If you want to use all the examples from AMS 5 to AMS 7.5 in your AMS 8 projects, please take note below.

AMS 8 is using an updated version of LUA 5.1. One of the most important change is the TABLE ITERATION.

This is the old code used in AMS 5 to AMS 7.5 for TABLE ITERATION ( loops )

-----------------------------------------------
mytable = {"One","Two","Three"};

for k, v in mytable do
Dialog.Message("Table Item", k .. "=" .. v);
end
-----------------------------------------------


If my examples are using LOOPS, you need to change like below:


----------------------------------------------
mytable = {"One","Two","Three"};

for k, v in pairs(mytable) do
Dialog.Message("Table Item", k .. "=" .. v);
end
----------------------------------------------


See the word “pairs” in red and the bracket, above?

Just add a BRACKET around your TABLE NAME and add the word “pairs“.

Then all my examples using loops will work.

lol ….. 99.9 % of my examples are using LOOPS.
You’ll definitely have to change the codes.

Hope this helps.

I noticed a lot of downloads for the Basic SlideShow. Safe to say that the posted sample is quite useful indeed. Thanks for downloading, but where are the comments? Even short comments would be much appreciated.

As promised, here’s the Search Image Utility with a SlideShow feature, alongwith of the Thumblist feature.

From the ScreenShot below, you will notice I’ve added a Slide Show button to the project. OnClick, a Temp Table is created by collecting info from the ListBox. Then the same action opens a DialogEx with a SlideShow object. OnShow, the DialogEx collects info from the Temp Table and inserts them (image path) into the SlideShow object. No big deal. The Temp Table is the KEY. It bridges info between objects. AMS & LUA rulez !!!!

Search Image with SlideShow

Your Search Results can be seen in a SlideShow. And if you select a Saved Groups, you can view a SlideShow of it as well ( shown on the screen shot below ). AND …………if you tweak this example further with RETESET’s, SSIDE’s, UPETER’s, WORM’s & DERMOT’s plugins, you’ll amazed yourself with a feature-rich Electronic Album.

Search Image Utility with Slide Show

Finally, if you plan to distribute APPs developed from project examples in this blog, PLEASE INCLUDE ERROR CHECK FUNCTION for each AMS action. It’s your responsibility to do that. Most of my examples are without error checking for the sake of clarity.

Please leave your comments in this blog.

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Been some time. Was busy setting-up a new office in Kuala Lumpur. In between activities, I spared some time in transforming our previous project. Move over Text Files, here comes SQLite database.

The SQLite DB file is located in MyDocs (XP/P8/ME) or Documents (Vista) hosted in the folder named as MyResourceFolder. The folder and DB file will be created automatically when launching this App.

Mini Address Book with SQLite DB

Some minor changes were made to the interface. I’ve also added more details but the functions remain the same:
1. Add New Entry
2. Delete Entries
3. Edit Entries
4. Search Entries
5. Group Entries
6. Rename Groups
7. Delete Groups
8. Share Items between Groups
9. Make a New Group from Search Results
10. Validate All Entries

Mini Address Book with SQLite

Since this Project uses SQLite, we have removed previous concerns. We can now
1. Update Entries shared by several Groups all at once
2. Search every row in the DB directly without any help from ListBox.

Mini Address Book with SQLite

For each item ( every DB row ), you might only see 4 data on the interface. In actual fact, this project is prepared for more than 10 data per item. This includes the usual suspects like Address, Zip Code, Street Name, Country, Birthday, Description, Notation and etc. I encourage readers to try embed more entries at the interface. This is the way to learn.

Mini Address Book with SQLite

If you add Dermot’s Pop3 Plugin, you’re making an almost full-featured Email App. To learn more about SQlite DB on AMS, please view TJ Tigger’s Video.

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In the next topic on Mini Address Book, I plan to add 2 more features:
1. Photo for each Name
2. Calendaring.

We’ll see how it goes. If there is a request, I will make create another example just for the Search Function. Please use the comment in the Blog.

And please, leave your comments in this blog.

I’m back after a very busy week up North.

Let’s embed Validation function into our mini Email Address Book project. Changes must be done to the flow and therefore the scripts. But it is not that difficult to do if you understand the previous 2 samples.

Once the changes were made, I can now :
1. Validate Name entry
2. Validate Email entry
3. Validate Group Name entry

Each validation uses its own PATTERN. You can set this pattern by looking at the Globals Pane. This one is real easy to do.

Validate All Entries

I’ve made quite a few changes to our project. I’ve optimized the scripts to run faster. So you can find more functions in the Globals and less scripts in objects. I’m using a TEMP TABLE that collects data from ListBoxes and then WRITE the TextFiles from the TEMP Table. This way, I can add more features to the project ( and preparing it for SQLite Plugin as well.).

Validate Entries

If you take a look at the Screen Shot above and below, the project pops up a DialogEx for New Group Entries. This entry is also validated according to a set of PATTERNS. Once validated, I’ve also inserted the Good Old Dialog to WARN USERS about the implication of their next course of actions.

Good Old Dialog & DialogEx Working together

Once the New Group has been named, the DialogEx is closed and brings users to the front-end. Their latest Group will be auto-selected. This is easy to do. Look under the hood as proof.

Also, I’ve added a function to change the name of the GROUP as shown in the Screen Shot below. In fact, what we’re doing is changing the name of the Text Files.

Change Group Name

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Hi,

Been busy doing some work in the north of Malaysia. Helping a friend of mine starting up his Wood Plastic Composite factory. I coined it as a Save The Forest and Love Your Environment Industry. The factory transforms unwanted Rice Husks (which farmers normally burn) into multi-purpose Wood. In the midst of that, I spared some time in improving an important utility, i.e. the Data Entry Validation Function.

Data Entry Validation is important if we’re developing serious apps. We can use TABLES, For..Do and If..Or loops for this purpose. But in my opinion, using LUA is the easiest, fastest and efficient way. You’ll be surprised on how easy it is after looking at the codes.

I’m posting this function as a standalone example just in case some AMS users want to reference it for other apps. We’ll embed this Validation function in the Email Address Book in the next topic.

Form Validation Functions

This example shows 4 types of validation:
1. Alphabet Entries only
2. Numeric Entries only
3. Alphanumeric Entries only
4. Email Entries only

The Email Validation is the most complex to do. It uses lots of String Actions and ElseIfs. There are many ways to do it. Anyhow, there might be REGEX functions out there done by AMS users just waiting to share with us. In the mean time, I’ll share what I have.

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You can modify the functions according to your Validation needs. Just add or delete the characters in the LUA array to fit specific patterns that you fancy.

Side note:
I spent my spare time improving the Email Validation function at a blue-coloured wooden shack restaurant by a very clean beach at Pulau Sayak lagoon. Nice place, nice food and my 3G internet connection was very speedy there. Love it.

The Road to Pulau Sayak	Pulau Sayak : The blue shack	An associate checking emails
Pulau Sayak lagoon	The South Side	Anchored Fishing boats