Targeted Text statements: Difference between revisions

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The AuditText, PrintText, TraceText, ReturnText, and SetText statements are abbreviated forms of the [[Text and Html Statements]].
__TOC__
They have the same effect as the Text Audit, Text Print, Text Trace, Text Return, and Text Set statements respectively.
The <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var> statements are abbreviated forms of the [[Text and Html statements|Text and Html]] statements.
They have the same effect as the <var>Text Audit</var>, <var>Text Print</var>, and <var>Text Trace</var> statements, respectively.
The <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var> statements are available in <var class="product">Sirius Mods</var> 7.2 and later.
The <var>[[#SetText statement|SetText]]</var> statement, which is available in <var class="product">Sirius Mods</var> 7.8 and later,
uses the same syntax as <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var> to set a target variable.
And the <var>[[#ReturnText statement|ReturnText]]</var> statement, which is available in <var class="product">Sirius Mods</var> 7.8 and later, uses the same syntax as <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var> to return a string value from a <var class="product">User Language</var> function or property <var>Get</var> method.


The AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText statements are available in Sirius Mods 7.2 and later.
==AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText==
The <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var> keywords are simply a merging and reordering of <var>Text Audit</var>, <var>Text Print</var>, and <var>Text Trace</var> to emphasize the principle action.  


In addition the [[#SetText statement]], which is available in Sirius Mods 7.8 and later, uses the same syntax as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText to set a target variable.
<var>AuditText</var> sends its output to the <var class="product">Model 204</var> audit trail, <var>PrintText</var> sends its output to the current output stream (output terminal or use dataset), and <var>TraceText</var> sends its output to the current trace targets.
These statements are the recommended/preferred alternatives to the traditional <var>Audit</var>, <var>Print</var>, and <var>Trace</var> statements.
They are recommended because they are more flexible and have more consistent behavior.


The [[#ReturnText statement]] which is available in Sirius Mods 7.8 and later, uses the same syntax as AuditText, PrintText, and Tracetext to return a string value from a User Language function or property Get method.
All text not inside curly braces in an <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, or <var>TraceText</var> statement is considered to be literal text. For example, the following statement will display <code>Suit the action to the word, the word to the action</code> on the primary output stream:
<p class="code">printText Suit the action to the word, the word to the action </p>
You can place values of variables and also calculated values inside of curly braces to display the value of what is inside the braces.
For example, these statements:
<p class="code">%i = 22
%j = 33
printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, %i * %j = {%i * %j}  </p>


The AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText keywords are simply a merging and reordering of Text Audit, Text Print, and Text Trace to emphasize the principle action. The lone difference between the former and latter forms is that former cannot be used if you want to
Display the following:
include other Html/Text options, as in:
<p class="code">%i = 22, %j = 33, %i * %j = 726</p>
  text noexpr print The set is {2, 3, 5, 8, 13, ...}
As would be expected, AuditText sends its output to the [[Model 204]] audit trail, PrintText sends its output to the current output stream (output terminal or use dataset), and TraceText sends its output to the current trace targets.
These statements are the recommended/preferred alternatives to the traditional Audit, Print, and Trace statements.
The reason they are recommend over these other statements is because they are more flexible and have more consistent behavior.


All text not inside of curly braces in an AuditText, PrintText, or TraceText statement is considered to be literal text. For example, the following will display ''"Suit the action to the word, the word to the action"'' on the primary output stream:
  printText Suit the action to the word, the word to the action
Values of variables and calculated values, can be placed inside of curly braces to that the value of what's inside the braces is displayed.
For example, the following would display ''"%i = 22, %j = 33, %i * %j = 726"'':
  %i = 22
  %j = 33
  printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, %i * %j = {%i * %j}
Any valid expression is allowed inside the curly braces, including those that contain parentheses, $functions, and method calls.
Any valid expression is allowed inside the curly braces, including those that contain parentheses, $functions, and method calls.
For example, the following would display ''"%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375"'':
For example, the following statements:
  %i = 22
<p class="code">%i = 22
  %j = 33
%j = 33
  printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)}
printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)} </p>
If a single tilde (~) character is found inside curly braces, it must be followed (possibly with some intervening text) with an expression inside curly braces. The {~} would then be replaced with the literal contents of the following curly braces.
Display:
For example, the following would display ''"%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375"'':
<p class="code">%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375</p>
  %i = 22
 
  %j = 33
===~ and ~= directives===
  printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%j}, {~} = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)}
A single tilde character inside curly braces, <b>{~}</b>, must be followed (possibly with some intervening text) by an expression inside curly braces. The <b>{~}</b> would then be replaced with the literal contents of the following curly braces.
One common issue with the {~} syntax is that one might feel that a variable used as a subscript (perhaps for an ArrayList), should be replaced by its value.
 
For example, if one had:
For example, the following sequence:
  b
<p class="code">%i = 22
  %i is float
%j = 33
  %j is float
printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%j}, {~} = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)}  </p>
  %al is arraylist of float
 
  %al = list(13, 17, 30)
Displays:
  for %i from 1 to %al:count
<p class="code">%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375</p>
      printText {~} = {%al(%i)}
 
  end for
<div id="tildeEqual"></div>
  end
As of <var class="product">Sirius Mods</var> version 7.8, you can also use '''a ~= directive''' as a shorthand for <code>{~}={<i>expression</i>}</code>.
One might expect the following to be displayed:
For example, <br><code>printtext {~=%i}, {~=%j}, {~=(%i+%j):toPower(3)}</code> would display <code>%i=22, %j=33, (%i + %j):toPower(3)=166375</code>.
  %al(1) = 13
<p>
  %al(2) = 17
Note that in the directive, spaces are optional after the equal sign, and the output can produce spaces before or after the equal sign. For example: </p>
  %al(3) = 30
<p class="code">b
printText "{~=1234:nextPrime  }"
printText "{~= 1234:nextPrime  }"
printText "{~=  1234:nextPrime}" 
end  </p>
<p>
The result is: </p>
<p class="output">"1234:nextPrime  =1237"         
"1234:nextPrime  = 1237"
"1234:nextPrime=  1237"  </p>
'''Note:''' One common issue with the <b>{~}</b> syntax is that it does not replace with its value '''''a variable used as a subscript''''' (perhaps for an <var>ArrayList</var>). For example, if you have:
<p class="code">b
%i is float
%j is float
%al is arraylist of float
%al = list(13, 17, 30)
for %i from 1 to %al:count
  printText {~} = {%al(%i)}
end for
end </p>
You might expect the following to be displayed:
<p class="code">%al(1) = 13
%al(2) = 17
%al(3) = 30 </p>
But, instead, the following is displayed:
But, instead, the following is displayed:
  %al(%i) = 13
<p class="code">%al(%i) = 13
  %al(%i) = 17
%al(%i) = 17
  %al(%i) = 30
%al(%i) = 30 </p>
One way to deal with this is to simply "manually" build the part before the value:
One way to deal with this is to "manually" build the part before the value:
  for %i from 1 to %al:count
<p class="code">for %i from 1 to %al:count
      printText %al({%i}) = {%al(%i)}
  printText %al({%i}) = {%al(%i)}
  end for
end for </p>
Another way, is to simply also show the subscript value:
Another way is to show the subscript value also:
  for %i from 1 to %al:count
<p class="code">for %i from 1 to %al:count
      printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%al(%i)}
  printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%al(%i)}
  end for
end for </p>
This ends up displaying:
This displays:
  %i = 1, %al(%i) = 13
<p class="code">%i = 1, %al(%i) = 13
  %i = 2, %al(%i) = 17
%i = 2, %al(%i) = 17
  %i = 3, %al(%i) = 30
%i = 3, %al(%i) = 30 </p>
==SetText statement==
The SetText statement works much the same as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText, but is used to set a variable instead of outputting a string. The syntax of the SetText statement is:
  setText %variable = string
Where
<dl>
<dt>string
<dd>is a literal string with expressions inside of curly braces, just as is used in the Text statement.
</dl>
For example, the following
  setText %x = Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel
sets %x to the literal string ''"Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel"''. And the following:
  setText %x = The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y}
Sets %x to the literal string ''"The sum of %x and %y is "'' followed by the sum of %x and %y.


The target of SetText can be a simple variable, a class variable, a class property, or a collection member (which is really just a special kind of class property). For example, the following:
===Tilde statement directives===
  %toke        is object string tokenizer
As of <var class="product">Sirius Mods</var> 7.8, certain <var>Text</var> statement directives can be placed after a tilde character (<b>~</b>) inside curly braces (<b>{ }</b>) in any of the targeted text statements. For example, this statement sets <code>%ls</code> to the current time, embedded in hyphens:
    ...
<p class="code">setText %ls = {~nocont}---{$time}--- </p>
  setText %toke:string = Once upon a time
Because the <code>~nocont</code> directive was specified, the terminating hyphen is not treated as a continuation character.
sets the String propert of a StringTokenizer object to the literal string ''"Once upon a time"''. A single blank after the equals sign after a SetText is ignored so can be used for readability, but is not required. That is
  setText %str =Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
and
  setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
both set %str to ''"Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong"''. Any additional blanks beyond the first one, are treated as part of the literal source string.


Continuations are treated in the normal way, that is the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.
The '''tilde directives''' that are allowed in targeted text statements are:
<b>Tip</b>: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use {} (a null expression) to indicate the start of the continuationFor example:
<table>
  setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by:-
<tr><th>~exprE</th>
                  {}  a billabong
<td>Sets the expression end characters. This directive must be followed by a space and then the expression start characters. For example, <code>{~expre >}</code> sets the expression end characters to a single greater-than sign (<b>></b>). <var>~exprE</var> can also be written as <var>~exprEnd</var>.
will set %str to:
<p>
  Once a jolly swagman camped by:  a billabong
'''Note:''' The <var>~exprE</var> directive must be ended by the current expression end characters, that is, by the end characters that the <var>~expre</var> directive is replacing. </p>
However, trailing blanks before a continuation are '''not''' stripped so one can accomplish the same thing by putting extra blanks at the end of the first SetText line:
</td></tr>
  setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by:   -
<tr><th>~exprS</th>
                  a billabong
<td>Sets the expression start characters. This directive must be followed by a space and then the expression start characters. For example, <code>{~exprs <}</code> sets the expression start characters to a single less-than sign (<b><</b>). <var>~exprS</var> can also be written as <var>~exprStart</var>.
</td></tr>
<tr><th>~noCont</th>
<td>Indicates that a trailing hyphen is not treated as a continuation character. <var>~noCont</var> can also be written as <var>~noContinuations</var>.
</td></tr>
<tr><th>~noEll</th>
<td>Indicates that a trailing ellipsis (<b>...</b>) is '''not''' treated as a partial-line indicator. Because it makes no sense to end a <var>SetText</var> or <var>ReturnText</var> with an ellipsis, this is the default for those two statements. So, while allowed, a <var>~noEll</var> directive is completely unnecessary for <var>SetText</var> and <var>ReturnText</var>. <var>~noEll</var> can also be written as <var>~noEllipses</var>.
</td></tr>
<tr><th>~noExpr</th>
<td>Indicates that no expressions are to be processed after the directive, and that everything after the <var>~noExpr</var> directive is treated as literal text. No further tilde directives will be processed after a <var>~noExpr</var>. <var>~noExpr</var> can also be written as <var>~noExpressions</var>.
</td></tr>
<tr><th>~raw</th>
<td>Acts as if <var>~noCont</var>, <var>~noEll</var>, and <var>~noExpr</var> are specified simultaneously.
<p>
'''Note:''' This is slightly different from the <var>Raw</var> directive on the <var>Text</var>/<var>Html</var> statement, which also implies <var>NoDum</var>/<var>NoDummy</var>. Because dummy string substitution applies to lines before they are parsed, dummy string substitution would already have happened in any single-line <var>Text</var> statement before the <var>~raw</var> directive was processed.   </p>
</td></tr></table>


If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen add the {} to the end of a line. For example:
==SetText statement==
  setText %str = ------------{}
The <var>SetText</var> statement works much the same as <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var>, but it is used to set a variable instead of outputting a string. That is, its primary intent is to use the text it sets in the current program.
will set %str to:  
  ------------
The syntax of the <var>SetText</var> statement is:
{{Template:SetText statement syntax}}
Where:
<table class="syntaxTable">
<tr><th>%variable</th>
<td>A simple variable, a class variable, a class property, or a collection member (which is really just a special kind of class property). <br><br>For example, the following statement sets the <var>String</var> property of a <var>StringTokenizer</var> object to the literal string <code>Once upon a time</code>:
<p class="code">%toke        is object stringTokenizer
...
setText %toke:string = Once upon a time  </p>
A single blank after the equal sign following a <var>SetText</var> is not required and is ignored, though you can use it for readability. The following statements both set <code>%str</code> to <code>Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong</code>:
<p class="code">setText %str =Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong </p>
and
<p class="code">setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong </p>
Any additional blanks beyond the first one are treated as part of the literal source string.</td></tr>


SetText can also be written as Text Set, with optional Text statement keywords between the word Text and the word Set. This facilitates SetText functionality in a context where a Text statement option might be useful. For example, the Text statement NoExpr keyword is used to prevent curly braces in the source of a text Set assignment from being interpreted as expression delimiters:
<tr><th>string</th>
  text noexpr set %fibonacci = {1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, ...}
<td>A literal string which may include expressions enclosed by curly braces, just as is used in the <var>Text</var> statement. <br><br>For example, the following statement sets <code>%x</code> to the literal string <code>Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel</code>:
==ReturnText Statement==
<p class="code">setText %x = Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel </p>
The ReturnText statement works much the same as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText, but is used to return a string value in a User Language function or property Get method instead of outputting a string. The syntax of the ReturnText statement is:
And the following sets <code>%x</code> to the literal string <code>The sum of %x and %y is </code> followed by the sum of <code>%x</code> and <code>%y</code>:
  ReturnText string
<p class="code">setText %x = The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y}  </p></td></tr>
Where
</table>
<dl>
<dt>string
Continuations are treated in the normal way: the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.
<dd>is a literal string with expressions inside of curly braces, just as is used in the Text statement.
<br><b>Tip</b>: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use <code>{}</code> (a null expression) to indicate the start of the continuation.  For example:
</dl>
<p class="code">setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by:-
For example, the following
              {}  a billabong  </p>
<pre>
The statement above sets <code>%str</code> to:
  local function (float):aphorism is longstring
<p class="code">Once a jolly swagman camped by:  a billabong  </p>
 
However, since trailing blanks before a continuation are '''not''' stripped, you can also include blank characters by putting extra blanks at the end of the first <var>SetText</var> line:
  if %this eq 1 then
<p class="code">setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by:  -
      returnText Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel
              a billabong   </p>
  end if
If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen, add the <code>{}</code> null expression to the end of a line. For example:
  ...
<p class="code">setText %str = ------------{} </p>
   end function
The statement above sets <code>%str</code> to:
</pre>
<p class="code">------------ </p>
returns the literal string ''"Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel"'' if the Aphorism local function was applied to the number 1. And the following:
You can also use the <var>~noCont</var> directive to indicate that a trailing hyphen is not to be treated as a continuation character:
<pre>
<p class="code">setText %str = {~nocont}------------ </p>
local function stringAdd(%x is float, %y is float)


==ReturnText statement==
The <var>ReturnText</var> statement works much the same as <var>AuditText</var>, <var>PrintText</var>, and <var>TraceText</var>, but instead of outputting a string it is used to return a string value in a <var class="product">User Language</var> function or property <var>Get</var> method. The syntax of the <var>ReturnText</var> statement is:
<p class="syntax"><span class="literal">ReturnText</span> <span class="term">string</span> </p>
Where:
<table>
<tr><th>string
</th><td>A literal string which may include expressions enclosed by curly braces, just as in the <var>Text</var> statement.
</td></tr>
</table>
For example, if the <code>Aphorism</code> local function is applied to the number 1 in the following fragment, the function returns the literal string <code>Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel</code>:
<p class="code">local function (float):aphorism is longstring
if %this eq 1 then
  returnText Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel
end if
&#46;..
end function
</p>
The following function returns the literal string <code>The sum of %x and %y is </code> followed by the sum of the <code>%x</code> and <code>%y</code> parameters passed to the local function:
<p class="code">local function stringAdd(%x is float, %y is float)
   returnText The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y}
   returnText The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y}
 
end function
end function
</pre>
</p>
returns the literal string ''"The sum of %x and %y is "'' followed by the sum of the %x and %y parameters passed to the local function.
Continuations are treated in the normal way: the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.<br>
 
<b>Tip</b>: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use <code>{}</code> (a nullexpression) to indicate the start of the continuation. For example:
Continuations are treated in the normal way, that is the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.
<p class="code">returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at:-
<b>Tip</b>: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use {} (a null expression) to indicate the start of the continuation. For example:
                  {}  that billabong   </p>
  returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at:-
The statement above returns:
                    {}  that billabong                    
<p class="code">Down came a jumbuck to drink at:  that billabong </p>
will return:
However, since trailing blanks before a continuation are '''not''' stripped, you can also include blank characters by putting extra blanks at the end of the first <var>ReturnText</var> line:
  Down came a jumbuck to drink at:  that billabong,
<p class="code">returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at:  -
However, trailing blanks before a continuation are '''not''' stripped so one can accomplish the same thing by putting extra blanks at the end of the first SetText line:
                  that billabong   </p>
  returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at:  -
If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen, add the <code>{}</code> null expression to the end of a line. For example:
                    that billabong                    
<p class="code">returnText ------------{}   </p>
If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen add the {} to the end of a line. For example:
The statement above returns:
  returnText ------------{}
<p class="code">------------   </p>
will return:  
You can also use the <var>~noCont</var> directive to indicate that a trailing hyphen is not to be treated as a continuation character:
  ------------
<p class="code">returnText {~nocont}------------  </p>
 
[[Category:User Language statements]]
ReturnText can also be written as Text Return, with optional Text statement keywords between the word Text and the word Set. This facilitates ReturnText functionality in a context where a Text statement option might be useful. For example, the Text statement NoExpr keyword is used to prevent curly braces in the value of a text Return from being interpreted as expression delimiters:
  local function primeString is longstring
  text noexpr return {2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, ...}
  end function

Latest revision as of 15:27, 7 November 2015

The AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText statements are abbreviated forms of the Text and Html statements. They have the same effect as the Text Audit, Text Print, and Text Trace statements, respectively. The AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText statements are available in Sirius Mods 7.2 and later.

The SetText statement, which is available in Sirius Mods 7.8 and later, uses the same syntax as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText to set a target variable. And the ReturnText statement, which is available in Sirius Mods 7.8 and later, uses the same syntax as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText to return a string value from a User Language function or property Get method.

AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText

The AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText keywords are simply a merging and reordering of Text Audit, Text Print, and Text Trace to emphasize the principle action.

AuditText sends its output to the Model 204 audit trail, PrintText sends its output to the current output stream (output terminal or use dataset), and TraceText sends its output to the current trace targets. These statements are the recommended/preferred alternatives to the traditional Audit, Print, and Trace statements. They are recommended because they are more flexible and have more consistent behavior.

All text not inside curly braces in an AuditText, PrintText, or TraceText statement is considered to be literal text. For example, the following statement will display Suit the action to the word, the word to the action on the primary output stream:

printText Suit the action to the word, the word to the action

You can place values of variables and also calculated values inside of curly braces to display the value of what is inside the braces. For example, these statements:

%i = 22 %j = 33 printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, %i * %j = {%i * %j}

Display the following:

%i = 22, %j = 33, %i * %j = 726

Any valid expression is allowed inside the curly braces, including those that contain parentheses, $functions, and method calls. For example, the following statements:

%i = 22 %j = 33 printText %i = {%i}, %j = {%j}, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)}

Display:

%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375

~ and ~= directives

A single tilde character inside curly braces, {~}, must be followed (possibly with some intervening text) by an expression inside curly braces. The {~} would then be replaced with the literal contents of the following curly braces.

For example, the following sequence:

%i = 22 %j = 33 printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%j}, {~} = {(%i + %j):toPower(3)}

Displays:

%i = 22, %j = 33, (%i + %j):toPower(3) = 166375

As of Sirius Mods version 7.8, you can also use a ~= directive as a shorthand for {~}={expression}. For example,
printtext {~=%i}, {~=%j}, {~=(%i+%j):toPower(3)} would display %i=22, %j=33, (%i + %j):toPower(3)=166375.

Note that in the directive, spaces are optional after the equal sign, and the output can produce spaces before or after the equal sign. For example:

b printText "{~=1234:nextPrime }" printText "{~= 1234:nextPrime }" printText "{~= 1234:nextPrime}" end

The result is:

"1234:nextPrime =1237" "1234:nextPrime = 1237" "1234:nextPrime= 1237"

Note: One common issue with the {~} syntax is that it does not replace with its value a variable used as a subscript (perhaps for an ArrayList). For example, if you have:

b %i is float %j is float %al is arraylist of float %al = list(13, 17, 30) for %i from 1 to %al:count printText {~} = {%al(%i)} end for end

You might expect the following to be displayed:

%al(1) = 13 %al(2) = 17 %al(3) = 30

But, instead, the following is displayed:

%al(%i) = 13 %al(%i) = 17 %al(%i) = 30

One way to deal with this is to "manually" build the part before the value:

for %i from 1 to %al:count printText %al({%i}) = {%al(%i)} end for

Another way is to show the subscript value also:

for %i from 1 to %al:count printText {~} = {%i}, {~} = {%al(%i)} end for

This displays:

%i = 1, %al(%i) = 13 %i = 2, %al(%i) = 17 %i = 3, %al(%i) = 30

Tilde statement directives

As of Sirius Mods 7.8, certain Text statement directives can be placed after a tilde character (~) inside curly braces ({ }) in any of the targeted text statements. For example, this statement sets %ls to the current time, embedded in hyphens:

setText %ls = {~nocont}---{$time}---

Because the ~nocont directive was specified, the terminating hyphen is not treated as a continuation character.

The tilde directives that are allowed in targeted text statements are:

~exprE Sets the expression end characters. This directive must be followed by a space and then the expression start characters. For example, {~expre >} sets the expression end characters to a single greater-than sign (>). ~exprE can also be written as ~exprEnd.

Note: The ~exprE directive must be ended by the current expression end characters, that is, by the end characters that the ~expre directive is replacing.

~exprS Sets the expression start characters. This directive must be followed by a space and then the expression start characters. For example, {~exprs <} sets the expression start characters to a single less-than sign (<). ~exprS can also be written as ~exprStart.
~noCont Indicates that a trailing hyphen is not treated as a continuation character. ~noCont can also be written as ~noContinuations.
~noEll Indicates that a trailing ellipsis (...) is not treated as a partial-line indicator. Because it makes no sense to end a SetText or ReturnText with an ellipsis, this is the default for those two statements. So, while allowed, a ~noEll directive is completely unnecessary for SetText and ReturnText. ~noEll can also be written as ~noEllipses.
~noExpr Indicates that no expressions are to be processed after the directive, and that everything after the ~noExpr directive is treated as literal text. No further tilde directives will be processed after a ~noExpr. ~noExpr can also be written as ~noExpressions.
~raw Acts as if ~noCont, ~noEll, and ~noExpr are specified simultaneously.

Note: This is slightly different from the Raw directive on the Text/Html statement, which also implies NoDum/NoDummy. Because dummy string substitution applies to lines before they are parsed, dummy string substitution would already have happened in any single-line Text statement before the ~raw directive was processed.

SetText statement

The SetText statement works much the same as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText, but it is used to set a variable instead of outputting a string. That is, its primary intent is to use the text it sets in the current program.

The syntax of the SetText statement is:

SetText %variable = string

Where:

%variable A simple variable, a class variable, a class property, or a collection member (which is really just a special kind of class property).

For example, the following statement sets the String property of a StringTokenizer object to the literal string Once upon a time:

%toke is object stringTokenizer ... setText %toke:string = Once upon a time

A single blank after the equal sign following a SetText is not required and is ignored, though you can use it for readability. The following statements both set %str to Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong:

setText %str =Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong

and

setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong

Any additional blanks beyond the first one are treated as part of the literal source string.
string A literal string which may include expressions enclosed by curly braces, just as is used in the Text statement.

For example, the following statement sets %x to the literal string Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel:

setText %x = Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel

And the following sets %x to the literal string The sum of %x and %y is followed by the sum of %x and %y:

setText %x = The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y}

Continuations are treated in the normal way: the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.
Tip: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use {} (a null expression) to indicate the start of the continuation. For example:

setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by:- {} a billabong

The statement above sets %str to:

Once a jolly swagman camped by: a billabong

However, since trailing blanks before a continuation are not stripped, you can also include blank characters by putting extra blanks at the end of the first SetText line:

setText %str = Once a jolly swagman camped by: - a billabong

If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen, add the {} null expression to the end of a line. For example:

setText %str = ------------{}

The statement above sets %str to:

------------

You can also use the ~noCont directive to indicate that a trailing hyphen is not to be treated as a continuation character:

setText %str = {~nocont}------------

ReturnText statement

The ReturnText statement works much the same as AuditText, PrintText, and TraceText, but instead of outputting a string it is used to return a string value in a User Language function or property Get method. The syntax of the ReturnText statement is:

ReturnText string

Where:

string A literal string which may include expressions enclosed by curly braces, just as in the Text statement.

For example, if the Aphorism local function is applied to the number 1 in the following fragment, the function returns the literal string Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel:

local function (float):aphorism is longstring if %this eq 1 then returnText Patriotism is the first refuge of the scoundrel end if ... end function

The following function returns the literal string The sum of %x and %y is followed by the sum of the %x and %y parameters passed to the local function:

local function stringAdd(%x is float, %y is float) returnText The sum of %x and %y is {%x + %y} end function

Continuations are treated in the normal way: the text continues from the first non-blank character on the next line.
Tip: if you need to include blank characters from the next line, use {} (a nullexpression) to indicate the start of the continuation. For example:

returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at:- {} that billabong

The statement above returns:

Down came a jumbuck to drink at: that billabong

However, since trailing blanks before a continuation are not stripped, you can also include blank characters by putting extra blanks at the end of the first ReturnText line:

returnText %str = Down came a jumbuck to drink at: - that billabong

If you need to terminate the string with a hyphen, add the {} null expression to the end of a line. For example:

returnText ------------{}

The statement above returns:

------------

You can also use the ~noCont directive to indicate that a trailing hyphen is not to be treated as a continuation character:

returnText {~nocont}------------