Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

[mronck]

I have a dialog2 component which computes OK in working preview mode. All values are OK.
However, when the data is submitted, one field does not save to the table to which it is bound. All other fields do.

I checked and double checked all bindings and data settings of the field on the dialog.
I used the debugger from the aftervalidate server event. All to no avail.
Even deleted this particular field, saved the dialog, closed it, reopened it and re-created the field. To no avail.
No system error messages (at least, none that I see).

So my question is, what is the best thing to do to systematically debug this error? What is my best option to use the debugger?

[Peter.Greulich]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

Marcel,

You may be using a reserved word as your field name.

http://wiki.alphasoftware.com/Reserved+Words

[mronck]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

The field name is: Tot_Incl_Btw_Nul so that does not appear in the list.... though "Null" could have, so you had me worried a bit there..... but that isn't in the list either.

[Clipper87]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

DBF or SQL ?

[mronck]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

It's a DBF Frank.

[GGandhi]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

probably dbf. he said somewhere in another thread.

Tot_Incl_Btw_Nul

what type of field is that?
and if calculated field then what is the expression?

[gaby_h]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

Since it's a calc/summary field, maybe it needs {dialog.Object}.refreshClientSideComputations(); before submitting.

[Clipper87]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

some dbf incompatible content like unicode stuff ?

[mronck]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

This is the expression: ROUND(summary.INCL_BTW_NUL.total +summary.INCL_BTW_NUL1.total ,2)

I did some research:
1) If I remove the formula and enter an amount manually, it WILL save (no problems)
2) If I take a formula from another field (where that does work) it will not work.

My best guess until now is, that it has something to do with the international formatting and the settings therefor.
So, I guess I need to dig into that a bit deeper now. Since the other fields work, it must have SOMETHING different.

[GGandhi]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

try something like this see if it works.
ROUND((summary.INCL_BTW_NUL.total) +(summary.INCL_BTW_NUL1.total) ,2)
just a thought.

[Clipper87]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

I don't like NUL in the variable name, length of variable names is 12 & 13 chars (INCL_BTW_NUL & INCL_BTW_NUL1) Alpha may very well consider them being the same. Try some other short name

[GGandhi]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

just to let you know
i created a dialog and tested with mysql, it updates as expected without any problem.
i do not know the significance of this finding. yet.(my field lengths are shorter by the way)

[mronck]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

I did some more research to start with based on the advice above.

1) Changing the variable name to something that had no "nul" in it (but equally long) did not change anything;
2) Changing the variable name to a short name without "nul" in it (I used the variable name "inclzero") did not change anything either.
3) I double checked all the format settings and compared them with a field on the form that DOES work, found no particular differences.

Next thing I did was actually completely delete the flawed variable/object from the dialog. Took a working one instead and duplicated it.
Changed the field name in the databinding section of the dialog to point towards the right field in the table. Changed NOTHING else.
So the control has a formula from another field on board which formula actually WORKS on the other field.

This did NOT work either.

Next, my attention went to the actual table. I changed the table field name from "Tot_Incl_Btw_Nul" into "Tot_Incl_Btw_Zero" to avoid the word "nul" in the field name (although it isn't on the list of forbidden words).
Changed the databinding section to the new field... tried again: did not change anything.

Next, it struck my mind that (since I HAD checked everything related to this particular field) there might very well be something NOT RELATED to the actual field that did not save. I mean, the simple fact that just field A does not save, does not exclusively mean it has to be field A that is at fault? So next, I checked all other fields to see if something was wrong there. And what I found was, that in a completely different field, there was a validation declared by use of "custom expression". The custom expression however was EMPTY. So, I thought, it is very well possible that the server gets halted somewhere trying to validate an entry but can't find the validation expression. Next, I put the value from "custom expression" to NONE and tried again.....
Hack, NOW IT DID SAVE !

Next, got my old values back in place (old variable names, old calculated formulas etc etc).
Tried again.

1) New invoices created with the use of the previously flawed field did work. The value gets saved perfectly.
2) Next, took an existing invoice. Populated the dialog with its values, changed some and tried to save. Failure. The old value would not change. What??? Why not???

The next question that struck me (of course) was: "Well, is it SUPPOSED to???". Is the record even in change mode? Could that be the whole problem, that there is / was actually (almost) nothing wrong with the dialog, but that I expected it to do something it was not supposed to?

Of course I tested this a few times, and, indeed: new records get saved without problems, existing records will not change.

The problem lies with myself: you can indeed open the invoice and have a look at it, but the record is not in change mode and therefore will not change. You could have endless discussions about whether you even should WANT to be able to change what you once saved in terms of financial accounting integrity issues, but it would be futile in respect to solving this mystery. The mystery seems to be that I expected something that was not meant to happen!

Looking at the new record button, this is the javascript attached to that button: {Dialog.Object}.newRecord();
It is executed on click, and it looks like a dialog object method. Although, the .newRecord() is NOT found in the "insert method"-list ! So, where is it coming from?
This question rose on the quest for something like: "{Dialog.Object}.changeRecord()".
But I can't even find the .newRecord() method. Investigations will continue..... :-) but this time only "for the knowing" since I don't even actually WANT to change the values now that I came to think about it more closely. If something proves wrong in an invoice afterwards, it is best for purposes of maintaining the financial activity history if the user creates a CREDIT-invoice for the faulty one and next a completely new one.

So, in the end: problem solved due to lack of a problem, remaining the question about this method and maybe other methods that are not in the list (like the change one).

[Clipper87]

Re: Debugging a new dialog component, any advice?

A distilled mini sample project with just the bare essence & an email to Alpha may help clarify this I'd say. Looks like you've gone great lenghts already