MACROMEDIA DIRECTOR MX-USING DIRECTOR MX, Use Manual

Page: 431 / 624

Writing Scripts with Lingo 431
To test a handler:
1
Type the handler in a Movie Script or Behavior Script window.
2
Type the handler name in the Message window.
3
Press Enter (Windows) or Return (Macintosh). The handler executes.
Any output from
put
statements in the handler appears in the Message window.
Like the Script window, the Message window contains pop-up menus of Lingo commands. When
you select a command from one of the pop-up menus, the command appears in the Message
window with the first argument that you must provide selected. Several menus are provided to
give you easy access to the whole catalog of Lingo terms.
The Lingo menus include the following:
•
Alphabetical Lingo includes all Lingo except 3D Lingo, presented in an alphabetical list.
•
Categorized Lingo includes all Lingo except 3D Lingo, presented in a categorized list.
•
Alphabetical 3D Lingo includes all 3D Lingo, presented in an alphabetical list.
•
Categorized 3D Lingo includes all 3D Lingo, presented in a categorized list.
•
Scripting Xtras contains Lingo terms that are provided by any third-party Xtra extensions that
you have installed.
Monitoring Lingo
When its Trace button is turned on, the Output pane of the Message window displays a record of
the Lingo that movie executes as it plays. This is useful for tracking the flow of Lingo and seeing
the result of specific lines of Lingo.
Entries after a double equal sign (==) indicate what has occurred in the movie—such as
which frame the movie has just entered, which script is running, or the result of a function or
setting a value.