Question Progress 11 Editing Tools

[LBaliao]

I am using Progress 11.3 and when using AppBuilder or Editor, Progress doesn't automatically convert key words to uppercase and doesn't do the alignment anymore. Any tips on how to put this feature back?

Thanks,
Liza

 

[Cringer]

When you say "anymore" do you mean since upgrading? The Editor/AppBuilder no longer has a plugin that did lots of clever stuff (can't remember what it was called). Your best bet is to get used to it, or to use Progress Developer Studio. There's a good looking session at PUG Challenge EU about it... "Introduction to Progress Developer Studio" http://www.pugchallenge.eu/program.html

 

[TomBascom]

Thank goodness!

I might have to take a break from microemacs and give those tools another spin now Making my code look like all of those horrid examples in the manuals has never been a stylistic choice that I cared for. Nothing shouts BAD CODE quite so loudly as uppercase keywords. Plus you'll be saving boatloads on all the electrons that are no longer being wasted on uppercase bytes... and screen phosphors too! Just don't go crazy and turn on color-coding

Wasn't the plugin "slickedit" or something like that?

 

[LBaliao]

Thanks for your replies. Is the color-coded and uppercase keywords really that bad? Hard to change old habits. Thank you for the link about Progress Developer Studio. I will look into that. Yes, upgraded from 10 to 11.

Liza

 

[GregTomkins]

Nothing shouts BAD CODE quite so loudly as uppercase keywords.

Ha! See, I feel the exact opposite. Maybe its a Canada-US thing, like Tim's vs. Dunkin'.

Perhaps we could agree that nothing shouts BAD CODE so loud as random variation of keyword capitalization preference?

FOR each Order where ORDER_NUM = 4 break BY Date ???

 

[TomBascom]

Liza:

I might be just a little crabby this afternoon.

Greg:

If it looks like the code in the docs, or the code generated by the app builder, or the code generated by visual designer then I'm quite sure that I want no part of it. Guilt by association....

I can certainly agree that random variations in case are a bad thing.

 

[LBaliao]

All's well here sir. We all have our coding style. I just happen to like my keywords in uppercase and in blue. Enjoy the rest of the day now...

 

[TomBascom]

I've become quite adept at repairing other people's formatting sins

 

[GregTomkins]

or the code generated by the app builder

We can certainly agree on this one! Actually, "code" and "generated" seem like two words that are usually paired with bad results

(Results - pun intended).

 

[Rob Fitzpatrick]

Wasn't the plugin "slickedit" or something like that?

Yes, the colouring, aliases etc. in OE Studio is provided by "slickedit". You lose it when you install OEA/PDS, although I've never cared deeply enough about losing those features that I tried to fix it.

I don't use PDSOE day to day but I'm pretty sure it has an editor preference for upper-casing keywords. Check under Window | Preferences | OpenEdge. I'll go looking to see if I can find it for you.

 

[Rob Fitzpatrick]

Spacing options (smart indent) are in Preferences | Progress OpenEdge | Editor. It also has checkboxes for "apply keyword casing on save" and "case keywords (as you type)".

 

[RealHeavyDude]

I can live with the uppercasing or lowercasing keywords as longs as it is consistent. Personally as I am doing Java development too I stick with the naming conventions the are mostly used in the Java world ( camel case ) which includes lower case keywords ( as Java is case sensitive you can't have them uppercase - the IDE or the compiler will insist ... ). It might be subject to discussion whether that it is good or bad but at least the code I produce looks consistent regardless whether it is Java or ABL code. What I hardly can take is when dear colleguages of mine use names like filn as a variable or database field name. But, obviously I am too dumb to recognize that this is the acronym for financial instrument long name ( too dumb since this naming standard passed the code review done by another dear colleguage of mine, it surely wouldn't have passed mine ) ...

You can still use the AppBuilder / Procedure Editor to edit code with the Progress Developer Studio, but the SlickEdit ( which is a third party product ) does not come with it anymore. For that you need the OpenEdge Studio license - which obviously does not include the Eclipse plug-ins.

Heavy Regards, RealHeavyDude.

 

[Cringer]

"slickedit"

That's the one. Thanks Tom.