Re: Intervening prompt in Xy4

[cld@xxxxxxxx (Carl Distefano)]

Reply to note from Morris Krok  Wed, 17 Jan
2001 05:58:50 -0800

-> This program written in Xy3 when run under Xy4, produces and
-> intervening prompt message when I use the various option of the
-> program. What do I do to prevent it. The message reads
-> something like this: "File already open - open it again Yes,
-> No, Go, Read".

Once a file is opened using the CAll (or EDit) command, Xy4 and
later will not open a second, editable copy of that file without
seeking permission -- hence the PRompt. There are several ways
around it:

1) Use the GOFILE command to see if the file is already open. If it
is, GOFILE makes it the current window. If the file is not open,
GOFILE returns an ERror condition, whereupon you can then "safely"
CAll the file:

BX gofile d:\path\test.fooQ2 )>BX ca d:\path\test.fooQ2 ...

2) Use the READ command to open a read-only (non-editable) copy of
the file. Like Xy3, Xy4 will REad multiple copies of the same file,
as many as there are windows available.

3) Trick Xy4 into CAlling an editable copy of an already-open file.
The trick -- discovered by Robert Holmgren -- is to restate the
d:\path\filename using the DOS convention by which a dot (.)
represents the current directory. Thus, to CAll a second copy of
d:\path\test.foo, restate the filename as d:\.\path\test.foo -- same
file, different name, Xy bites. To open a third copy, restate it as
d:\.\.\path\test.foo, and so on. In general, if  contains the
most-recently opened instance of d:\path\filename, then the next-
available EDitable instance is +":\."+. Try it
and see for yourself.

-> It also does not allow me to use the BX - Q2 combination in
-> place of BC - XC.

Oy vey! Not this again. In any event, can't help you until we know
what command you're trying to execute. Your code:

DL  ... BC XC

doesn't reveal what's being saved to Save/Get 06. What's in the
DeFined Line? In other words, what, literally, is the command
you're trying to execute?

--
Carl Distefano
cld@xxxxxxxx
http://users.datarealm.com/xywwweb/