[jawsscripts] Re: Pause versus Delay
- From: "James Panes" <jimpanes@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <jawsscripts@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 2 Jan 2010 21:25:13 -0500
The documentation is wrong. Delay () does not allow other applications to
use cpu time. This is why you sometimes see scripts with several Paulse ()
instead of Delay (n) where n is a number greater than 1.
Regards,
Jim
jimpanes@xxxxxxxxx
jimpanes@xxxxxxxxxxxx
"Everything is easy when you know how."
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jamal Mazrui" <empower@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <jawsscripts@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, January 02, 2010 6:40 PM
Subject: [jawsscripts] Re: Pause versus Delay
Below is all the official documentation I could find on this topic,
drawing from fsdn.chm, Basics of Scripting.chm, and the scripting guide
by Ken Gould (published by FS). There are some contradictions, e.g.,
saying Pause is equivalent to a tenth of a second delay in one place,
yet describing its behavior as clearly different in another. I notice
examples of using Delay after typing a keystroke, though Pause seems to
work better for me in that situation. Has anyone tested whether Pause
in a While loop causes the computer to freeze up, as claimed?
Obviously, this could happen with an infinite loop, but the
documentation seems to be saying more than that.
Jamal
From FSDN.chm:
Function: Pause
Description
Stops the processing of a script so that other applications can complete
tasks. When a pause function is placed in a script, JAWS yields to the
time needs of other applications. Once other applications have been
given the opportunity to use processing time, then JAWS resumes the
script. The pause function is equivalent to using the Delay function
with a value of 1. Do not place a pause command in a While loop, because
this will cause the computer to freeze up.
Returns
Type: Void
Parameters
No Parameters
Function: Delay
Description
Makes a script stand still for a specified period of time. It causes a
script to stop, wait a period of time, and then resume again. It is
different than the Pause function which yields to the processing needs
of applications.
Returns
Type: Void
Parameters
Param 1:
Type: Int
Description: Type a number to indicate the amount of time that the
script should be delayed. The number 1 equals one-tenth of a second. The
number 10. equals one second. Do not use numbers withdecimals, and do
not use quotation marks.
Include: Required
Param 2:
Type: Int
Description: TRUE to suppress checking for and processing
FocusChangedEvent and NewTextEvent functions before returning from the
delay.
Include: Optional
From Basics of Scripting.chm:
10.3 Delaying Your Script
Your scripts generally process faster than the system you are using.
When you pass keystrokes from within your script, you may need to pause
the script to give the system time to process the keystrokes. You can
use one of two built-in functions to pause the processing of your script:
Pause
Delay
The two functions differ in how much time they allow for the system to
catch up with your script. The Pause function pauses the processing of
your script so that other applications can complete tasks. The delay
function allows you to specify the amount of time your script pauses
before processing resumes.
You dont have to limit the use of these functions to only scripts that
pass keystrokes. You can use both functions in other circumstances where
the script needs to be paused to allow for system processing.
Knowing when to use one of these functions depends on the application
and the PC. You may not need to pause the processing of a script to
allow the system to catch up on a fast PC. On the other hand, a slower
PC may require more time to process a command.
The Pause Function
The pause function causes JAWS to yield to the time needs of other
applications. Once other applications have been given the opportunity to
use processing time, then JAWS resumes processing the script.
An example of the use of the Pause function follows:
Example 1: Using the Pause Function
TypeKey (alt+f) ; open the File menu
Pause () ; allow system to open the File menu
If MenusActive () Then; make sure the menu bar opened
TypeKey (s) ; activate the Save option
Else
SayFormattedMessage (OT_ERROR, The menu bar did not open)
EndIf
In the above example, the TypeKey function opens the File menu. Next,
the Pause function stops the processing of the script to give the
application time to open the menu. Before JAWS performs the TypeKey
function, the MenusActive function must determine if the menu bar is
open. If the menu bar is open, then JAWS performs the TypeKey function
and the menu item is activated. If the menu did not open successfully,
then JAWS speaks an appropriate error message.
The Delay Function
The Delay function gives you more control than the Pause function when
stopping your script. Since the Pause function relies on other system
processes, the amount of time your script is stopped can vary. If this
amount of time is insufficient for your script to process correctly,
then you should use the Delay function.
The Delay function requires a numeric value as a parameter. This value
is a whole number that tells JAWS the length of time to pause script
execution. This value can be a numeric value such as 5, an integer
variable containing a value or a constant representing a numeric value.
The amount of time JAWS pauses script execution is measured in tenths of
a second. For example, a value of 1 tells the delay function to stop for
a tenth of a second.
In JAWS 5.0 and above, the Delay function accepts an optional second
parameter. This parameter is a numeric value that tells JAWS to suppress
checking for and processing FocusChangedEvent and NewTextEvent functions
before returning from the delay. When you pass TRUE in this parameter,
then JAWS suppresses any processing of the NewText or FocusChanged
events. If you pass FALSE in this parameter, then JAWS will not suppress
the processing of these two events. You call the Delay function using
the following syntax:
Delay (nDelayValue, , nNoEvents)
An example of the use of the Delay function follows:
Example 2: Using the Delay Function
TypeKey (alt+f) ; open the File menu
Delay (3); allow system to open the File menu
If MenusActive () Then
TypeKey (s) ; activate the Save option
Else
SayFormattedMessage (OT_ERROR, The menu bar did not open)
EndIf
In the above example, the first TypeKey function activates the File
menu. JAWS then performs the Delay function to pause script processing
to give the File menu time to open. The MenusActive function then
determines if the menu is open. If it is open, then JAWS performs the
second TypeKey function and the Save option is activated. Otherwise,
JAWS speaks an appropriate error message.
From "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Writing JAWS Scripts,
But Didn't Know Whom to Ask"
7.3.5.3 The Pause and Delay Functions
There are two functions which will cause the processing of a script to be
suspended temporarily, Pause () and Delay (). This suspension of script
processing is often necessary to prevent a script from getting too far ahead
of the application it is working with. For example, if you use a function
that moves the JAWS cursor to a different part of the screen or which drops
down a menu, you may have to suspend script processing to allow the
action to
complete before the script continues. The Pause function simply stops
script
processing and gives other applications an opportunity to complete their
processing. Then the script resumes. The Delay function stops for a
specified length of time which is indicated by an integer between the
parentheses. The larger the integer, the longer the suspension.
However, if
the suspension time chosen is not adequate for other applications to
complete
their processing, the script will resume anyway. Sometimes a trial and
error
process is necessary to determine the proper amount of delay. In
general, the
Delay function is more useful when you want to force the script to stop,
irrespective of whether the application is finished or not. Sometimes a
Pause
function simply does not seem to make the script suspend for a long enough
period, and a Delay is called for to achieve the desired affect. In
general,
it's worthwhile to try the Pause first. If more suspension time is
required,
a Delay can then be used.
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