On 1/12/99 10:00 pm, Scott Raney <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>> Buttons can re-use a single image, and be updated as the source image
>> changes.
>>
>> Would it be equally possible for a field to display the text of another
>> field and be automatically updated when the source text is changed? This
>> would be immensely useful to maintain multiple instances of the same text
>> without duplicating the storage.
>>
>> set the sourceField of fld "Address" to fld "Address" of stack "AddressBook"
>>
>> Is this possible, Scott, perhaps as an item on a wish-list?
>
> Sounds like a recipe for spaghetti to me. What happens when the
> source field changes, do all fields that point to it have to be
> live-updated with it? And what if you change the field, does the
> "sourceField" get updated? What happens with fields with sharedText
> set to false, do you have to specify the card? And the biggest
> question: What would this be useful for?
The more I think about it, the more this idea appeals to me. Like button
icons, it seems that it would be useful to be able to use the same text
"store" somewhere to display text in multiple different places. A bit like
placing groups onto multiple stacks. Whilst placing groups onto multiple
stacks would go a long way to solving the problem that Hugh is trying to
solve, it wouldn't be ideal because the fields inside each group would have
to be in the same place, size, shape. I'm thinking along the lines of using
MetaCard to create something like Filemaker's ability to view the same
information through multiple different interfaces. Sure, it can be
scripted, but if someone is doing this on a heavy-duty basis, it would be a
most considerable shortcut just to set a property.
I'm not sure about the "sourceField" proposal for implementation though. I
think this might conflict with sharedText. Instead, how about allowing
sharedText to contain the long id of a field or button, and also any custom
property on an object somewhere. This proposal would make the data transfer
bi-directional, exactly as sharedText is now.
In short, imagine, for example, being able to open a card and make all the
fields in the card point to specific custom properties that correspond to
the current "record" being viewed? (Setting the property on a field would
cause it to take the information *from* the container you set it to share
with.)
Regards,
Kevin
> Regards,
> Scott
>
>> /H
>> Hugh Senior
>>
>> The Flexible Learning Company
>> Consultant Programming & Software Solutions
>> Fax/Voice: +44 (0)1483.27 87 27
>> Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> Web: www.flexibleLearning.com
>>
>
> ********************************************************
> Scott Raney [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.metacard.com
> MetaCard: You know, there's an easier way to do that...
Kevin Miller <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> <http://www.xworlds.com/>
Cross Worlds Computing, MetaCard Distributors, Custom Development.
Tel: +44 (0)131 672 2909. Fax: +44 (0)1639 830 707.
