Re: Where's my Reverse field

I have already mailed the following reply direct to Bruce, but given the diversity of some of the other replies I thought post it and some further comments as well. There is definitely something screwy with this REVERSE attribute. Bruce wrote: >I have a field on a form I have specified as REVERSE, but it just comes >up blank. I know Informix knows about the reverse video on my terminal >because my menus come up reverse. In fact, I have some Informix >executable from another person and its fields are reverse. Does anyone >know why this is happening? Below is my form description file. > >I have tried this from the console, from an xterm, and from a vt220. >None work. I am just starting out and this is my first form. > >------------------------------------------------------------------------ > >database formonly >screen >{ > Summary of Client/Matter Activity > > > As-of Period [a] > >} >end >attributes >a = formonly.begdt TYPE CHAR, REVERSE; >end >instructions >delimiters "<>"; >end > > >-- >Bruce Momjian | 830 Blythe Avenue >root%candle.uucp@bts.com | Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania 19026 > | (215) 353-9879(w) 853-3000(h) To which I replied: |WOMM (Works On My Machine :-) | |Bruce, I tried your form out using xterm, ansi, vt220 and vt100 on a 486 |running SCO ODT and Informix 4.00. It worked fine. | |However, you are using "<>" as delimiters, which is what Informix uses |if it thinks it can't display reverse video. So perhaps you could |try using other delimiters and see whether you still get < > displayed. |It doesn't solve your problem directly, but it might tell you whether |Informix might be using some other terminal type. | |BTW do you have your INFORMIXTERM set to terminfo or termcap? Mine was |set to terminfo. | |Good luck. Bruce was using terminfo. Dave Synder replied that he didn't use attributes in 4GL forms. I'd be interested to know if his solution works. I've never used syscolatt... }table. Can you put attributes in the form specification file? Sure can. Michael Gordon <maint72@saad-emh1.ARMY.MIL> wrote: : :Your form looks good with the exception of the ATTRIBUTES line a = : :I don't know about using data field types in the attributes code, try :this modification: : Field types can be used. David Cortesi (cortesi@informix.com) wrote: ]> delimiters "<>"; ] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ this is your problem!!! ]> end ] ]I ran your form on the handiest thing, a Sparc, and as you say, ]the field was not reversed but plain. ] ]Then I noticed in the manual where it says, (page 4-51) ]"on terminals that do not support reverse video, fields ]having the REVERSE attribute are enclosed in angle brackets (<>)" ] ]So I thought, hmmm, wonder if 4GL is trying to use angle ]brackets, and it doesn't show because he has set angle brackets ]manually? So I changed the form to read: delimiters "{}" and ]lo & behold! The field came up in nice reverse video! ] ]I can't figure out if this should be called a bug or a ]documentation error! It is screwy enough for a bug, yet the ]screwiness has a certain air of logic to it, somehow... ]anybody know more? Nope, "<>" isn't _always_ the problem. As I discovered it works fine on my configuration, but obviously not on David's Sparc. I tried "||" and "[]" using the same reasoning and all three forms worked OK. So, Informix, what's the story? It looks like the exact specification of REVERSE with "<>" is not clear and as a result the implementation differs across various ports. +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ Ron Lees rlees@pdact.pd.necisa.oz.au Software Development Centre (Canberra) Voice: +61-6-2516411 NEC Information Systems Australia Pty Ltd Fax: +61-6-2516947 PO Box 244, Belconnen ACT 2616, AUSTRALIA A.C.N. 002068546 +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+