This Question and Answer Set includes the following topics:

Classes

Compatibility

Debugging

Editing

Importing Files

Multiuser Support

Opening Files

Printing

Projects

Routines

Source Control

SQL

Studio Implementation

Templates

What is a project?

A project is a collection of class definitions, routines, and/or CSP files that you can group together for the sake of convenience.

Using projects gives you an easy way to return to your work when you start a Studio session. For example, you can place all the classes related to an application, or part of an application, in a project. When you start Studio, open this project and the Project tab of the Workspace window displays all the classes in a convenient list.

You can also export and import entire projects to and from a single external file making it easy to save or pass around application code.

How do I add an item to a project?

Here are some of the ways to add items to a the current project:

Can I add something from another namespace to my project?

No. A project can only contain items that are visible to the current Caché namespace.

Can an item belong to multiple projects?

Yes. A project is a specified set of items (class definitions, routines, and CSP files) that you choose to group together. The items themselves have no link back to the projects they may belong to. There is no limit to how many projects an item can belong to.

What if I don't want to use projects?

You are not required to use projects with Studio; you can completely ignore them if you like. To ignore projects, do not add any items to the default project and ignore the prompt asking you if you want to save your project when you exit Studio.

Can I export a project?

Yes. Select Tools > Export > Export Project. Enter a file name and press OK. This exports the entire contents of the current project (including the project definition) to a single XML file.

How do I delete a project?

Select File > Open to list all your projects. Right-click a project and select Delete.

Note that you can use File > Open to delete any type of item on the server in this way.

How do I open a class definition?

To open an existing class definition (that is, one saved on the Caché server), do the following:

How do I open a routine?

To open an existing routine (that is, one saved in the Caché server), do the following:

How do I open a CSP file?

You can open a CSP file in the same way that you open a class definition or a routine. The main difference is that the Open dialog lists CSP Applications (for example, /csp/samples) as folders; select the name of an application to see the CSP pages within it.

What does the Show System check box in the Open dialog do?

If the Show System check box is selected, then the File > Open dialog lists system items (items whose names start with the % character and are stored in the CACHELIB database) along with items in the current namespace.

Can I use pattern matching in the File > Open dialog?

Yes. You can use the “*” character as a wildcard to match any number of any character as you can in a standard File > Open dialog. You can use file extensions to filter certain items; for example, “*.cls” lists all Class Definitions in the selected package. You can use the “?” character to match any character. Note that these are Windows pattern matching conventions, not Caché pattern matching.

How do I open a routine from a different namespace?

The Studio File > Open dialog lists items from only the current namespace and server. To open a routine from a different namespace or server:

Can I open a % class?

Yes. You can list % classes (classes whose package name starts with a % character and are stored within the CACHELIB database) from the File > Open dialog by selecting the Show System check box at the bottom.

Studio opens % classes as read-only if you open them while connected to a namespace other than %SYS.

What does File > Connect do?

Studio maintains a connection to a specific Caché namespace and server. It uses this connection to provide a list of classes (such as for specifying property types, super classes, etc.). It also uses this connection for debugging. File > Connect lets you connect to a different server.

How do I start the debugger?

You can connect the debugger to a target process in of the following ways:

For more details refer to the chapter “Using the Studio Debugger” in this book.

How can I debug a class?

The Studio debugger lets you step through the execution of programs running on a Caché server. These programs can include INT files, MAC files, methods within CLS files, CSP classes responding to HTTP requests, server-side methods invoked from Java or ActiveX clients, or server-hosted applications.

Can I watch variables?

Yes. While debugging, enter a variable name (or an expression) in the left-hand column of the Studio Watch Window. Each time the debugger pauses, the variable or expression is reevaluated.

What do the different colors in the editor mean? Can I change the colors in the editor?

The Studio uses colors to differentiate the syntax elements of a given language.

You can change the colors used for the various syntax elements as follows:

Why is there a wavy, red line underneath my code?

The wavy, red line indicates that the underlined code (or possibly code before it) contains syntax errors.

Does Studio support Kanji and Chinese characters?

Yes. Studio has complete support for Unicode and Kanji characters.

Does Studio support Hebrew and Arabic characters?

Yes. The Studio Editor supports Hebrew and Arabic characters, as well as bidirectional editing.

Can I import class definitions or routines from external files?

Yes. Select Tools > Import.

What is the difference between Local and Remote files?

Studio is a client/server application; the Studio itself runs on a client system and talks to a server. The server can either be on the same machine or on a remote machine. The Studio uses the terms “Local” and “Remote” to refer to operating system files (such as when you are importing or exporting) that are stored on the client and server systems, respectively.

If both the client and server are on the same system then there is no difference between Local and Remote.

Can I print from Studio?

Yes. Select File > Print or File > Print Preview.

What is a Template?

Templates are a mechanism for creating user-defined Studio add-ins. A template is a program that enters a code fragment into the current document at the current cursor point. You can customize the code fragment to your needs. See the chapter “Using Studio Templates” in this book for more information.

Is there a list of available Templates?

Yes. Select Tools > Templates > Templates.

Can I create a new Template?

Yes. See the chapter “Using Studio Templates” in this book.

Does Studio support development by multiple users?

Yes. You can do this in several ways:

What happens if I try to open a class (or routine) that someone else is editing?

Studio displays a dialog stating that the class (or routine) is in use by someone else and asks you if you want to open it in read-only mode.

What if someone wants to edit a super class of a class that I am working on?

Studio does not prevent another developer from modifying the super class of a class you are working on.

While Studio could take out locks on all subclasses whenever a class is opened for editing, in practice this would be annoying and unwieldy. Instead, a development team needs to work out rules and procedures for defining and modifying super classes. This is similar to how development teams in other languages (say Java) usually work with class definitions in source control systems.

How do I create a new class?

Use the New command in the File menu and ask for a new Class Definition. This invokes the New Class Wizard.

For more details, see the chapter Class Definitions in this book.

Can I see the source code generated for my class?

Yes. You can see all the source code generated by the Class Compiler with View > View Other Code (available when the current window contains a class definition).

Make sure that the Keep Generated Source Code option is set before you compile your class. This option is located on the Tools > Options > Compiler > General Flags page.

When I try to compile my class, the Studio says it is up to date and does not need to be compiled. Can I force a compile to happen?

Yes. Turn off the Skip related up-to-date documents option. This option is located on the Tools > Options > Compiler > General Flags page.

How do I create an INT routine?

Create a new ObjectScript routine using the New command in the File menu and then save the new routine using a name with a .INT extension. You can create an include (.INC) file in the same fashion.

How do I define an SQL View?

Studio does not include a mechanism for defining SQL views. To do this, as well as other SQL tasks, use the Management Portal.

Does Studio integrate with external Source Control systems?

Yes. The procedure is:

At this point, Studio has been configured to interact with the source-control system. When Studio attempts to open a document, prior to opening it, the OnBeforeLoad method of your source-control class is invoked; typically, this method checks the timestamp on a file representation of the document and, if it is newer in the file, the method calls a Caché function to import this into the current namespace. This makes sure that the user is seeing the most up-to-date version of the file.

If you modify the file and save it, then Studio calls the OnAfterSave method of the source-control class, which typically exports this document to the filesystem. (This keeps these files in sync with the routines, classes, etc. that are in Caché.)

When you attempt to modify a document, Studio attempts to get a lock on it, which also triggers a call to a source control method GetStatus. If the file is locked in source control, Studio can then ask if you want to check it out. This triggers a call to the CheckOut method which performs the actions required to check the item out.

%Studio.SourceControl.Base and %Studio.Extension.Base provide a set of methods that allow you to create interactions between Studio and your source-control system that are as simple or complex as you choose.

Can I create my own hooks?

Yes. You can define hooks—code that is executed whenever items are saved to or loaded from the server. For details see the appendix “Using Studio Source Control Hooks”.

Can I connect a Studio client to any Caché server?

A Studio client must be running either the same version of Caché or a higher version than the Caché server that it is connecting to. Example: Caché 2015.1 Studio can connect to a Caché 2015.1 (or earlier version) server. Caché 2014.1 Studio cannot connect to a Caché 2015.1 (or later) server. This applies also to maintenance releases. Example: Caché 2014.1.2 Studio can connect to a Caché 2014.1.1 (or earlier maintenance release or version) server. Caché 2014.1.0 Studio cannot connect to a Caché 2014.1.1 (or later maintenance release or version) server.

Can I run Studio on Linux?

The Studio client only runs on Windows platforms. You can use a Windows-client to talk to any server. You can also use a partition manager, such as VMWARE, to run both Windows and Linux partitions on your development system and run Studio in the Windows partition with Caché running in the Linux partition. The only trick is to configure your networking so that the Windows partition can talk to the Linux partition via TCP/IP. Studio can also run under Windows on an Intel-based Macintosh.

Why doesn't Studio use the licensed components of Microsoft Visual Studio?

There are several reasons why we built Studio from the “ground up” instead of licensing or extending Visual Studio:

Why wasn't the Studio interface developed using Java?

At this time, the only way to get acceptable performance for the Studio editor is to use direct calls to the Windows API. While there are syntax-coloring editors developed using Java they do not offer the sophisticated multi-language parsing used by Studio and they typically require very high performance computers for decent performance.