How to make $foo[0] to be number of items in array?

[leuce]

G'day everyone

I know that if I create an array using StringSplit, then $array[1] is the first item in the array and $array[0] is the number of items in that array. This is how I prefer it. I also know that if I create an array by declaring it, then $array[0] is the first item in that array.

Now I have a script in which an array that was created using StringSplit DOES NOT put the number of items in $array[0]. My question is either (a) how can I force the array to behave like it should, or ( how can I get the number of items in the array, so that I can tell a loop to repeat itself that many times?

The script itself is attached (sorry, it's a work in progress, but the problem line is commented with "WHY??"). What the script does is to compare an input string (grabbed text) to a glossary file (one line per entry, three columns, tab delimited) to output a list of matches from the glossary.

Also, if you can tell me how to force a declared array to behave like a StringSplit-created array (i.e. so that $array[0] is the number of items in the array), then that would also make my life a little simpler... but that is not the subject of this post.

Thanks

Samuel

test files.zip

[water]

Please check the AutoIt help file.

Parameter 3 of function StringSplit sets a flag. Value 2 means: Disable the return the count in the first element

Edited August 5, 2011 by water

[Jos]

What did the Helpfile tell you about using 2 for the third parameter?

$grabbedword = StringSplit ($grabbedtext, " .,!?<>{}[]()@#$&", 2)

Jos

[GEOSoft]

I think what the user wants is to always have a 1 based array; which is against programming norms but several people seem to prefer that for some strange reason. Using the flag 2 on StringSplit() returns a 0 based array.

Perhaps the OP would like to clarify that for us, or perhaps (better yet) he wants to rethink his preference and read UBound() in the help file.

Personally I wish all of the arrays in AutoIt were 0 based by default but it seems to me that we have rehashed that on several occasions with no definitive outcome.

[BrewManNH]

I've found that when I tried using 1 based arrays that I have created myself, I tended to forget to always have my code update the 0 element to keep track of the item count in the array, which made them pointless in those instances. Then I'd have to debug my code to find out where I made the noob mistake of doing something like that. For me, 0 based and Ubound takes care of most counting issues.

[leuce]

Parameter 3 of function StringSplit sets a flag. Value 2 means: Disable the return the count in the first element

As usual, the answer is VERY SIMPLE, thanks. The 2 should be a 0.