Notes and help

[salvomic]

hi,

two questions...

1. It' not so easy write a Note in Prime...
today, I was writing a note, and the Prime had a reset while I was inserting bold style to a word. I hope it's only a random behavior, but the note has been erased...

2. Is it possible to make an help for a custom program, insert in it or associate to it, to give user info when he/she press Help key?

thanks in advance!

Salvo

[bobkrohn]

It's not YOU doing something wrong.

Notes is very buggy and unstable.
I've been trying to write programs to read/write data to/from Notes.
Numerous crashes and bizarre results.

[salvomic]

(02-21-2015 08:27 PM)bobkrohn Wrote:  It's not YOU doing something wrong.

Notes is very buggy and unstable.
I've been trying to write programs to read/write data to/from Notes.
Numerous crashes and bizarre results.

I understand... :-(

thank you

[Thomas_Sch]

Hello salvo,
You may look for real examples.
See e.g. http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-2648.html
There had been other threads using the notes.

In the manual there is also an example (User_Guide_EN.pdf), page 517+518 ff.

Maybe it's easier to write the note with the CK (connectivity kit), or copy your prepared note(s) from other editors to the note within CK.

@bob:
As others mentioned to your threads, it's difficult to help if we do not know your programs.

[salvomic]

(02-22-2015 10:22 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  Maybe it's easier to write the note with the CK (connectivity kit), or copy your prepared note(s) from other editors to the note within CK.

hello Thomas, thank you for help.
For my purpose, I think to write notes better with CK, indeed.
I don't know if there are other editors...
Surely, in Prime it's boring write in Notes, also if it's an interesting idea can do that.

No idea how to create help for my programs?

Regards
Salvo

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-22-2015 10:33 AM)salvomic Wrote:  No idea how to create help for my programs?

If you are using menues in your programs (DRAWMENU etc.), you can create a dedicated Help Button in your menu, and "draw" your help to an extra screen. (and later returning to your main screen(s) or redraw them.

Wolfgang (http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/user-1216.html) uses drawmenu in his apps. e.g. http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-2815.html / http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-127...l#pid24811
He is working on a version combining both.

I didn't see an example usind the build in HELP button.

Thomas

[salvomic]

(02-22-2015 10:59 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  I didn't see an example usind the build in HELP button.

yes, I saw the Wolfgang's nice job, but for now I'm not using Drawmenu, only little programs (also CAS) with few functions.
I would like to suggest almost the use of parameters to user and myself (and not only using comments in the program)...

Indeed I would like use just the built in HELP button, if it's possible.

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-22-2015 11:04 AM)salvomic Wrote:  Indeed I would like use just the built in HELP button, if it's possible.

You could send am Mail/PM to TW (Tim Wessman).
Maybe he will add your idea to the wishlist for the next FW version(s) ;-)

[salvomic]

(02-22-2015 11:10 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  You could send am Mail/PM to TW (Tim Wessman).
Maybe he will add your idea to the wishlist for the next FW version(s) ;-)

I don't want to bore Tim, but yes, also this one would be a nice thing to add in the next FW.
I'm looking forward for a new FW with all improvements suggested in this Forum, soon :-)

TU, Thomas!
Salvo

[Thomas_Sch]

If you could add a PPL program, you can catch the HELP key:

Code:

EXPORT HKEY()
BEGIN
  PRINT();
  PRINT("TEST");
  WHILE GETKEY == -1 DO
     IF GETKEY ==3 THEN PRINT ("Helpbutton pressed"); END;
  END;
END;

[salvomic]

(02-23-2015 07:37 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  If you could add a PPL program, you can catch the HELP key:
...

I'll try, Thomas.
However I would only add a text in the Help section that the user could see if he press Help key, and for the rest uses normally the program...
I'll try soon with your hint.

Salvo

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-23-2015 08:36 AM)salvomic Wrote:  However I would only add a text in the Help section that the user could see if he press Help key, and for the rest uses normally the program...

The build in Help will be in the firmware, therefore not to change by users. (like "ROM")
But under control of your program you can catch the Help key, and display a note (read the note and display with print or textout(_p). A Note will have the advantage of beeing easy to change and save, like with the CK.

Some ideas are in this threads: http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-264...l#pid23227 and http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-257...t=notes%28

[salvomic]

(02-23-2015 09:49 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  The build in Help will be in the firmware, therefore not to change by users. (like "ROM")
But under control of your program you can catch the Help key, and display a note (read the note and display with print or textout(_p). A Note will have the advantage of beeing easy to change and save, like with the CK.

Some ideas are in this threads: http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-264...l#pid23227 and http://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-257...t=notes%28

yes, I think the built in Help is in the firmware, sure...
In the threads you advise they write about new commands, Notes() and Programs()...
I'm trying notes("test"):="Help me with test" in Prime and I get: table("test" = "Help me with test"), but how is now this variable? I can't find it in Notes, and writing "test" I get ..."test", not the text. What's "table"?

Salvo

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-23-2015 10:01 AM)salvomic Wrote:  In the threads you advise they write about new commands, Notes() and Programs()...
I'm trying notes("test"):="Help me with test" in Prime and I get: table("test" = "Help me with test"), but how is now this variable? I can't find it in Notes, and writing "test" I get ..."test", not the text. What's "table"?

I don't know whats "table" here (you are trying from CAS, right?), maybe notes() does have an other meaning in CAS.
But please try

Code:

Notes("test"):="Help me with test"

instead of notes(). (capital N). This worked for me in Home and in CAS mode.
Edit:
If your Note "test" contains some lines of text (edited with the Notes function or via CK), your program simply can send this Note (the content) to the terminal by using

Code:

PRINT(Notes("test")

The terminal may be cleaned by pressing backspace. See Help for "PRINT".

[salvomic]

(02-23-2015 10:13 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  I don't know whats "table" here (you are trying from CAS, right?), maybe notes() does have an other meaning in CAS.

yes, I'm 80% of the time in CAS (I go in Home mostly for Apps and for quick calculation) :-)
if you write notes("title"):="..." (lowercase) you get all notes added to a variable called "table", i.e table("test" = "my test foo", "helpme" = "my test bar", "two" = "how can I delete it?")...

Quote:But please try

Code:

Notes("test"):="Help me with test"

instead of notes(). (capital N). This worked for me in Home and in CAS mode.

ok, with N uppercase it works also in CAS!
So it useful, as we get real note.

If it's not possible to add help to custom programs, perhaps we could do something adding notes...

However I tried also your code for handling Help button, I think to try using it as a "wrapper" for a program, otherwise I'm not sure how use when the program starts: the user input programName(par1, par2), now to have the help I probably must start with the "wrapper" to handle help key and start the functions of the program, am I wrong?

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-23-2015 10:25 AM)salvomic Wrote:  However I tried also your code for handling Help button, I think to try using it as a "wrapper" for a program, otherwise I'm not sure how use when the program starts: the user input programName(par1, par2), now to have the help I probably must start with the "wrapper" to handle help key and start the functions of the program, am I wrong?

Yes, it's a simple wrapper (idea from Wolfgang, it's not from my brain!).

If yur user enters programName(par1, par2), this idea may not be optimal.
But if the user enters programName("help") or programName("h") or even programName("?") you may check the parameters (i have seen another discussion in the forum), and print the help text, directly or by using Print(Notes("programNameHelp")).
Just an idea.

[salvomic]

(02-23-2015 10:34 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  If yur user enters programName(par1, par2), this idea may not be optimal.
But if the user enters programName("help") or programName("h") or even programName("?") you may check the parameters (i have seen another discussion in the forum), and print the help text, directly or by using Print(Notes("programNameHelp")).

yes, good idea, thanks (also thanks to Wolfgang, sure)
I'm thinking of it.

However I find Notes() also helpful, indeed. I don't know if it was a decision of the programmer of the FW, but I saw the command is not listed in Catalog...

[Thomas_Sch]

(02-23-2015 10:38 AM)salvomic Wrote:  However I find Notes() also helpful, indeed. I don't know if it was a decision of the programmer of the FW, but I saw the command is not listed in Catalog...

because it's not a command, it is a variable. Try the help system, there you will find "Notes" ;-)

[salvomic]

(02-23-2015 10:59 AM)Thomas_Sch Wrote:  because it's not a command, it is a variable. Try the help system, there you will find "Notes" ;-)

found it!

thanks