Adding a bitmap to the file coms

[pamoroso]

For my WebCard project I need to add a bitmap to the coms of the program. I have a general idea how to start but I'm not sure how to insert the actual data of the bitmap in the coms.

Assume the variable MyBitMap holds the bitmap. One way to proceed is to evaluate (ADDTOFILE '(MyBitMap <value>) 'VARS 'MYCOMS) at an Interlisp Exec. But how do I insert the bitmap data at <value>?

I tried editing the coms with (DC MYPRO) and doing something like (ADDTOFILE '(MyBitMap ,MYBitMap) 'VARS 'MYPROG) but SEdit renders it as (ADDTOFILE '(MyBitMap %,MYBitMap) 'VARS 'MYPROG) with no data. (BITMAPS MyBitMap) likely goes in the coms too.

Any advice?

[nbriggs]

If MyBitmap has a value, then adding (BITMAPS MyBitmap) to the coms will save the current value when you do the MAKEFILE (or CLEANUP). In fact, you don't even need to tell it that it's a bitmap, (VARS MyBitmap) will work just as well.

[pamoroso]

Okay thanks, I'll go with (BITMAPS MyBitMap). I assume to access the bitmap from the program I can just reference the variable MyBitMap.

[nbriggs]

Yes, it's just a regular variable with a value.

[nbriggs]

You could also have done:

(ADDTOFILE (LIST 'MyBitmap MyBitmap) 'BITMAPS 'MYPRO))

Assuming the file is called MYPRO. It'll add it to MYPROCOMS and when the file gets printed by MAKEFILE it'll print the bitmap value. Think carefully about what'll happen if you change the value of MyBitmap to some other bitmap - the MYPROCOMS has a reference to the BITMAP object that was the value of MyBitmap at the time you executed the command, if you rebound MyBitmap you wouldn't get the new value, but if you destructively edited the old value that will affect the value saved when you execute the MAKEFILE.

Another way to do it, in SEDIT, is to (DC MYPRO), and edit in by hand, for example --

((BITMAPS (MyBitmap MyBitmap)))

then, assuming MyBitmap has the value you want, select the second one and M-Z (mutate) by EVAL. It will be replaced by its value, and then when you MAKEFILE the same thing will happen as above, with the same caveats.

[pamoroso]

For this project I have a bitmap ready I don't anticipate changing but in case I'll keep an eye out, thanks.

[pamoroso]

I tried to add the bitmap but without success.

First, I assigned the bitmap data to WCD.WebCardBitMap. Next, I evaluated (ADDTOFILE (LIST 'WCD.WebCardBitMap WCD.WebCardBitMap) 'BITMAPS 'WEBCARD), and referenced WCD.WebCardBitMap from function WCD.CreateWebCardType to use the bitmap:

(WCD.CreateWebCardType
  [LAMBDA NIL                                                (* ; "Edited 21-Oct-2024 13:01 by PA")
                                                             (* ; "Edited 14-Oct-2024 11:55 by PA")
                                                             (* ; "Edited  1-Oct-2024 17:35 by PA")
                                                             (* Define the new card type Web that 
                                                             inherits from Text.)
    (DECLARE (GLOBALVARS WCD.WebCardBitMap))
    (NCP.CreateCardType 'Web 'Text '((MakeFn WCD.MakeWebCard))
           `((DefaultHeight 70)
             (LinkAnchorModesSupported NIL)
             (DisplayedInMenuFlg T)
             (LinkIconAttachedBitMap ,WCD.WebCardBitMap])

Finally I saved with (MAKEFILE 'WEBCARD). But now when I load WEBCARD I get the error WCD.WebCardBitMap is an unbound variable.

Do I need to also add WCD.WebCardBitMap as a global variable with something like (ADDTOFILE (LIST 'WCD.WebCardBitMap WCD.WebCardBitMap) 'VARS 'WEBCARD)?

Here is the full code of WEBCARD so far: WEBCARD.txt

[nbriggs]

Look at the COMS (or look at the file) -- you're evaluating the (WCD.InitWebCard) before you define the value of WCD.WebCardBitMap (your "P" command precedes the "BITMAPS" command).

The order of commands in the filecoms control the order of things written (and thus read, and executed), so the order is important -- always a good idea to look at them with, say, (DC WEBCARD) to make sure they make sense.

[pamoroso]

I moved the P command to the end of the coms but (FILES?) now asks where to put all the functions I already assigned to the WEBCARD file:

Is this expected when rearranging the coms?

[nbriggs]

That's not what I would have expected. Say N and see what happens.

[pamoroso]

Answering N to FILES? to skip the function assignment seems to yield the expected coms with all the functions, so it's probably safe to MAKEFILE:

[nbriggs]

You’re doing it on a versioned file system, so previous versions are there. Don’t keep exiting your Medley session though.

[nbriggs]

When I did the same, starting from your WEBCARD(.txt), and moved the P command it just said that WEBCARDCOMS had changed, nothing else.

[pamoroso]

(MAKEFILE 'WEBCARD) saved the file with P at the end of the coms but printed the warning (no LinkIconLeftButtonFn property for Web). Here's the latest file: WEBCARD.txt

Loading the modified file completes with no errors and the bitmap can now be seen as expected in link icons leading to cards of type Web.

However, traversing such a link no longer opens the web browser to visit the link for the reason hinted by the MAKEFILE warning. MAKEFILE skipped the LinkIconLeftButtonFn property of the symbol Web which was present in the last working version of the program prior to my attempts to add a bitmap. The function is called when left-clicking a Web link icon.

[nbriggs]

At the time you did the MAKEFILE there was no LinkIconLeftButtonFn property on the atom Web, presumably as a result of the LOAD erroring before the property got restored.

        (P (WCD.InitWebCard))
        (PROP LinkIconLeftButtonFn Web)
        (BITMAPS (WCD.WebCardBitMap ...))

So there was nothing to save, and it warned you about it. The PROP file package command is designed more for saving a property value where you don't know what the value should be. I'd suggest explicitly putting the known property value on Web as part of creating the Web card type.

[pamoroso]

I'll do this. I assume it's better to also remove PROP from the coms, right?

[nbriggs]

Yes, remove the PROP from the coms.

[pamoroso]

Along with the prior bitmap change in the coms I removed PROP from the coms and moved the property assignment to WCD.CreateWebcardType. Now everything loads and works fine. Thanks.