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alert() not displaying dialog box in mac/windows projectors

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 16:29:00 GMT

while alert() works fine inside Director 12, in published movies on both mac and pc, I hear a system beep, but get no dialog box displayed.

I've searched and searched for a solution and come up empty. Most I've found was this discussion Re: alert() not working where the OP's problem just seemed to magically disappear.

Unfortunately my problem has continued through several reboots for a few days now. I'm using Director 12 on OS X 10.6.8, publishing to both Mac and PC.

Using FileIO to read different file formats

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 07 May 2014 16:29:29 GMT

I'm using Director 12 on Mac to produce projectors for both Mac and Windows. I've been using FileIO to read text files for a long time. Now I have a customer in Mexico who is submitting files in a format that I can't read. The contents of these files look like English except that they include letters with accent marks such as those included in the extended part of the ASCII table.

Up till now I've been using the default file format which the documentation indicates is UTF-8. I've tried using setCharSet to change the format to UTF-16 and that will read the file but it looks like Chinese which is not what I want. I've added a call to getFinderInfo to determine what type the file is in and then I plan to call setCharSet to access the contents. However, getFinderInfo is returning an empty string. Here's the code:

AllRecords = ""

FileIO = new xtra("fileio")

FileIO.openfile(ReportFiles.line[1], 1) -- opening as read-only

if FileIO.status() = 0 then -- Records file found

set myFormat = getFinderInfo(FileIO)

-- FileIO.setCharSet("???")

if FileIO.getlength() <> 0 then

AllRecords = FileIO.readfile()

FileIO.closefile()

else

alert "No words in file"

exit

end if

else

alert "Error opening transmit File"

exit

end if

FileIO = 0

Any thoughts on what I'm doing wrong or suggestions for a better way?

alert() not working

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 17:46:11 GMT

This seems like a silly question but I'm suddenly having a problem with the alert function. I just upgraded a project from MX to 12. When the user takes a particular action, I use alert() to show a feedback message. The movie works fine, however, the projector does not. When I run the projector and hit the code to show the alert message, the system beeps but no message is shown. The program continues normally. I am running both the movie and the projector on Mac OS10.6. Here's the original line of code:

alert(myTextVariable&" has been added to the rolls -- you may add more students or return to Main Menu")

In attempting to narrow down the problem, I tried:

_player.alert(myTextVariable&" has been added to the rolls -- you may add more students or return to Main Menu")

alert("Test message")

_player.alert("Test message")

None of these work. Anyone else see this?

By the way, I also notice that after every time I run a movie to test a change, the Script window is closed. What is particularly annoying is that, when I reopen it, I have to find my behavior again. Does anyone have a workaround for that or know of an option to set?

Unintended pause in program until mouse is moved

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 01 Oct 2013 20:40:29 GMT

I've been making edits to some existing Shockwave movies with Director 12. Each program must work in Windows, Mac and Shockwave. I have a new symptom that I can't seem to resolve. At a certain point in my movie, it seems to pause on a frame until I physically move the cursor. Once I move the cursor, the movie continues to the next frame. Then it pauses again until I move the cursor. I haven't made any changes to the cursor. This is only an issue for Shockwave. It works fine in both Windows and Mac executables.

After struggling with this for some time, I moved the behavior (run on exitframe) one frame to the right in my score so it was not at the same frame as the label. This appeared to resolve the problem.

I thought I had a workaround but now I have the same symptom in a different movie and moving the behavior is not solving the problem this time. Any thoughts on what might cause this kind of delay?

Is Adobe AIR and Reader required to run Director 12 projectors on Windows

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 17 Sep 2013 22:23:02 GMT

I have a customer who is reporting that our projectors will not run on all Windows computers unless she has AIR and Reader installed. Is this a requirement that I'm not aware of? Any insight as to why?

Thanks!

Director 12 crashes immediately

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:59:31 GMT

I just downloaded and installed the trial version of Director 12. When I run it, it crashes immediately. I see the standard Windows error message "Director has stopped working". The Director splash screen is still visible. I'm running Windows 7.

I've rebooted and it continues to happen. Suggestions?

List control issue in Projector mode after Printomatic

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 23:32:08 GMT

I'm working on an application in MX. I'm using a multi-select list control and mostly it's working fine. However, in Projector mode, under certain circumstances, my list is shown considerably reduced in size and, when I click on it, I get a Director player error: Property not found #selectedIndex.

I've narrowed the problem down to the use of Printomatic. Unfortunately I'm stuck with Printomatic for the time being.

I've tried changing the list to a single-select with no change. I've put an alert when I click on the list to determine whether the list object is receiving messages and it is. I've tried returning from the Printomatic calls to a frame where the list doesn't already exist and then recreating the list - no change.

It seems as though Printomatic is corrupting something related to the list. And, once it's been corrupted, it stays corrupted until I restart the executable.

Anyone have any suggestions? I don't have time right now to implement a printing class which is the only other idea I have.

Counting elements in simple list or array

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 17:59:21 GMT

I'm using a multi-selection list control in MX. I can get a simple list of the selected items but when I try to determine how many items are selected, I get a void return value.

Here's the code I'm using:

selectedItems = sprite(19).selectedItems

selectedCount = selectedItems.count

After the first call returns, selectedItems contains an array of two objects. Each object contains two field ( data and label ). The count call always returns void. I've tried selectedItems.count() which indicates that two parameters are required and every other permutation I can think of.

What's the secret to counting the number of items in a list?

Indesign CS4 on Windows 8

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 23:18:41 GMT

I'm still using CS4 but need a new computer. Adobe indicates that no changes are needed for CS5 but has anyone tried CS4 on Windows 8?

Passing parameters to Mac application using shell xtra?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 21:30:34 GMT

I've been using Director 11.5 and Buddy xtra's baRunProgram call to launch another app using a command line parameter. This has been working well in Windows but now I find that I need to support Mac as well. The baRunProgram call does not support command line parameters on Mac. I've been referred to Valentin's shell xtra. I've looked at the documentation for that and I'm not sure if it will support what I am trying to do.

Has anyone else used the shell xtra on Mac to support command line parameters when launching another process? Any advice?

Director 11 on Windows 8

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 22:27:55 GMT

Has anyone tried Director 11 on Windows 8 yet? Any issues to be aware of?

Installing Printomatic 1.8 (Mac) on Director 11.5 for Windows

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 20:33:05 GMT

I need to upgrade an existing Windows/Mac projector to 11.5. The projector uses Printomatic for printing and I'm developing on Windows. I downloaded the 1.8 beta release from the Printomatic site for both Windows and Mac.

I've got the Windows xtra installed and it appears to be working with no problem so far. Now I need to install the Mac xtra. Looking at other discussions, it sounds like others have been able to install the Printomatic 1.8 beta 5 release successfully. I hope one of you can help me because I haven't been able to find any instructions for installing the Mac xtra.

I've copied the PMatic_180b5_Mac folder to my ...\Adobe Director 11\Configuration\Cross Platform Resources\Macintosh\Xtras folder. When I try to build the projector, I'm getting a "Can't find the Xtra file 'PrintoMatic MX'" message . I checked the list of xtras in the Modify->Movie->Xtras options and the Printomatic MX xtra is the only "Printomatic" xtra I've got.

I've also tried copying the PrintOMatic MX.xtra folder to the ...\Adobe Director 11\Configuration\Cross Platform Resources\Macintosh\Xtras folder but that's not working for me either.

Here's the contents of my xtrainfo.txt file:

[#namePPC:"PrintOMatic MX", #nameW32:"PrintOMatic MX.x32", #package:"http://www.printomatic.com/packages/PMaticMX", #info:"http://www.printomatic.com/products.cfm?page=1"]

[#namePPC:"PrintOMatic Lite MX", #nameW32:"PrintOMatic Lite MX.x32", #package:"http://www.printomatic.com/packages/PMLiteMX", #info:"http://www.printomatic.com/products.cfm?page=2"]

[#namePPC:"Table Xtra", #nameW32:"Table.x32", #package:"http://www.printomatic.com/packages/Table", #info:"http://www.printomatic.com/products.cfm?page=3"]

Can someone point me in the right direction? Thanks.

How to get sprite number in a KeyUp script?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 18:07:00 GMT

I have an app with a series of text entry fields. Users enter numeric values in each field. I want to have the keyboard focus move to the next field when the user clicks on the Enter key. So far I've only been able to do this by hard coding the number of the next sprite as follows...

-----

case(_key.keycode) of

36: --Enter key

_movie.keyboardFocusSprite = 64 -- This is the hard-coded value of the next sprite

numString = member("ALA_CFTHolder").text

otherwise: -- Handles ordinary input

...

end case

-----

I want to find a way to move to the next sprite without hardcoding the value. I've tried reading the _movie.keyboardFocusSprite but it's always -1. Surely there's a way to do this.

Thanks.

Distortion of exported/linked graphics

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:09:13 GMT

We are using InDesign CS4 for documents relating to a printed test. This test consists of a book containing over 20 different documents. There is also a scoring key and that's where we are running into problems. We exported the book to a PDF file which we are using for printing the test book. For the scoring key, we created a new InDesign document and linked the PDF of the original test. Then we added a layer and created the scoring key indicators on top of the linked book graphics. To print the scoring key, we simply hid the layer with the original test and printed only the scoring key portion. This works great with one exception...the imported graphics are not the same size as the original InDesign documents. This causes the scoring key to be wrong resulting in obvious problems when using the scoring key on the printed tests.

We have tried sizing the imported graphics up, but it doesn't seem to be a plain sizing problem; the image is actually distorted. I'm not sure whether the distortion occurs when InDesign exports the PDF or when the PDF is linked in as a graphic.

I could copy the book and associated documents and then add the scoring key layers to that but I'm hoping to avoid having all those copies which leads to confusion when updates are made. Also, the test is in two different languages with two different scoring keys so, if we went that route, I would have four copies of each of the files.

Is there a way to resolve this challenge without using multiple copies of files? Or to export and then link a PDF file that more accurately follows the original InDesign files?

Passing parameters into Director. Is this possible? Experience with Multipoint?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:30:18 GMT

I am using Director for a series of educational applications. I have a single projector (startup) where students can click on their names. When a name is selected, the startup projector consults a database to determine which educational projector should be launched. Based on the results in the database, I'm using the Buddy baRunProgram call to launch the appropriate Director projector. Right now, I'm using a text file to record the student's progress as they work their way through the educational projector. This all works great for a single user on a single computer.

However, I am having a problem with a customer who is using Microsoft Multipoint. Using Multipoint, there are several students running the startup program from the same location. As a result, the text file is recording all students' progress instead of a single student's progress. The startup projector knows which student is active but the individual educational projectors do not currently have this information. I could identify a single student to the educational projector by passing in a parameter. First, is this possible? If so, how would one do it?

Short of passing a parameter, is there another method that would work to accomplish the same thing?

Does anyone else work in a Multipoint environment? I'm interested in others' experiences with Multipoint.

Reading an external file

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:26:48 GMT

I'm new to Acrobat scripting though I've done some for JavaScript for InDesign. It seems very different and I'm having difficulty wrapping my head around it.

I need to open and read an external text file that contains names of PDF files. Then, I need to merge all those PDF file into a single new PDF. First, is this possible?

Second, can anyone point me to a source for some sample scripts that will help get me started?

Thanks.

_mouse.mouseLoc question

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:51:52 GMT

I need to move the mouse to different locations based on a random value. Sometimes the _mouse.mouseLoc function works; sometimes it doesn't. I know that the function is being called. Are there certain circumstances that are required to do this?

Here's the code I'm using:

RandomNum = Random(4)

case RandomNum of

0:set xloc = 100

set yloc = 40

1:set xloc = 300

set yloc = 40

2:set xloc = 500

set yloc = 40

3:set xloc = 700

set yloc = 40

4:set xloc = 900

set yloc = 40

end case

_mouse.mouseLoc=point(xloc,yloc)

This is for a Shockwave movie.

Need general understanding of how sounds work in Shockwave

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 22:37:14 GMT

I'm seeing an intermittent problem with sound stopping in my Shockwave projectors. The projector seems to play correctly but the sound simply stops. I'm trying to understand how Shockwave/Director 11 handles sounds. It seems to me that, when the projector is downloading to the user's computer, it also downloads the sounds. However, this problem seems to indicate that the projector doesn't always have the sound to play. I'm learning about streaming sounds in Shockwave and I'm wondering if this will solve the problem. If so, why is streaming better than simply embedding the sounds in the projector?

Does anyone know of a resource where I can get the big picture of how Shockwave handles audio?

Shockwave help wanted

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 22:27:39 GMT

I'm hoping this is appropriate to ask this question here. We are having a problem with a series of Shockwave movies and need immediate assistance. We are willing to pay for your expertise with Shockwave. We don't expect this to be a long-term project. We just need some help determining why our Shockwave programs are having problems with specific browsers or on different platforms. If you are interested, please contact me directly at soi_shockwave@hotmail.com. I'd like to know your background with Director and Shockwave development and what you would charge as an hourly rate. As mentioned before, we need someone immediately, so please respond if you are available now.

Thanks,

B. Palmer

Streaming linked audio files in Shockwave

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 17:43:28 GMT

My customers are experiencing some intermittent delays of sounds in a series of educational Shockwave movies that are delivered via Internet. The sounds range in length from a couple seconds up to a minute or more. They are voice only - no music - so quality is not too big a concern. I haven't been able to establish any consistency in when the sound problems occur.

I've been reading about streaming linked sounds. The conversion sounds substantial so before I go there, I want to feel confident that linking external sounds will solve the problem. Anyone have any insight on linked audio in Shockwave? Any resources that you've found useful?

Intermittent Shockwave error

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:51:59 GMT

I have a series of Shockwave movies that are designed to run from a web application. One of my customers is experiencing intermittent problems when trying to launch the Shockwave movies. They get an unhelpful error message that there is a problem with the Shockwave and to contact the company that produced the Shockwave.

We've tested the Shockwave movies on Firefox, IE, Safari and Chrome. We are not experiencing any problems here. When they run the movies on Firefox, it all seems to work. However, they want to use IE because of another company's product.

I'm new to Shockwave and I'm trying to figure out where to go from here. Any suggestions?

Conversion from CS3 to CS4 - closing files without saving

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 21:43:32 GMT

One more issue...

I'm making temporary changes to a book and a document so I want to close the documents without saving. This is what I'm currently using.

myBook.close(SaveOptions.NO);
myDocument.close(SaveOptions.NO);

What seems to be happening is that the file is saved anyway. No Save As window opens. I've looked in the Object Model and it looks like CS4 uses the same syntax as for CS3. Any suggestions?

Conversion problem moving from CS3 to CS4 - adding files to book

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 18:28:25 GMT

I had a script which was working beautifully in CS3. Now we've moved to CS4 and it refuses to cooperate with me. I've tried a solution offered on the forum but it's not working for me.

// Creating book

        var myBookFileName = myPath+"Personalized Modules/PW.indd";
         myBookFile = new File( myBookFileName );
        myBook = app.open( myBookFile );
         myBook = app.books.add( myBookFile );

        // Add the front cover
        myFilename = myPath+"Personalized Modules/PW_Cover.indd";
        myFile = File(myFilename);
        myBook.bookContents.add( myFile);

// Add the rest of the individual files

...

For some reason, when it gets to the bookContents.add statement, it opens up a SaveAs dialog. I'm wondering if this is a setting within InDesign CS4 rather than a script issue.

I'd really appreciate any idea.

Snow Leopard won't run Director MX 2004 movies?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 19:18:55 GMT

I have an extensive library of movies developed using Director MX 2004. They have been functioning on both Windows and Apple systems up to now. Recently we discovered that our movies are not working on the Snow Leopard Mac OS. When we try to run them we get a message indicating that there is no application associated with the file.

I tried removing all the xtras I could from a sample movie. The only xtras remaining in the projector are

fontxtra.x32

textxtra.x32

text asset.x32

sound control.x32

directsound.x32

This did not resolve the problem. We still get the same message.

I would consider upgrading to Director 11 if I was convinced it would resolve the problem. However, my research indicates that the MX 2004 version does work on Snow Leopard. Does anyone know whether one or more of these xtras is the problem? I'm open to any suggestions for a solution.

Thanks!

Automatically log in to password-protected PDF?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 22:17:43 GMT

I am looking for alternatives to allow the use of PDF files for a limited period of time. I have a series of PDF files that I want to provide for customers who have licensed my company's documents.

What I have in mind is writing a standalone software program that customers use to select from a list of PDF files. I can program the standalone program so that it ceases functioning after a specified date. When the user selects a PDF, the standalone program would call Adobe Reader to open the file. I would like the standalone program to be able to provide the password so the user doesn't have to type it in. Is this possible?

Is there a better alternative I haven't considered?

Thanks!

FileIO and Windows file updating

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:19:55 GMT

I am having a file problem with my Director application. I have two Director MX applications which run on different computers. They communicate with each other via a text file which is stored at a networked location. Both applications access the file and write to it. I have several users using the applications at the same time. Potentially, I could have 1 user using AppA and 8 users using AppB at one time.

I am using the FileIO extra. When a user needs to update the file, the applications follow these steps:

create the Fileio object

open the file with write access

read the file

delete the file

create the file

open the file with write access

write to the file

close the file

set the Fileio object to 0

The problem occurs intermittently when users are accessing the file at approximately the same time. There are times when the correct information has apparently not been written to the file. For example, AppA reads the file, AppB reads the file, AppA writes new information to the file, AppB writes different new information to the file. Basically AppB's changes win and AppA's changes are lost.

There also have been instances where the correct information has been written, but a user has accessed the information almost immediately and they receive the old information. If I check the file later, the correct information is there. I have seen similar behavior in the past where I've made changes to a text file but another application accessing that file still receives the old information. I believe this is a Windows issue where the file changes have not been actually stored yet.

I really have two problems. First, there is apparently no way to lock the text file for the entire time it is being updated. I'm not sure this is solvable using Director and the FileIO xtra. Except for the moment between the delete and the open, I should have the file locked to other users. There is apparently no way, with the FileIO capability, of locking the file for the entire time.

The second problem is the Windows issue with file changes taking some time to synch up. Is there a way to force the Windows text file to accept the changes so that I can be sure the next user is getting the absolutely latest file? I'm not sure how to describe the problem exactly to search for solutions. Is there a term for this?

Any ideas are welcome. Thanks.