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422 Chapter 12: Methods

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() method 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.

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.

To see an example of

newMember() 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.

Parameters

symbol

(Lingo only) Required. A symbol that specifies the type of the new cast member.

stringMemberType Required. A string that specifies the type of the new cast member.

Example

The following statements create a new bitmap cast member and assign it to the variable

newBitmap.

-- Lingo syntax

newBitmap = _movie.newMember(#bitmap) -- using a symbol

newBitmap = _movie.newMember("bitmap") -- using a string

// JavaScript syntax

var newBitmap = _movie.newMember("bitmap");