Text list scrolling anomaly

When scrolling through a matrix, often the display changes to “field or variable does not exist”. Scrolling rapidly in either or both directions brings the normal display back. Unfortunately, this happens quite often. These are shared databases that display a formula in a text display object on a matrix frame.

I have often seen this on my Checkbook file with a Popup Menu Button. Also noticed occasionally with other items in various files - all of which are single user. Seems like somethings can get the horse before the cart at times and Panorama has a temporary senior moment. More cosmetic than anything else but still annoying.

You’re right Gary, however, annoying to oneself is one thing, complaints from clients is much more annoying to me.

I don’t know anything about this happening in particular in a Matrix.

The most common reason I know of for this error message is if a variable hasn’t been defined yet when the form opens. For example, consider this code which opens a form and displays a greeting.

openform "some form"
letwindowglobal myGreeting = "Hello"
showvariables myGreeting

When the form first opens, the myGreeting variable does not exist, so the “field or variable does not exist” message will appear. In this case, it will only appear briefly, until the showvariables statement runs, but it doe make an annoying flash.

To eliminate this flash, I add the catcherror( function to the formula in the Text Display object, like this:

catcherror("",myGreeting)

Which this modification, the error message is suppressed, there is no annoying flash.

I now make this modification routinely on almost every formula I put in a graphics object (not just Text Display objects, but any object with a formula). In fact, I am eventually planning on adding a checkbox in the Formula panel of graphic objects that would add this modification for you. In other words, you wouldn’t have to type in the catcherror( function yourself, just check the box. Of course the downside is that if there really is an error, you won’t see it.

Thanks Jim, but there are no variables on the form.

There is a list of items in the matrix that always display perfectly when the form is opened. Scrolling the list to find a certain item will suddenly change all items in the list to display “field or variable does not exist”. I’ll see if it works by applying catcherror( to the formula on the matrix frame.