Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

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MadQuestion
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Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Fri Nov 10, 2017 6:08 pm

I was wondering if there was any plans for a Custom Dialog designer wizrd for the future of Macro Scheduler?

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Marcus Tettmar
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by Marcus Tettmar » Mon Nov 13, 2017 6:31 pm

Not sure I can get my head around how that would work - how do you see a dialog designer wizard working? Isn't that what the dialog designer is already - it's a wysiwyg form designer. How would you envisage a wizard would help or what it would do extra?
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MadQuestion
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Mon Nov 13, 2017 6:57 pm

Hey Marcus, basically it would perform just like the image recognition wizard but where the image recognition wizard has its Action tab, what to look for, where to look, what to do when found, and advanced tabs. The dialog designer wizard could have a number of tabs for many different tasks such as button creation for given sizes like the Message> window has. The wizard could help write the script just like image recognition wizard. For example it could have a checkbox enabler for auto filling the GetDialogProperty> or setting handlers for buttons that are created automatically. I know the software is great as is but as a developer you could always strive for even better solutions to speed up users workflow.
I also find it hard to believe that you wouldnt have a million ideas on what the dialog wizard could do for the dialog designer. With the software having so many great wizards it feels a shame that the dialog designer got left out.
I have many other ideas that would help if you were seriously considering a dialog designer wizard I would be glad to post my ideas.

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Marcus Tettmar
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by Marcus Tettmar » Mon Nov 13, 2017 7:12 pm

I think I'm struggling to figure out how this could work simply because every scenario is so different. The dialog designer already creates AddDialogHandler code for you anyway. If you right click and select List Event Names you can then create handler code for each event and it will put the AddDialogHandler code on the clipboard. Anything more than that is going to be completely personal - what you do in your handler will be different to what other people do. Every dialog is different.

Ok, I think I can see how adding something similar to the above for GetDialogProperty could be useful, but since all this takes is a property name and a variable, and you have a list of property names in the property pane, there's not really much missing.

As for button sizes, it already creates them with default sizes and then you just drag them to make them larger. The entire dialog designer already is a wizard.
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MadQuestion
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Mon Nov 13, 2017 11:08 pm

Yes I understand how the dialog designer works but I was just thinking a wizard could be more like the image recognition wizard. I have done a little edited image of the image recognition wizard menu to try and explain more clearly.
This would be like the action tab for image wizard but edited for the dialog designer.
TAB001.jpg
This would be the second option tab but edited again for a label in the dialog wizard...
TAB002.jpg
The user could have a more efficient way to add quick dialog objects and being able to auto add the AddDialogHandler> & GetDialogProperty> for the selected dialog would be a great addition to the software. The software has so many great wizards that save so much time it really is a shame the dialog designer does not have something similar.

I could likely use the current dialog designer to design my very own dialog wizard but then I would have this amazing dialog wizard and the other software users would be missing out.

You should seriously consider updating the dialog designer with its own wizard which is totally optional and can be selected just like the image recognition wizard as and when the user requires such a feature as a dialog.

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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Mon Nov 13, 2017 11:19 pm

Another great use for the wizard would be to auto insert the code for exporting the binary data for images and then setting the SetDialogProperty> for loading the image into the dialog. There are really too many ways a dialog wizard could be used for creating dialogs and still have the flexibility of the current wysiwyg form designer but do a little more behind the scenes to better create a working dialog. Less time wasted on why is my image not showing up... or why did the input from the user not become the correct variable etc... A dialog wizard would def be a great addition to the software and i am sure many other users who use the dialog designer would agree a wizard would be a welcome addition. If i am wrong and there is another user out there with a different opinion on this subject I am willing to listen to reason but its not an unreasonable request for a wizard for the dialog designer i am sure. :P

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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by Marcus Tettmar » Tue Nov 14, 2017 9:35 am

Maybe it's because I've spent the last 30 years building apps by using a wysiwyg form designer very similar to the one we made for Macro Scheduler, that I'm still not entirely sure that this wizard idea adds much. For example, creating a label by selecting a check box and then typing the x,y position seems to me to be rather counterintuitive and a step backwards - how do you visualise where that position will be. At present all you need to do is click on the label and simply drop it on the form where you want it, and then move it around to put it where you want. The wizard won't speed any of that process up.

However, adding some form of wizard or additional assistance in creating dialog handlers and perhaps Get/SetDialogObject calls could be beneficial. I can see how it could create empty dialog handlers for known events.

But that's me. I'm someone who has spent the last 30 years building apps with an IDE very similar to the dialog designer. My input might be totally invalid. I therefore need to hear from others. You are the first person EVER to ask for anything like this. That doesn't mean it isn't valid, but to warrant building something like this we'd need to hear what others think. Perhaps others will chime in here.
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Tue Nov 14, 2017 10:24 am

Yes Marcus I understand that the label can be positioned manually that could still be the case I was just using that as an example another example to focus on would be inserting images into the dialog, there is a whole run around that could be automated for loading the image into the dialog property. Label positions should not be the focus of the dialog designer the focus should be the insert code button that would greatly speed up workflows when making dialogs, even if its just a better way to add images to dialogs it would save loads of time when the wizard can auto input the lines for ExportData> and SetDialogProperty>LoadImage Etc.

I hope other users chime in with their suggestions as I can't be the only user using the dialog designer for more advanced dialogs and therefore be the only user to benefit from the features I suggested.

Also would be great if there was an actual macro scheduler tutorial that explained dialogs in more detail, so a tutorial button for dialog in the dialog wizard would be a great addition to new users of the dialog designer.

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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by Marcus Tettmar » Tue Nov 14, 2017 10:55 am

Marcus Tettmar
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Tue Nov 14, 2017 1:15 pm

Thanks for the link I have seen this already though. I think I may have actually read every post on the forum lol what I meant by a tutorial was more in the line of a video and less of the documented type tutorials. As im sure you know from reading some of my queries text is sometime hard to follow but video tutorials are a better way to teach junior coders.
there are some great video tutorials here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRa3KZ ... hUSx-q701Qand I learned a lot from them but there was for sure a need for more detailed and advanced video tutorials on this channel. Im not sure if this channel is Official but if it is then it has been neglected for some time.

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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by Marcus Tettmar » Tue Nov 14, 2017 1:17 pm

I'm confused again. The link I sent you shows two video tutorials right at the top. Maybe I need to spell it out a bit more:

Video Tutorial: An Introduction To Custom Dialogs Part 1
http://help.mjtnet.com/article/40-an-in ... dal-dialog

Video Tutorial: An Introduction To Custom Dialogs Part 2
http://help.mjtnet.com/article/41-an-in ... t-handlers
Marcus Tettmar
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MadQuestion
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Tue Nov 14, 2017 6:09 pm

Yes I had come to realize you had sent me a link to video link tutorials after I had posted. The dialog designer tutorials are very limited though and do not cover all of the objects within the dialog designer. There is no online videos for the adding of images to buttons or any image related tutorials apart from image recognition tutorials which are very good and leave the user well informed. There are however No tutorials on opening a dialog based on the completion of the ProgressBar for example? What can the Panel object be used for? What does the HTML Viewer & RadioGroup Objects do and how would I use them exactly? Even the channel that is officially created by you on youtube has been neglected for some time Marcus, last video uploaded was 8 months ago and before that video it was 3 years ago? You should really do some more advanced dialog tutorials for your channel as you have likely neglected some really cool features from the topics in your youtube channel dialog tutorials. I found out about this software from the video I watched on youtube you did on Arrays https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLYTLrIbjco Still some good features left out from the sub routine part of this tutorial such as when to use SkipLabel to avoid memory errors? Maybe a tutorial explaining these errors would also be another great addition to the archive of online tutorials you have created for this software.
I always think its better to have a video instruction than some website page or PDF instruction. Looking forward to your feedback :)

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JRL
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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by JRL » Tue Nov 14, 2017 6:28 pm

MadQuestion wrote:I can't be the only user using the dialog designer for more advanced dialogs and therefore be the only user to benefit from the features I suggested.
I can see where dialog wizards could be useful for casual dialog needs such as a custom message or a custom input. There are far too many possibilities for "advanced" dialog formats and uses to be able to cover all possibilities with wizards. An advanced dialog wizard would need to be another version of the Dialog Designer but with a different interface. Same choices arranged differently on the screen based on a different interpretation of what is efficient and/or intuitive.
MadQuestion wrote:I could likely use the current dialog designer to design my very own dialog wizard but then I would have this amazing dialog wizard and the other software users would be missing out.
Or, you could post your creations here on the forum making them available for use by others

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Re: Dialog Designer Wizard For Future Update?

Post by MadQuestion » Tue Nov 14, 2017 11:52 pm

I might try this as a side project to increase my scripting skills and if it works ill make it available in the forum for every who would like the same features as me with the dialog designer. I see what you are saying about the advanced possibilities. I understand that it may require the current designer UI to be adapted but perhaps that is whats required? Perhaps the issue i think i have is not that the dialog designer needs a wizard but the current layout of the current designer UI would perhaps needs to be more user friendly? But still the auto insert code feature for obviously known Dialog Properties such as LoadImage and ExportData for image inserts would be nice to have in a dialog wizard just for those features alone never mind the advanced features.....

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