to edit it.

Just to make you feel even cosier; I find your script extremely difficult
to understand; not because there is anything at all intrinsically wrong
with it, but because my scripting method / style is totally different.

This is what I meant up the top there: RunRev can be used by lots of 
folk, all with highly
individualised scripting styles - thus allowing great flexibility and 
folk who are not
naturally "computery" to get up and running remarkably quickly. What is 
also means is that
when it comes time for somebody to edit the scripts of the RunRev genius 
who went
bonkers and is now locked up in a secure unit, they cannot get anywhere 
at all; or, prior to
worrying about the algorhythmic aspects of the code they have to spend 
an awful long time
working out how the genius's mind worked vis-a-vis programming.
> FWIW, I recently had another fifty-something birthday, so I'm blaming it
> all on an increasing case of dementia. As in:
>
> "Dementia (meaning "deprived of mind") is a serious loss of cognitive
> ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be
> expected from normal ..."
>    

Well; speaking as a relative baby (48 last February) I ca cheerfully say:

1. My short term memory is already half-rotted.

2. I cannot tell you much about what is termed "long-term memory" as I 
don't seem to have one
     beyond a series of oft-repeated anecdotes which drive my teenage 
sons up the wall.

3. Having suffered from an element of creative insanity all my life a 
bit of "loss of
     cognitive ability" might not necessarily be all bad . . .  :)

So long and thanks for all the fish.



More information about the use-livecode mailing list