User Guide

new() 417
For cast members, the type parameter sets the cast member’s type. Possible predefined values
correspond to the existing cast member types:
#bitmap, #field, and so on. The new function can
also create Xtra cast member types, which can be identified by any name that the author chooses.
It’s also possible to create a new color cursor cast member using the Custom Cursor Xtra. Use
new(#cursor) and set the properties of the resulting cast member to make them available for use.
The optional
whichCastMember and whichCast parameters specify the cast member slot and
Cast window where the new cast member is stored. When no cast member slot is specified, the
first empty slot is used. The
new function returns the cast member slot.
When the argument for the
new function is a parent script, the new function creates a
child object. The parent script should include an
on new handler that sets the child object’s initial
state or property values and returns the
me reference to the child object.
The child object has all the handlers of the parent script. The child object also has the same
property variable names that are declared in the parent script, but each child object has its own
values for these properties.
Because a child object is a value, it can be assigned to variables, placed in lists, and passed
as a parameter.
As with other variables, you can use the
put command to display information about a child object
in the Message window.
When
new() is used to create a timeout object, the timeoutPeriod sets the number of milliseconds
between timeout events sent by the timeout object. The
#timeoutHandler is a symbol that
identifies the handler that will be called when each timeout event occurs. The
targetObject
identifies the name of the child object that contains the
#timeoutHandler. If no targetObject
is given, the
#timeoutHandler is assumed to be in a movie script. The timeout creation syntax
might vary depending on the
scriptExecutionStyle setting.
-- Lingo syntax when scriptExecutionStyle is set to 9
x = timeout(name).new(period,handler,targetData)
-- Lingo syntax when scriptExecutionStyle is set to 10
x = timeout().new(name, period, handler, targetData)
y = new timeout(name, period, handler, targetData)
// JavaScript syntax
x = new timeout(name, period, function, targetData)
When a timeout object is created, it enables its targetObject to receive the system events
prepareMovie, startMovie, stopMovie, prepareFrame, and exitFrame. To take advantage of
this, the targetObject must contain handlers for these events. The events do not need to be
passed in order for the rest of the movie to have access to them.
Note: A Lingo-created timeout object can call a JavaScript syntax function, and vice versa.
To see an example of new() used in a completed movie, see the Parent Scripts, and Read and
Write Text movies in the Learning/Lingo folder inside the Director application folder.
Example
To create a new bitmap cast member in the first available slot, you use this syntax:
set newMember = new(#bitmap)