set break point?

[David Nelson]

I can find it, hidden under Tools: Debugger Controls.  And it is a toggle to remove or insert the breakpoint as Command-F9.  But nothing changes in my script when I do it even if I make sure the script step where I want to insert the break point is selected.  Why did they remove it from the debugger panel?  Why does it not turn red any more?  I can not find it and it is irritating me because I have a loop with many records I need to skip and I can't.  GRRRRAHAHHHH!

I appreciate any direction here.  Thank you.

[David Nelson]

by the way, what does 'set next step' mean?  I can find where they point to it, in help, but not what it means.  I am very disappointed in 14 in this regard.  I find its minimalist approach too minimum.

[David Jondreau]

There's a gray "flag" that appears over the line number.

Just like in previous versions, you can simply click in that area to toggle the flag.

In the attached image, there is a break point at line 16.

[David Jondreau]

Set next step means "skip all the steps from the current step to this step."

[David Nelson]

Oh thank you.  That is not nearly as obvious as before.  Is there anywhere I can learn to use debugger properly?  I've used a few things in it but there are other parts I've never used because I never knew how or did not know what it was for.  It would help if there were examples somewhere.  Thank you.

[David Nelson]

And now I need to get rid of a Set Next Step and I can't.  And I don't even know what it does and I am in middle of long script.  Set Next Step ... to do what?  What is it setting and why?  And how to I remove it?  I tried selecting it again and nothing happens.  It does not toggle like breakpoint.

[David Nelson]

op. just got your email David.  Thank you.  Why would I want to skip steps?  All steps are important in a script.  Or does it mean just skip them in showing me as it goes?  So would I skip a loop for example instead of setting a breakpoint below it?

Edited June 5, 2015 by David Nelson

[eos]

Set Break Point = Stop Execution here (when running the script)

Set Next Step = Start Execution here (when using a “Step …” or the “Continue” debugging command)

So would I skip a loop for example instead of setting a breakpoint below it?

Depends on what you want to do while debugging

• if whatever certain steps do is not pertinent to your debugging of later steps, you can ignore them by setting the next step behind them, and start/continue your debugging from there (loop is not executed)

• if whatever preceding steps do is pertinent, e.g. because certain preconditions must be met (data, context) and you know that those steps work, set a breakpoint (loop is executed, but you don't have to step through it manually)

And yes, I too preferred the red break point “flag” from before 14. 

[David Jondreau]

Set Next Step is used when debugging scripts. Say you have a loop that goes through a 1,000 records then does something else. You know the loop works, and want to just test the "something else" (which doesn't require the loop). Set Next Step allow you, as a developer, skip the loop. Users, (who don't have access to the script debugger and privileges to edit the script) won't be affected. And it only works on the script that's currently running in the debugger.

It doesn't toggle. If you don't want it to skip and clicked on it, you simply set the next step you want to run, which is the current step!

[David Nelson]

this is helping a lot guys. I have been playing with it.  So if I set a break point after a loop because I need the loop to run, which of the 'step' buttons do I click to "run from where I am to breakpoint.".  I do not understand this 'step in' and 'step out' and 'step over.'  No place is this explained and I must be dumb.

Set Break Point = Stop Execution here (when running the script)

Set Next Step = Start Execution here (when using a “Step …” or the “Continue” debugging command)

​Can you put this in same words as the icons with 'step over'?  Is it step over? If I click 'step in' then it does one step at a time which is what I usually use.  I appreciate your patience.

Also what happened to functions where I could select 'all text' functions or all 'design' functions?  I do not see that popup ability any more.  It helped me quite a bit.

Edited June 5, 2015 by David Nelson

[David Jondreau]

To advance one script step at a time, I use Step In.

To run to a break point, use the "Continue" (the Play button icon).

I never use Step Out or Step Over. 

[eos]

I do not understand this 'step in' and 'step out' and 'step over.'  No place is this explained and I must be dumb.

​The individual steps/commands are explained on this page

http://www.filemaker.com/help/14/fmp/en/html/fmpa_tools.25.2.html#1033267

Not sure what I could add to that in general terms. I suggest you create a script with some dummy steps, incl. a call to another (dummy) script, then step through using In, Over, Out to see the difference.

Also what happened to functions where I could select 'all text' functions or all 'design' functions?  I do not see that popup ability any more.  It helped me quite a bit.​

The panel on the right-hand side of the calculation window shows the categories as list, and lets you use the old-style category selector, and lets you filter functions by substring. There is an icon to hide/show that panel.