Is there a way to have a GUI textbox that acts like a console? [solved]

[icu 0]

Dear AutoIt Community,

I want to have a box in my GUI that keeps track of all the things my program is doing. Pretty much exactly like what you get at the bottom of SciTE4AutoIt3.

I'll be using OnEvent mode for my GUI. I've been experimenting with different things but can't seem to get it working.

This is what I've got so far:

$data = ""
#include <ButtonConstants.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>
Opt("GUIOnEventMode", 1)
#Region ### START Koda GUI section ### Form=
$Form2 = GUICreate("Form2", 405, 294, 334, 476)
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, "Form2Close")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MINIMIZE, "Form2Minimize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MAXIMIZE, "Form2Maximize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_RESTORE, "Form2Restore")
$Button1 = GUICtrlCreateButton("Button1", 24, 184, 73, 41)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Button1Click")
GUICtrlCreateEdit($data, 48, 24, 321, 145)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Edit1Change")
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW)
#EndRegion ### END Koda GUI section ###

While 1
    $data &= ConsoleRead()
    If @error Then ExitLoop
    Sleep(100)
WEnd

Func Button1Click()
    ConsoleWrite("Button 1 clicked ")
EndFunc

Func Form2Close()
    Exit
EndFunc

Many thanks for any and all help.

-icu

Edited June 27, 2011 by icu

[BrewManNH 1,306]

You need to assign a variable to the control ID of the edit box and send the data received from the console to it with GUICtrlSetData. Right now what you're doing is putting the information into the $data variable, and then when there's no more console output, and you get the error, the script will close.

[icu 0]

@BrewManNH: Thanks for the quick reply. I've tried your suggestion and I'm not sure I entirely understand the solution.

The edited code is below:

$data = ""
#include <ButtonConstants.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>
Opt("GUIOnEventMode", 1)
#Region ### START Koda GUI section ### Form=
$Form2 = GUICreate("Form2", 405, 294, 334, 476)
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, "Form2Close")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MINIMIZE, "Form2Minimize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MAXIMIZE, "Form2Maximize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_RESTORE, "Form2Restore")
$Button1 = GUICtrlCreateButton("Button1", 24, 184, 73, 41)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Button1Click")
$BoxID = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 48, 24, 321, 145)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Edit1Change")
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW)
#EndRegion ### END Koda GUI section ###

While 1
    $data &= ConsoleRead()
    Sleep(100)
WEnd

Func Button1Click()
    ConsoleWrite("Button 1 clicked ")
    GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, $data)
EndFunc

Func Form2Close()
    Exit
EndFunc

When you say "assign a variable to the control ID of the edit box" I take that and the help file's instruction for GUICtrlCreateEdit of "Return Value Success: Returns the identifier (controlID) of the new control" as the following line of code:

$BoxID = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 48, 24, 321, 145)

And when you say "send the data received from the console to it with GUICtrlSetData" I take that to mean the following line:

GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, $data)

So where am I going wrong?

Kind regards,

-icu

[BrewManNH 1,306]

Because there's no information in the $data variable when you pressed the button, it's not going to put anything into the Edit control. You need a While...Wend loop inside your button function to read the console information and then put it into the Edit control.

Like this;

$data = ""
#include <ButtonConstants.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>
Opt("GUIOnEventMode", 1)
#region ### START Koda GUI section ### Form=
$Form2 = GUICreate("Form2", 405, 294, 334, 476)
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, "Form2Close")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MINIMIZE, "Form2Minimize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MAXIMIZE, "Form2Maximize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_RESTORE, "Form2Restore")
$Button1 = GUICtrlCreateButton("Button1", 24, 184, 73, 41)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Button1Click")
$BoxID = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 48, 24, 321, 145)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Edit1Change")
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW)
#endregion ### END Koda GUI section ###

While 1
    Sleep(100)
WEnd

Func Button1Click()
;~  $data = ""  <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Use this if you want the $data variable blanked out when you press the button.
    ConsoleWrite("Button 1 clicked ")
    While 1
        $data &= ConsoleRead()
        If @error Then ExitLoop
    WEnd
    GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, $data)
EndFunc

Func Form2Close()
    Exit
EndFunc

[icu 0]

@BrewManNH: Thanks once again for your help. I ran your code and the GUI gets stuck in the While loop once the button has been clicked.

Taking your pointers I was able to write the following code which is kind of what I'm trying to do (just without the console bit):

$data = ""
#include <ButtonConstants.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>
Opt("GUIOnEventMode", 1)
#Region ### START Koda GUI section ### Form=
$Form2 = GUICreate("Form2", 405, 294, 334, 476)
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, "Form2Close")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MINIMIZE, "Form2Minimize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MAXIMIZE, "Form2Maximize")
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_RESTORE, "Form2Restore")
$Button1 = GUICtrlCreateButton("Button1", 24, 184, 73, 41)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Button1Click")
$BoxID = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 48, 24, 321, 145)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Edit1Change")
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW)
#EndRegion ### END Koda GUI section ###

While 1
    Sleep(100)
WEnd

Func Button1Click()
    ConsoleWrite("Button 1 clicked ")
    $data &= ("Button 1 clicked" & @CRLF)
    GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, $data)
EndFunc

Func Form2Close()
    Exit
EndFunc

Any ideas?

[BrewManNH 1,306]

Are you compiling the script when you run it? I saw in the example script in the help file for ConsoleRead that the example script had to be compiled to work correctly.

[AdmiralAlkex 126]

@icu

What's with all the console stuff? It sounds to me that you just want to append data to the Edit, so just by taking a quick look at GUICtrlSetData() in the helpfile=

#include <ButtonConstants.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>
Opt("GUIOnEventMode", 1)
#Region ### START Koda GUI section ### Form=
$Form2 = GUICreate("Form2", 405, 294, 334, 476)
GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, "Form2Close")
;~ GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MINIMIZE, "Form2Minimize")
;~ GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_MAXIMIZE, "Form2Maximize")
;~ GUISetOnEvent($GUI_EVENT_RESTORE, "Form2Restore")
$Button1 = GUICtrlCreateButton("Button1", 24, 184, 73, 41)
GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Button1Click")
$BoxID = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 48, 24, 321, 145)
;~ GUICtrlSetOnEvent(-1, "Edit1Change")
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW)
#EndRegion ### END Koda GUI section ###

While 1
    Sleep(100)
WEnd

Func Button1Click()
    GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, "Button 1 clicked" & @CRLF, "1")
EndFunc

Func Form2Close()
    Exit
EndFunc

[icu 0]

@BrewManNH: Thanks again for your reply. Nope didn't compile... I guess this is another PICNIC error again :-)

@AdmiralAlkex: Thanks for your reply and the final solution... I feel bad that the solution is as simple as:

Func Button1Click()
    GUICtrlSetData($BoxID, "Button 1 clicked" & @CRLF, "1")
EndFunc

I did actually look up the help file and I tried something like it but I didn't put the "1" flag in to trigger the List control. When I read the following in the help file:

Remarks

For Combo or List control :

If the "data" corresponds to an already existing entry it is set as the default.

If the "data" starts with GUIDataSeparatorChar or is an empty string "" the previous list is destroyed.

For ListView, ListViewItem controls :

To update a specific column just forget about the others ie "||update" to update 3rd column.

If "update" is empty the column/subitem will be erased. For example "|" will erase the second column/subitem, "" will erase the first.

I didn't understand a word. I still don't know what any of it translates to in plain English except that I need that flag to make it work :-)

[AdmiralAlkex 126]

You are not using GUICtrlCreateList(), you are using GUICtrlCreateEdit(), so look at the explanation for the "default" parameter:

default [optional] Combo, List: The default value.

Edit, Input: If non-empty (""), the string is inserted at the current insertion point (caret).

Note that someone could move the caret and screw it all up

Look at _GUICtrlEdit_AppendText() in the helpfile and it's example for how to fix that