BUG in [showif] using ^ (contains)

This WebDNA talk-list message is from

1997


It keeps the original formatting.
numero = 11705
interpreted = N
texte = I seen to have found a bug in the [showif] context when using ^ (contains) as the operator ... and when both sides of the operator are numbers. I don't really want to call it a bug, because maybe it's just something that failed to get included in the html docs, but it's a problem nevertheless.The docs say that when using these operators in a showif context:= < >... and when both sides of the showif comparison happen to be numeric, the showif will evaluate both sides as numbers. However, the docs say nothing about this happening when the operator is ^ (contains) - and it DOES HAPPEN ... which causes an unexpected problem that everyone should be aware of ...When using the ^ operator in a showif or hideif context and both sides of the comparison are number, the showif is effectively ignored - as if you never put it there in the first place. It makes no difference what the numbers are - the showif is ignored whether the numbers are the same or completely different.The work-around is to make sure the left side does NOT look like a number to WebCat2. To make it look like a regular string of text instead of a number, you can simply add a letter to the left side (not the right side) of the showif comparison like I've done below.In other words, instead of using the first technique which does NOT work:[showif [publicationID]^[sku]]... use the following example which works just fine:[showif z[publicationID]^[sku]]See? I placed a letter 'z' immediately in front of the left side of the equation. I would imagine that the following would also work the same way:[showif [publicationID]z^[sku]]... because in either case, all you're doing is making sure WebCat knows that the left side of the equation is NOT a number. Apparently that's all it takes to fix this problem.Since I cannot imagine any situation where my work-around technique will do the 'wrong' thing, I highly recommend that you do this whenever you happen to be comparing two values using the ^ (contains) operator.Please note, I'm recommending that you do this ONLY when using the ^ operator - not when using any other operators. And don't try using a number instead of a letter because that won't fix a thing ... :)Sincerely, Ken Grome ..... ken@iav.com http://usarea.net/home.html Associated Messages, from the most recent to the oldest:

    
  1. Re: BUG in [showif] using ^ (contains) (John Hill 1997)
  2. BUG in [showif] using ^ (contains) (Kenneth Grome 1997)
I seen to have found a bug in the [showif] context when using ^ (contains) as the operator ... and when both sides of the operator are numbers. I don't really want to call it a bug, because maybe it's just something that failed to get included in the html docs, but it's a problem nevertheless.The docs say that when using these operators in a showif context:= < >... and when both sides of the showif comparison happen to be numeric, the showif will evaluate both sides as numbers. However, the docs say nothing about this happening when the operator is ^ (contains) - and it DOES HAPPEN ... which causes an unexpected problem that everyone should be aware of ...When using the ^ operator in a showif or hideif context and both sides of the comparison are number, the showif is effectively ignored - as if you never put it there in the first place. It makes no difference what the numbers are - the showif is ignored whether the numbers are the same or completely different.The work-around is to make sure the left side does NOT look like a number to WebCat2. To make it look like a regular string of text instead of a number, you can simply add a letter to the left side (not the right side) of the showif comparison like I've done below.In other words, instead of using the first technique which does NOT work:[showif [publicationID]^[sku]]... use the following example which works just fine:[showif z[publicationID]^[sku]]See? I placed a letter 'z' immediately in front of the left side of the equation. I would imagine that the following would also work the same way:[showif [publicationID]z^[sku]]... because in either case, all you're doing is making sure WebCat knows that the left side of the equation is NOT a number. Apparently that's all it takes to fix this problem.Since I cannot imagine any situation where my work-around technique will do the 'wrong' thing, I highly recommend that you do this whenever you happen to be comparing two values using the ^ (contains) operator.Please note, I'm recommending that you do this ONLY when using the ^ operator - not when using any other operators. And don't try using a number instead of a letter because that won't fix a thing ... :)Sincerely, Ken Grome ..... ken@iav.com http://usarea.net/home.html Kenneth Grome

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