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ObjectViRCScript Documentation (for ViRC '97 1.00 and above) - Revision 7 ========================================================================= Introduction ============ What is ObjectViRCScript? ObjectViRCScript is a set of object-based (and now object-oriented) extensions to the main ViRCScript language, adding a class/property/event model to ViRCScript, much as C++ adds a similar model to C. Anyone who has programmed in Delphi before will feel instantly familiar with OVS - it uses Delphi's class library!! This was facilitated by Delphi's very comprehensive RTTI system which allows sufficient data to be extracted from classes and so forth at runtime to make programming the ObjectViRCScript interpreter relatively simple - OVS adds only about 1900 lines of code to the main ViRCScript interpreter. What does ObjectViRCScript add? ------------------------------- OVS adds New and Destroy to create and destroy class objects, a new @p statement to set properties, and a $prop function to get properties. Also added is the ability to call object methods, either as statements or as functions to return values. New MAPOBJECT function and UNMAPOBJECT statement added to enable customization of ViRC '97's GUI (server windows, channel windows etc.). Adds WITH/ENDWITH for making setting multiple properties of an object easier. ADDTOSETPROP and REMOVEFROMSETPROP commands for dealing with objects' set properties. In addition, 0.94pre10 and above allow you to define your own classes, which behave identically to the built-in Delphi VCL classes. Class support is currently rather primitive (although properties, methods and simple inheritance are supported), but will improve in later versions. You can also use OVS to add tabs to the Client setup dialog and buttons to the toolbars. This is described under the MAPOBJECT function, which is central to extending V97's user interface with your own OVS code. What's new in this release of ObjectViRCScript? ----------------------------------------------- New in 0.82: support for enumerated and set properties, many object methods, many new classes supported (including the TSockets class for writing sockets applications in ViRCScript, and TTimer for making timers), and MAPOBJECT/UNMAPOBJECT for customizing V97's built-in windows. New WITH/ENDWITH statements. ADDTOSETPROP/REMOVEFROMSETPROP statements. New in 0.82a: a few more implemented methods documented, corrected many documentation inaccuracies (esp. in TSockets documentation). New in 0.91: added SORT method to TListBox and TComboBox. Added GETDIRLIST and GETFILELIST methods to TStringList object. Corrected documentation inaccuracies (again). Improved TSockets a little. A few minor bug fixes. New in 0.92: added InternalCall mechanism for chaining object events to built-in code. Improvements to TSockets for multiple simultaneous connections and other things. Added Execute method to TStringList. Added TFileListBox, TDirectoryListBox, and TDriveComboBox. Documented TShape object (added a long time ago, documented only now). New in 0.94pre4: Added BEGINUPDATE and ENDUPDATE methods to TForm. Added new TBitmap and TOfficeButton objects. New in 0.94pre9: Added new TIcon object. New in 0.94pre10: Added simple class support. Added CLASSOF and PARENTCLASSOF functions. New in 0.94pre10a: Support for TToolbarButton97, TToolbarSep97, and TEdit97 objects, and the ability to add objects to the toolbars. Added new POSITION keyword to the NEW function. New in 1.00rc3: Added new LoadFromAlias, SaveToAlias, LoadFromEvent and SaveToEvent methods to TStringList. New in 1.00almost-final2: Extended MAPOBJECT function to support DCC/TDCC file transfer windows. New in 1.00almost-final3: Added new MAPPEDOBJECTEXISTS function. Documentation for MAPOBJECT function substantially improved. New in 1.00final: The ability to pass parameters to an OVS class's constructor has been added. What's currently wrong with ObjectViRCScript? --------------------------------------------- This is a difficult one ... not all methods of all Delphi objects are currently supported, although support will improve greatly in future versions. A very quick introduction to ObjectViRCScript ============================================= This section has been updated slightly in 0.92. This section is not intended to be a complete description of OVS and all its subtleties. For the complete treatment, read the rest of the file. :) This is just a quick section to get you started on the basics. ObjectViRCScript adds objects to ViRCScript. An object can be a visual thing like a form or a button on the screen, or a more abstract thing like a list of strings (TStringList) or a socket control (TSockets) to send data over the internet. Objects are created with the $new() function, and destroyed with the Destroy statement. Here's an example of some code which creates a form with a button on it. You'll soon see what all of this code does after you've read the rest of this section and the detailed descriptions of the $new() function later on. @ $form = $new(TForm) @p $form.Left = 10 @p $form.Top = 10 @p $form.Width = 200 @p $form.Height = 200 @p $form.Caption = Test form @p $form.Visible = True @ $button = $new(TButton ownedby $form) @p $button.Left = 10 @p $button.Top = 10 @p $button.Width = 75 @p $button.Height = 25 @p $button.Caption = Click me! @p $button.Visible = True Anyone who has used the Borland Delphi or Borland C++Builder VCL class library will feel instantly familiar with this style of coding. To describe just a few of the lines above: @ $form = $new(TForm) This creates a new object of class TForm ^ ^ and stores it in a variable called $form. Variable Class @p $form.Visible = True This assigns the value True to $form's ^ ^ Visible property, making it appear on the Property Value screen. @p $button = $new(TButton ownedby $form) This creates a button that ^ is owned by $form. This just Owner means the button sits inside $form when it's displayed. An object property is simply a "data slot" in the object which can store a value, which can be a number, some text, or even another object. To set a property, use: @p $object.Property = Value For example, to change $form's caption to "Test form", do this: @p $form.Caption = Test form When you are finished with an object, destroy it with the Destroy statement. After an object has been destroyed, it disappears from the screen (if it's a visual object) and is no longer accessible. For example, to destroy $form: Destroy $form Destroying an object will also automatically destroy all objects that it owns. So, in the above example, you don't need to destroy $button as well as destroying $form. Destroying $form will destroy $button too, as $button was created by the function $new(TButton ownedby $form). Properties are read with $prop($object.Property), for example, this piece of code will display $form's caption in the server notices window: TextOut > . clBlack $prop($form.Caption) A method actually executes a piece of code within the object. A method "tells" an object to do something, and may, or may not, return a value. An example of a method is the TStringList object's Add method, which adds an item to the string list, and returns the position in the list at which the item was added. If you call the method as a command, as follows, the return value is discarded: $list.Add Test 1 However, the method can also be called as a function, which returns the index the item has been added at, as follows: @ $itemindex = $list.Add(Test 1) Notice that, when calling methods as functions, brackets are REQUIRED around the parameters, as with calling a regular ViRCScript function. When calling methods as statements (i.e. not as functions), DO NOT USE BRACKETS, just as with as regular ViRCScript statement. To try to make this clearer, in the object documentation given later on in this file, the methods of each object are described. Some methods are given like this: MethodX - Does something Others are given like this: MethodY() - Does something, and returns something MethodX returns nothing, and so can only be called like this: $object.MethodX MethodY returns a value. It can either be called like this, to obtain the value: @ $x = $object.MethodY() Or it can be called like this, to discard the value: $object.MethodY Remember that, although the method is documented as MethodY(), if you're calling it as a statement, rather than a function, you DO NOT USE BRACKETS, EVER. Remember this: Method called as a FUNCTION - use brackets Method called as a STATEMENT - do not use brackets This is really no different to the standard ViRCScript syntax. This syntax is pretty flexible, with the exception of one advanced situation which you are probably never likely to encounter, but which I will mention anyway just in case. There is currently a parser restriction in that, when calling methods as functions, the object's name must consist of one variable only. Let me illustrate this with an example: This code WILL work: @ $itemindex = $list.1.2.Add(Test 1) This will add the item "Test 1" to the object $list.1.2. However, imagine you had 1 in $var1, and 2 in $var2, the following code WILL NOT work: @ $itemindex = $list.$var1.$var2.Add(Test 1) This is because the object name is composed of more than one variable. Note that every other usage of this object will work. These will all work: $list.$var1.$var2.Add Test 1 @ $count = $prop($list.$var1.$var2.Count) There is, however, a way around it. That is, assign a temporary variable with the value of the object, and then use that. So, instead of doing: @ $itemindex = $list.$var1.$var2.Add(Test 1) You would actually do: @ $temp = $list.$var1.$var2 @ $itemindex = $temp.Add(Test 1) -@ $temp I hope this is clear. I will attempt to remove this limitation in a future version of OVS, although with the current state of the parser this change would break existing code, which I always endeavour to avoid. I hope this is clear. ObjectViRCScript extension details ================================== NEW function ------------ Usage: $new(class) $new(class ownedby object) $new(class ownedby object position left,top,width,height) Creates a new object of type class, and returns an instance handle. Class can be any of the Delphi VCL classes, for example, TForm, TEdit, TButton, and so forth. If the optional ownedby object parameter is specified, the object's owner is set to that parameter. If you're creating a TForm, which has no owner (actually ViRC '97 itself is the owner), you must leave this parameter off - forms owning other forms does not make sense. Note: some objects, such as TForm, are created invisible. To show them, you need to change their Visible property (see the @P statement below). Examples: The following code makes a new TForm object and assigns its instance handle to the $form variable. Notice that @ $form = $new(TForm) Once the form has been created and assigned to $form, the following code adds a button to the form: @ $button = $new(TButton ownedby $form) In addition, 0.94pre10a and above support the new position keyword. This allows an object to be positioned and sized correctly during creation, avoiding the need to set the Left, Top, Width and Height properties later on. Using the position keyword makes control creation faster and less flickery. Example: // This creates a button at coordinates (10,20) which is 100 pixels // wide and 25 high. Equivalent to setting Left = 10, Top = 20, // Width = 100, Height = 25 after the button has been created. @ $button = $new(TButton ownedby $form position 10,20,100,25) DESTROY command --------------- Usage: Destroy object Destroys object, along with all the objects it owns, freeing all the memory associated with the objects. You should always use DESTROY to destroy any object you have created to conserve memory. Note that, if you have a TForm which owns a number of other controls, you only have to call DESTROY once for the form object, as all the controls it owns will be automatically destroyed as well. Example: To destroy the form object $form and all controls that it owns: Destroy $form DESTROY does _NOT_ deallocate the variable specified, only the object itself. Therefore, unless you're storing the object handle in a local variable, you should deallocate the variable after using the DESTROY command (e.g. -@ $form). Note that Delete is synonymous with Destroy - you can use either. @P command ---------- Usage: @p $object.Property = Value Assigns Value to $object's Property property. For example, to change the TForm object $form's caption, and make it visible, you could do: @p $form.Caption = This is a test!! @p $form.Visible = True Please note that only a subset of Delphi's types are currently supported for properties. They are: integers, strings, booleans (use either 1 and 0 or True and False), enums, sets, and objects. Floats and variants are currently NOT supported, although this will probably change in future versions of OVS. For example, to set the active control on the form object $form to the button object $button, use: @p $form.ActiveControl = $button You can set enum properties either by name, or by index. You will probably prefer to set them by name!! For example, the 2 lines below are equivalent, causing the $edit object to align itself with the bottom of its parent form. @p $edit.Align = 2 @p $edit.Align = alBottom Of course, the latter is far more self-explanatory. You can also retrieve set properties. Set properties are similar to enums, except that multiple elements within the set can be set at once. A very common set property (possibly the only one you will ever use) is TForm.BorderIcons. This controls what icons are present in a form's border. The BorderIcons set may contain any combination of biSystemMenu, biMinimize, and biMaximize. Set properties MUST be included in []'s (even if there is only one member (or even no members) in the set) and multiple elements must be separated by , (a comma). Examples: // Makes the form's border contain only a system menu icon @p $form.BorderIcons = [biSystemMenu] // Show all the icons in a form's border @p $form.BorderIcons = [biSystemMenu,biMinimize,biMaximize] // Show no icons in the form's border @p $form.BorderIcons = [] You can also add or remove specific values from a set. See the ADDTOSETPROP and REMOVEFROMSETPROP commands below for more information. In addition, OBJECT EVENTS may be set with @p. This can be illustrated with some very simple examples: @p $button.OnClick = MessageBox You clicked me!! @p $form.OnClose = Beep If you want to execute more than one command in response to an object event, define an alias and call that, for example: @p $closebutton.OnClick = CLOSEBUTTON_CLICK Alias CLOSEBUTTON_CLICK MessageBox I'll now close the form!! Destroy $form EndAlias In addition, with some events, ViRC '97 will pass in extra information in the form of local variables. In fact, V97 always passes in $Sender, which is the object that caused the event. Thus you can create one alias which handles events from a number of objects of different types. The following events are supported: Mouse events ------------ Event names: OnMouseUp, OnMouseDown Variables passed in: $Button - button pressed. Can be mbLeft, mbRight or mbMiddle. $X - X coordinate of where the mouse is. $Y - Y coordinate of where the mouse is. Mouse move events ----------------- Event names: OnMouseMove Variables passed in: $X - X coordinate of where the mouse is. $Y - Y coordinate of where the mouse is. Key events ---------- Event names: OnKeyUp, OnKeyDown Variables passed in: $Key - The scan code for the key pressed. You can modify this value in your OnKeyUp/OnKeyDown events to simulate as if a different key were pressed. For example, if you wish to nullify a key press, set $Key to 0 in your code. Key press events ---------------- Event names: OnKeyPress Variables passed in: $Key - The key pressed (e.g. A, 0, & etc). You can change this value in your OnKeyUp/OnKeyDown events to simulate as if a different key were pressed. Drag-and-drop events are also supported, although their usage is rather complicated, and I will refrain from documenting them until they work well. ADDTOSETPROP command -------------------- Usage: AddToSetProp object.property set Combines set with the set property object.property. This is used to add values to a set. For example, this code will display the minimize icon on a form's border by adding the item biMinimize to the BorderIcons set: AddToSetProp $form.BorderIcons [biMinimize] Note that if biMinimize is already present in the set, the second addition will have no effect, in other words, ADDTOSETPROP will only add an item to a set if it isn't already in the set. You can add multiple items to a set as well. Example: AddToSetProp $form.BorderIcons [biMaximize,biMinimize] ADDTOSETPROP is an efficient wrapper around the standard VS ADDTOSET function. For example: AddToSetProp $form.BorderIcons [biMaximize,biMinimize] Is equivalent to this: @p $form.BorderIcons = $AddToSet($prop($form.BorderIcons) [biMaximize,biMinimize]) REMOVEFROMSETPROP command ------------------------- Usage: AddToSetProp object.property set Removes any elements from object.property that are also present in set. For example, the following code will remove the minimize icon from a form's border by removing the biMinimize element from the set: RemoveFromSetProp $form.BorderIcons [biMinimize] You can remove multiple items from a set at once (see above). Attempting to remove an item from a set which isn't in the set will have no effect. REMOVEFROMSETPROP is an efficient wrapper around the standard VS REMOVEFROMSET function. For example: RemoveFromSetProp $form.BorderIcons [biMaximize,biMinimize] Is equivalent to this: @p $form.BorderIcons = $RemoveFromSet($prop($form.BorderIcons) [biMaximize,biMinimize]) WITH/ENDWITH statement ---------------------- (should this be in VSCRIPT.TXT instead? Or as well?) Usage: With command ... EndWith This very useful statement makes setting multiple object properties (for example) very easy. Basically, command is prepended to every line in the WITH/ENDWITH block before execution. Example (from WEBSERV.VSC): @ $webform = $new(TTabbedForm) With @p $webform. Left = 20 Top = 20 Width = 300 Height = 300 FormStyle = fsStayOnTop Caption = ObjectViRCScript Web Server Example TabCaption = Web server Visible = True EndWith This would be equivalent to: @ $webform = $new(TTabbedForm) @p $webform.Left = 20 @p $webform.Top = 20 etc. As can be seen, WITH makes setting multiple object properties very simple. Although this is the use WITH was designed for, it's possible to use it without objects. For example, you can use this to make outputting multiple lines of text to a query window very simple: With TextOut > TextQuery clBlue $null Hello!! This is a very good way ... ... to add lots of lines of text at once ... ... to a window. EndWith The $null is required to ensure that the space after clBlue is not removed by the parser. PROP function ------------- Usage: $prop($object.Property) Returns the property Property of $object. For example, to retrieve the contents of a TEdit control, you could use: @ $x = $prop($edit.Text) The PROP function can currently return integer, string, boolean, enum, object, and event properties. Other Delphi property types aren't supported yet, but they should be in future versions of OVS. The returning of event properties is supported as follows. The simplest usage is something like as follows: @p $button.OnClick = BUTTON_CLICKED Now, $prop($button.OnClick) will return the string BUTTON_CLICKED, as expected. However, a more complex usage of this also exists. PROP can also be used to return methods that are DEFINED INTERNALLY BY V97. For example, V97's main form contains a control called ExitBtn, which is the quit button. You can use the MAPOBJECT function to map this control, as follows: @ $exitbtn = $mapobject(!Main:ExitBtn) The ExitBtn's OnClick event contains, of course, Delphi code to exit V97. But PROP can't return anything sensible here, as it only makes sense to return OVS code. Rather, PROP will return a string which looks something like this: InternalCall $004CD950 $00B11CAC $00B14D90 INTERNALCALL is a valid ViRCScript command which calls an internal section of V97 code. The parameters passed in are pointers to the code, owner data and object data required by the call. If the INTERNALCALL command returned by PROP is executed, it will call the code in the original V97 event. You will never use INTERNALCALL directly. Rather, it is very useful for "hitching" ViRCScript code onto existing Delphi code in V97. For example, the following code will display a message box when the user clicks on ExitBtn, before actually calling the Delphi code which makes V97 quit: @ $exitbtn = $mapobject(!Main:ExitBtn) @ $icall = $prop($exitbtn.OnClick) @p $exitbtn.OnClick = HITCHED_EXIT Alias HITCHED_EXIT MessageBox ViRC '97 will now exit!! $icall EndAlias The value returned in the variable $icall above is an INTERNALCALL command. The command inside the variable is called with the line "$icall" in the new code you define for the event. OVSVER variable --------------- Usage: $ovsver This variable contains the ObjectViRCScript version number. V97 0.94pre10a and above return an ObjectViRCScript version number of 7. The presence of this variable is useful, as it allows you to test in your script whether the user is running an ObjectViRCScript-capable version of ViRC '97 or not, for example: if !($ovsver) MessageBox This script requires ViRC '96 0.80 or higher with ObjectViRCScript to function. Halt endif MAPOBJECT function ------------------ Usage: $mapobject(window[:control]) This is possibly THE most powerful function in ObjectViRCScript. What it does is to return an ObjectViRCScript object handle for any built-in ViRC '97 window. You can then add controls to it or change properties as if it were an object which you have created yourself. Note that this is a command for advanced scripters only - and a knowledge of how the Delphi object-based VCL works is highly beneficial here. If you don't understand this - don't worry. You can write some great scripts without it, but good usage of this function will allow you to integrate your scripts seamlessly into the V97 interface. Practically any V97 window can be mapped as an OVS object with this function. You can map server, channel, query, DCC Chat, and DCC/TDCC Get/Send windows. The current server notices window is mapped by using . (a period) as the window parameter. A channel window is mapped by using #channel (e.g. to map #virc, use #virc as the window parameter). A query window is mapped by using nick (e.g. to map a query window to Mr2001, use Mr2001 as the window parameter). A DCC Chat window is mapped by using =nick (e.g. to map a DCC Chat window to Mr2001, use =Mr2001 as the window parameter). A DCC Send window is mapped by using *SEND/nick/filename (e.g. to map a DCC Send connection to Mr2001, sending the file README.TXT, use *SEND/Mr2001/README.TXT as the window parameter). A DCC Get window is mapped by using *GET/nick/filename (e.g. to map a DCC Get connection from Mr2001, getting the file README.TXT, use *GET/Mr2001/README.TXT as the window parameter). A TDCC Send window is mapped by using *TSEND/nick/filename (e.g. to map a TDCC Send connection to Mr2001, sending the file README.TXT, use *TSEND/Mr2001/README.TXT as the window parameter). A TDCC Get window is mapped by using *TGET/nick/filename (e.g. to map a TDCC Get connection from Mr2001, getting the file README.TXT, use *TGET/Mr2001/README.TXT as the window parameter). Some specific uses of this function are detailed below. This function is designed primarily to be used in the <OnCreateWindow> event, which is fired whenever a new channel window or server window is created. Two parameters are passed to the event: $0 is the class of the window created (TServerForm or TChannelForm), and $1 is the standard name of the window. So, server windows always have a name of . (period), channel windows have names of #channel, and so forth. For example, this very simple example changes the colour of the text entry area of server windows to a random colour whenever a new one is opened. Note that, with server windows, $1 is always . (period), so you could replace $mapobject($1:tbServerText) with $mapobject(.:tbServerText). Event <OnCreateWindow> "TServerForm" @ $servertext = $mapobject($1:tbServCommand) @p $servertext.Color = $rand($FFFFFF) UnmapObject $servertext EndEvent Another example: to make text entry areas in channel windows appear at the top of the window rather than the bottom, you could use: Event <OnCreateWindow> "TChannelForm" @ $chanentry = $mapobject($1:tbChanCommand) @p $chanentry.Align = alTop UnmapObject $chanentry EndEvent Really, knowledge of all the names of the controls on server and channel windows is needed, so I might release the source .DFM files for those forms so anyone with Delphi can find the names themselves. However, this should get you started: Server window only ------------------ tbServCommand - TEdit entry box where the user types commands tbServerText - TRichEdit where server text appears ServerSocket - The actual server connection TSockets object ServerToolbar - The toolbar containing the main server functions ServerSelectToolbar - The toolbar containing the server selection combo box Channel window only ------------------- tbChanCommand - TEdit entry box where the user types commands tbChannelText - TRichEdit where channel text appears NamesPanel - TPanel containing lvNames lvNames - TListView where the channel nick list is *** NOTE *** TListView is not fully supported by OVS yet. However, you can read/write a TListView's ItemText and ItemIndex properties to fetch the currently-selected nick in a channel nicks list, for example (or you could use the regular ViRCScript function $selectednick() for this, which is probably a LOT simpler!! :) ChannelToolbar - The toolbar containing the channel functions AttributesToolbar - The toolbar containing the B, U, I, and colour selection buttons TopicToolbar - The toolbar containing the topic selection edit box Query windows ------------- tbChatCommand - TEdit entry box where the user types commands tbQueryText - TRichEdit where server text appears QueryToolbar - The toolbar containing the query functions AttributesToolbar - The toolbar containing the B, U, I, and colour selection buttons DCC Chat windows ---------------- DCCSocket - The actual DCC connection TSockets object tbChatCommand - TEdit entry box where the user types commands DCCChatToolbar - The toolbar containing the query functions Channel, server, query and DCC Chat windows ------------------------------------------- MainPanel - TPanel containing text output box EntryPanel - TPanel containing entry box WholePanel - TPanel containing MainPanel and EntryPanel ToolbarPanel - TPanel containing toolbar DCC/TDCC transfer windows ------------------------- DCCSocket - The actual DCC connection TSockets object txFrom - TLabel corresponding to the "From:" or "To:" field txStatus - TLabel corresponding to the "Status:" field txFilename - TLabel corresponding to the "Filename:" field txSize - TLabel corresponding to the "Size:" field txPercent - TLabel corresponding to the "Progress:" field txSpeed - TLabel corresponding to the "Speed:" field txTimeLeft - TLabel corresponding to the "Time left:" field The MAPOBJECT function can also be used to return an internal ViRC '97 form, for example, the client setup form. The list of supported forms is as follows: !AboutBox !Aliases !ChannelBox !ChannelList !EditXDCCPack !EventManager !FingerClientDialog !TipForm !IRCServers !UserSetup !ListFilter !LoadingScript !Main !MenuEditor !PortScanner !ResumeDlg !Links !VSWizard !WHOIS !WhoList You can thus add controls to any of these forms. For example: @ $aliasform = $mapobject(!Aliases) @ $button = $new(TButton ownedby $aliasform) In addition, the !UserSetup form's page control is called SetupPages. Thus you can add your own tab to ViRC '97's client setup dialog!! For example, this code will add a new tab sheet to the client setup dialog which contains one button: @ $SetupPages = $mapobject(!UserSetup:SetupPages) @ $NewTabSheet = $new(TTabSheet ownedby $SetupPages) With @p $NewTabSheet. PageControl = $SetupPages Caption = Test tab EndWith @ $NewButton = $new(TButton ownedby $NewTabSheet) With @p $NewButton. Left = 20 Top = 36 Width = 73 Height = 65 Caption = &Beep!! OnClick = Beep EndWith $SetupPages.RefreshTabs UnmapObject $SetupPages If you do add pages to V97's client setup dialog, you must call the RefreshTabs method to ensure that the pages are refreshed properly, otherwise you will experience visual problems. You only need to call RefreshTabs on V97's client setup dialog, never on your own tab controls. Finally, how to add your own buttons to the toolbars. There are two supported OVS objects for use with toolbars - TToolbarButton97, which is a toolbar button, and TToolbarSep97, which is a button separator. These objects are described in more detail later on, but I'll just give here a simple example on how to add some buttons and a panel to the server window's toolbar. First, you have to map the server window's toolbar using the $mapobject() function. As described in the list above, the server window's toolbar is called ServerToolbar (original, huh? :). Once it's mapped, you can add controls to it, just like anything else. Event <OnCreateWindow> "TServerForm" @l $toolbar = $mapobject($1:ServerToolbar) @l $form = $mapobject($1) // Load some bitmaps from disk - change these filenames to bitmaps // you actually have!! @l $bmp1 = $new(TBitmap) $bmp1.LoadFromFile bitmap1.bmp @l $bmp2 = $new(TBitmap) $bmp2.LoadFromFile bitmap2.bmp // Stop server form from updating until all the buttons have been added $form.BeginUpdate // Add a separator to the toolbar (toolbar buttons are now added to the right // of the toolbar automatically) @ $sep = $new(TToolbarSep97 ownedby $toolbar) @p $sep.Visible = True // Now add two buttons @ $button1 = $new(TToolbarButton97 ownedby $toolbar) @p $button1.Visible = False @p $button1.Glyph = $bmp1 @p $button1.OnClick = Beep @p $button1.Visible = True @ $button2 = $new(TToolbarButton97 ownedby $toolbar) @p $button2.Visible = False @p $button2.Glyph = $bmp2 @p $button2.Width = 90 @p $button2.Caption = Click me!! @p $button2.OnClick = Beep @p $button2.Visible = True // Now add a panel @ $panel1 = $new(TPanel ownedby $toolbar) @p $panel1.Visible = False @p $panel1.Width = 70 @p $panel1.Height = 20 @p $panel1.Caption = Hello!! @p $panel1.Visible = True // Update the server form $form.EndUpdate UnmapObject $form UnmapObject $toolbar EndEvent In addition, when TToolbarButton97 objects are added to V97's server toolbar, the Tag property takes on a special meaning. Setting Tag to 1 makes the button automatically disable itself when not connected to a server. Setting Tag to 2 makes the button automatically disable itself when connected to a server. Note that, when creating the button, you have to set the Enabled property to what you want the initial state of the button to be. Tag only changes the state of the button when a connection to the server is established or closed. UNMAPOBJECT command ------------------- Usage: UnmapObject object The MAPOBJECT function creates a ViRCScript object handle representing a built-in V97 object. You must use the UNMAPOBJECT command to remove the object handle when you have finished using it, otherwise, the object handle will be left in memory (each object handle only takes 4 bytes, but these can add up). UNMAPOBJECT, unlike DESTROY, does not harm the underlying object, but merely removes its ObjectViRCScript handle. CLASS statement --------------- Usage: Class name ... EndClass Class name extends parentname ... EndClass Defines a new OVS class, name. If the extends keyword is specifed, the new class will descend from parentname. This simply means that all properties and methods are "copied" from the parentname class into your new class automatically. Between the Class and EndClass statements are class definition statements. You may currently define properties and methods. Properties, like regular OVS object properties, are simply data holders. Methods are functions which can be called, possibly passing parameters (these are available as $1, $2 etc.). Here's a small example class: Class TDemoClass Property Name Method Hello MessageBox Hello from TDemoClass!! My name is $prop($Self.Name). EndMethod EndClass Notice that, in every class method definition, a special local variable is passed in, $Self. This is the object whose method is being called. If you're using $prop() or @p inside a method to get or set a property, the property name must be prefixed with $Self, as shown above. The above class can be used as follows, just like a regular OVS class: @ $test = $new(TDemoClass) @p $test.Name = Fred $test.Hello This will display a message box containing "Hello from TDemoClass!! My name is Fred." on the screen. Now, I'll demonstrate inheritance. You can make a new class, TDemoClass2, which will inherit all the properties and methods from TDemoClass, and will add a new method too: Class TDemoClass2 extends TDemoClass Method Goodbye MessageBox Goodbye from TDemoClass2!! My name is $prop($Self.Name). EndMethod EndClass The class can be used as follows: @ $test = $new(TDemoClass2) @p $test.Name = Fred $test.Hello $test.Goodbye This will display the hello and goodbye messages, as expected. Now, everything should be pretty clear. Finally, there are a few special methods supported: <Create> and <Destroy>. The <Create> method is automatically called when the object is created. The <Destroy> method is automatically called when the object is destroyed. You can put code in these methods, for example, to set up the properties in an object to default values when it's created. Example: Class TDemoClass3 Method <Create> MessageBox I'm being created!! EndMethod Method <Destroy> MessageBox I'm being destroyed!! EndMethod EndClass In addition, in 1.00 final and above, extra parameters may be supplied to the constructor, and these are available as $1, $2 etc. For example (thanks to Mr2001 for this idea, and the following code snippet): Class TMessageMaker Method <Create> TextOut > $1 clGreen *** Happy new year!! EndMethod EndClass @l $obj = $new(TMessageMaker #virc) Property handlers (methods that control the setting and getting of properties) are currently not supported, but should be in a future version. Also, you cannot inherit from any built-in (VCL) objects, like TButton. You can only inherit from your own OVS objects you have defined yourself. This is because insufficient information is available for the VCL objects at run-time to inherit from them. CLASSOF function ---------------- Usage: $classof(object) Returns the class name of object. Returns TUnknown if object isn't valid. PARENTCLASSOF function ---------------------- Usage: $parentclassof(object) $parentclassof(class) Returns the name of the parent class of object (or class). Returns TUnknown if the parent class cannot be retrieved, or if object or class isn't valid. All objects ultimately derive from TObject. Objects created from OVS classes that you have defined derive from TOVSObject, which, in turn, derives from TObject. Special objects =============== On startup, ViRC '97 creates the special object handle 0 which represents the main ViRC '97 window. This is useful if you wish to manipulate the main V97 window, for example, the following code will hide ViRC '97: @p 0.Visible = False Or you can add your own controls to ViRC '97's main window by setting their owner to 0, for example, the following code will add a button to the main V97 window which quits V97 when you click on it: @ $mainbtn = $new(TButton ownedby 0) With @p $mainbtn. Left = 30 Top = 60 Width = 150 Height = 25 Caption = &Exit OnClick = Exit EndWith Visual controls =============== The following major visual controls are currently supported fully: TForm, TTabbedForm, TButton, TBitBtn, TListBox, TComboBox, TFileListBox, TDirectoryListBox, TDriveComboBox, TEdit, TMemo, TRichEdit, TCheckBox, TRadioButton, TGroupBox, TPanel, TBevel, TShape, TTrackBar, TProgressBar, TTabControl, TOfficeButton, TToolbarButton97, TToolbarSep97, TEdit97. Here I'll try to document some of the features of each object. All objects ----------- The following properties are shared by all visual objects: Left - X position of object Top - Y position of object Width - Width of object Height - Height of object Visible - (True or False) Controls whether object is visible Enabled - (True or False) Controls whether object is enabled Color - The background colour of the object Font.Color - The object's font colour Font.Name - The object's font name Font.Size - The object's font size Font.Style - (set) fsBold, fsItalic, fsUnderline, fsStrikeout Hint - The tooltip that appears if the user holds the mouse over the control for a while without clicking ShowHint - (True or False) Controls whether the tooltip is displayed or not Align - Causes the control to "stick" to one edge of its parent, or to fill the whole client area. alNone, alTop, alBottom, alLeft, alRight, alClient Handle - Returns the control's window handle (hWnd) The following events are shared by all visual objects: OnClick - Fired when object is clicked OnMouseMove - Fired when mouse moved over object OnMouseDown - Fired when mouse button pressed over object OnMouseUp - Fired when mouse button released over object OnActivate - Fired when the object gets the focus Supported by most visual objects (where appropriate): OnChange - Fired when object's selection (item, check mark, tab page, etc.) is changed Methods: Repaint - Causes the object, and all the objects it owns, to redraw themselves SetFocus - Sets focus to the object BringToFront - Brings the object to the front of the screen Objects that introduce no additional properties or events will not be documented further - their usage should be self-explanatory!! In addition, most objects have a standard BorderStyle property (except for the TForm), which can be bsNone for no border or bsSingle for a single black line border. TForm ----- Properties: ActiveControl - The control that has the focus when the form appears BorderStyle - bsSingle, bsDialog, bsNone, bsSizeable FormStyle - fsNormal, fsMDIForm, fsMDIChild, fsStayOnTop Position - poDefault, poScreenCenter WindowState - wsNormal, wsMaximized, wsMinimized Caption - The form's caption BorderIcons - (set) biSystemMenu, biMaximize, biMinimize Icon - The form's icon. Normally the standard VS icon, but this can be changed (TIcon - see the "Non-visual objects" section below) OnClose - Fired when the form is closed (it's a good idea to DESTROY the form here, otherwise it will stay in memory!!) Events: OnResize - Fired when the form's size is adjusted Methods: ShowModal - Shows the form modally. Control is not returned to your program until the form is closed. If you want to show the form non-modally (i.e., execution of your code continues after the form has been displayed), set the Visible property to True rather than calling ShowModal. BeginUpdate - Call this method before adding a large number of controls to surpress redrawing. EndUpdate - Call this method after adding a large number of controls to re-enable redrawing (and also to redraw the form immediately). TTabbedForm ----------- Exactly as above, except that a window tab (in the main V97 window) is made for the form. Adds one new property: TabCaption - The caption of the window's tab TButton ------- Properties: Caption - The button's caption Note that the Font.Style property is ignored on a TButton. Use a TBitBtn instead if you wish to change the Font.Style property. TBitBtn ------- As above, only Font.Style can be set, for example: @p $bitbtn.Font.Style = [fsBold,fsUnderline] Properties: Glyph - The bitmap on the button (TBitmap - see the "Non-visual objects" section below) TListBox and TComboBox ---------------------- Properties: Items - A TStringList object containing all the items ItemText - The text of the currently-selected item (or empty if no item selected) ItemIndex - The index of the currently-selected item (or -1 if no item selected) Methods: Sort - Alphabetically sorts the items in the list box or combo box See later in this file under "Non-visual controls" for information on how to manipulate a TStringList object. TFileListBox ------------ This is just like a regular TListBox, although it is automatically filled with a list of files and the list cannot be modified. It implements all the properties of TListBox, and adds the following: Properties: ShowGlyphs - Controls whether small glyphs (icons) are displayed to the left of each filename in the list box TDirectoryListBox ----------------- This is just like a regular TListBox, although it is automatically filled with a list of directories and the list cannot be modified. It implements all the properties of TListBox, and adds the following: Directory - Returns the selected directory in complete form, including the drive and full path FileList - The associated TFileListBox control. If you are using a TFileListBox and a TDirectoryListBox together, assign the TDirectoryListBox's FileList property to the TFileListBox control. TDriveComboBox -------------- This is just like a regular TComboBox, although it is automatically filled with a list of drives and the list cannot be modified. It implements all the properties of TComboBox, and adds the following: DirList - The associated TDirectoryListBox control. If you are using a TDriveComboBox and a TDirectoryListBox together, assign the TDriveComboBox's DirList property to the TDirectoryListBox control. TEdit, TMemo, TRichEdit ----------------------- Properties: Text - Contains the text in the edit control SelStart - The start of the text selection SelLength - The length of the text selection (0 if nothing selected) SelText - The selected text ReadOnly - (True or False) Controls whether the text control is read-only (not modifiable by the user) WordWrap - (TMemo and TRichEdit only) Controls whether words are wrapped on multiple lines Lines - (TMemo and TRichEdit only) TStringList object that contains the lines of text in the control (see the "Non-visual controls" section below for information on TStringList) In general, you should use TEdit for single lines of text and TRichEdit for multiple lines (in colour if necessary). You should never have to use TMemo, which is the same as TRichEdit except you cannot output text with TextOut > %$object (see VSCRIPT.TXT under TEXTOUT for more information on this). TCheckBox, TRadioButton ----------------------- Properties: Checked - Whether or not the control is checked Caption - The caption on the check box or radio button TGroupBox --------- Properties: Caption - The group box's caption TPanel ------ Properties: Caption - The text within the panel Alignment - Text alignment. taCenter, taLeft, taRight BevelInner - The inner bevel. bvNone, bvLowered, bvRaised BevelOuter - The inner bevel. bvNone, bvLowered, bvRaised BevelWidth - The width of the bevel TBevel ------ Properties: Style - The bevel's style. bsLowered, bsRaised Shape - The bevel's shape. bsBox, bsFrame, bsTopLine, bsBottomLine, bsLeftLine, bsRightLine TShape ------ Properties: Shape - The shape of the shape (!). stRectangle, stSquare, stRoundRect, stRoundSquare, stEllipse, stCircle Brush.Style - The fill style of the shape. bsSolid, bsClear Brush.Color - The fill colour of the shape Pen.Color - The outline colour of the shape Pen.Width - The outline width of the shape TTrackBar --------- Properties: Min - The minimum value of the track bar Max - The maximum value of the track bar Position - The track bar's position Orientation - trHorizontal, trVertical TProgressBar ------------ Properties: Min - The minimum value of the progress bar Max - The maximum value of the progress bar Position - The progress bar's position TTabControl (tabbed notebook) ----------------------------- Properties: Tabs - TStringList containing all the tabs in the tabbed notebook TabIndex - The number of the currently selected tab. -1 means no tab selected, 0 means the first tab is selected, 1 the second, etc. For information on how to use the TStringList object, see the "Non-visual controls" section. TOfficeButton (Office 97-style toolbar button) ---------------------------------------------- NOTE: TOFFICEBUTTON IS NOW DEFUNCT, AND SHOULD NOT BE USED. USE TTOOLBARBUTTON97 INSTEAD. Properties: Caption - The caption on the button Bitmap - The bitmap on the button (a TBitmap object) NoFocusBitmap - The bitmap on the button when it is not selected UnselectedColor - The colour of the caption when it is not selected Layout - Where the bitmap is placed, relative to the caption. blBitmapLeft, blBitmapTop, blBitmapRight, or blBitmapBottom Events: OnClick - Fired when the button is pressed. TToolbarButton97 (Office 97-style button) ----------------------------------------- The properties of TToolbarButton97 are identical to those of TBitBtn, except that the button is displayed with a different style. TToolbarSep97 (button separator) -------------------------------- This control has no properties, apart from Left, Top, Width and Height. Just create it, set its size, and that's it. TEdit97 (Office 97-style edit control) -------------------------------------- This control is identical to TEdit, except that the edit box is displayed with a different style. Non-visual controls =================== TStringList (string list object) -------------------------------- The TStringList is a very powerful object. It can store a list of strings, which can be saved to and from disk, sorted, and manipulated in a powerful manner, rather like a sophisticated string array. TStringList objects are used internally by TListBox, TComboBox, TTabControl etc. to maintain their list of items. Strings start at index 0. TStringList objects grow and shrink automatically to store all the strings. Properties: Count - The number of strings in the list Methods: GetString(i) - Gets the string at index i SetString i text - Sets the string at index i to text Add(text) - Adds a string, returns the index Delete i - Deletes the string at index i, moves the others up by one Clear - Clears the string list Exchange i j - Exchanges the string at position i with the string at position j SaveToFile file - Saves the string list to file LoadFromFile file - Loads the string list from file SaveToSet() - Converts the string list to a set (e.g. [one,two,three]) and returns the set LoadFromSet set - Clears the string list and adds each element in the set to the string list SaveToAlias alias - Overwrites alias's script code with the contents of the string list (alias MUST ALREADY EXIST!!) LoadFromAlias alias - Clears the string list and loads the script code from alias into the list SaveToEvent event - Overwrites event's script code with the contents of the string list (event MUST ALREADY EXIST!!) LoadFromEvent event - Clears the string list and loads the script code from event into the list GetDirList mask - Clears the string list and fills it with a list of directories whose names match mask. For example, mask could be set to c:\windows\*.* to return a list of directories in c:\windows, or it could simply be left as *.*. GetFileList mask - Clears the string list and fills it with a list of files whose names match mask. See above (the GetDirList method) for more information. Execute - Executes the strings in the list as ViRCScript code Sort - Alphabetically sorts the strings in the string list Note that the Sort method DOES NOT WORK for TStringList objects that are properties of other controls (e.g. a TListBox's Items property). For these, call the Sort method of the object (e.g. ListBox1.Sort), rather than of the TStringList (e.g. do NOT do ListBox1.Items.Sort). TBitmap (in-memory bitmap) -------------------------- The TBitmap object represents a bitmap. The object has only one method. Methods: LoadFromFile filename.bmp - Reads the BMP file specified and loads it into the TBitmap object. After a bitmap has been loaded into a TBitmap object, the object can be assigned to a TBitBtn's Glyph property, or a TOfficeButton's Bitmap or NoFocusBitmap properties. TIcon (in-memory icon) ---------------------- The TIcon object represents a window icon. The object has only one method. Methods: LoadFromFile filename.ico - Reads the ICO file specified and loads it into the TIcon object. After an icon has been loaded into a TIcon object, the object can be assigned to a TForm's Icon property to make that icon the form's icon. TSockets (Winsock socket control) --------------------------------- ViRC '96 0.82 and above support a TSockets class, whose interface is similar to the freeware Sockv3 Delphi control. Anyone who has used this will feel instantly familiar!! In versions before 0.91b, TSockets objects required an owner, which basically meant that a TSockets object could only be made with a parent form. Now, this is no longer true, and TSockets objects can be created freely without owners (you can now do $new(TSockets), for example). Properties: IPAddr - The host name or IP address of where to connect to Port - The port to connect to or listen on LocalHost - The host name of the local machine LocalIPAddr - The IP address of the local machine RemoteIPAddr - The IP address of the remote machine the socket is connected to, or about to accept an incoming connection from SocketNumber - Returns the socket number of the current connection. If the socket is used to handle multiple incoming connections, you should store the value of SocketNumber for each connection in a TStringList in the OnSessionAvailable event, and switch to the required connection with the SetActiveConnection method. Methods: SConnect - Connects to IPAddr:Port SListen - Listens for connections on Port SListenOnFreePort() - Finds an unused port and listens on it. Returns the port that has been selected for listening on. SAccept() - Accepts an incoming connection. Returns the unique socket number of the connection. Keep this value if you're handling multiple connections on one port, otherwise discard it by calling this method as a statement. SCancelListen - Cancels a previous SListen command Send text - Sends text to the remote end SendCRLF text - Sends text plus a CRLF to the remote end SetActiveConnection(n) - When the socket is used to handle multiple simultaneous incoming connections (for example, for a chat server to handle multiple users on the same port), this method will set the active connection to n. Any further socket operation, such as Send, will work on that connection. Events: OnSessionConnected - Called after SConnect when session connects OnSessionAvailable - Called after SListen when an incoming connection arrives OnSessionClosed - Called when the remote end closes the connection OnDataAvailable - Called when data, sent by the remote end, is available for reception OnErrorOccurred - Called when a socket error occurs $Msg = socket error message, $Error = socket error number Connecting somewhere -------------------- To connect somewhere, first create the socket, ownedby a form (this is VERY important, the socket WILL NOT WORK if it is not owned by anything). Then set the IPAddr property to the name or IP of the host you wish to connect to, and set Port to the port. Then call the SConnect method. Example: @ $socketform = $new(TForm) @ $socket = $new(TSockets ownedby $socketform) @p $socket.IPAddr = post.demon.co.uk @p $socket.Port = 25 $socket.SConnect Listening for connections ------------------------- Virtually identical to the above, except that IPAddr isn't specified and you call SListen instead of SConnect. For example, to listen for incoming connections on port 1234, do: @ $socketform = $new(TForm) @ $socket = $new(TSockets ownedby $socketform) @p $socket.Port = 1234 $socket.SListen To listen on a free port, assigning the port number selected to $sockport: @ $sockport = $socket.SListenOnFreePort() If you don't care what port the socket has chosen for listening on, you can call it, like any method, as a statement: $socket.SListenOnFreePort The port chosen can then be retrieved later by reading the Port property. Accepting incoming connections ------------------------------ When you are listening and an incoming connection comes in, the OnSessionAvailable event is fired. You can then use the SAccept method to accept the connection. Example: @p $socket.OnSessionAvailable = SOCKET_INCOMING Alias SOCKET_INCOMING $socket.SAccept EndAlias When the remote end connects ---------------------------- After you have issued the SConnect call, V97 tries to connect with the remote host. When a connection is established, the OnSessionConnected event is fired. You must not send data to the socket before this event is fired!! Example: @p $socket.OnSessionConnected = SOCKET_CONNECTED Alias SOCKET_CONNECTED TextOut > . clBlue *** We're connected!! EndAlias Socket errors ------------- If the socket fails, either while attempting to connect or during data transfer and so forth, the OnErrorOccurred event is fired: @p $socket.OnErrorOccurred = SOCKET_ERROR Alias SOCKET_ERROR TextOut > . clRed *** Error occurred while using socket!! EndAlias In your SOCKET_ERROR handler, the local variables $Msg, containing the socket error message, and $Error, containing the socket error number, are available. Note that "Connection reset by peer" (which occurs when a client closes a connection with a server) is treated as an error. By default, all errors will shut V97 down (I will endeavour to change this behaviour in future releases). Therefore it is STRONGLY recommended that, at the least (if you don't want to do any actual error-handling), you have the following statement in: @p $socket.OnErrorOccurred = Nop NOP simply does nothing - this ensures that your application will continue whenever a socket error occurs. In an OnErrorOccurred handler, you may want to call SClose to close the socket, otherwise it will remain open, even though an error had occurred. Sending data ------------ Data is sent with the SEND or SENDCRLF methods, which are identical except for that fact that SENDCRLF sends a CRLF at the end of the line, whereas SEND does not. Usually, you will use SENDCRLF. Example, which sends the string "Hello!!" after connecting to the host: @p $socket.OnSessionConnected = SOCKET_CONNECTED Alias SOCKET_CONNECTED $socket.SendCRLF Hello!! EndAlias Receiving data -------------- When data is received on the socket, the OnDataAvailable event is fired. You can receive the data by reading the socket's Text property. Note that reading the Text property REMOVES THE DATA FROM THE SOCKET'S QUEUE. RETRIEVING ITS VALUE AGAIN WILL CAUSE AN ERROR!! Therefore, assign the value of the Text property to a variable at the beginning of the event code, and only reference that variable. Example, which sends "Good morning!!" back whenever "Hello!!" is received: @p $socket.OnDataAvailable = SOCKET_DATA Alias SOCKET_DATA @ $data = $prop($socket.Text) if ([$data] == [Hello!!]) $socket.SendCRLF Good morning!! endif EndAlias Closing the connection ---------------------- The socket connection can be closed with the SClose method, for example, this closes the connection when QUIT is received: @p $socket.OnDataAvailable = SOCKET_DATA Alias SOCKET_DATA @ $data = $prop($socket.Text) if ([$data] == [QUIT]) $socket.SClose endif EndAlias When the REMOTE END closes the connection, the OnSessionClosed event is fired. You must close the local end of the socket with SClose when this event is fired. You could do something like this: @p $socket.OnSessionClosed = $socket.SClose Similarly, in an OnErrorOccurred handler, you may want to call SClose to close the socket, otherwise it will remain open, even though an error had occurred. Cancelling listening -------------------- If you're listening on a port and wish to cancel listening, call the SCancelListen method. This listens on port 1234 and cancels listening when an incoming connection appears: @p $socket.Port = 1234 @p $socket.OnSessionAvailable = SOCKET_AVAILABLE $socket.SListen Alias SOCKET_AVAILABLE $socket.SAccept TextOut > . clBlue *** We're connected!! $socket.SCancelListen EndAlias Handling multiple incoming connections on the same port ------------------------------------------------------- In 0.91a and above, one single TSockets object can be used to handle a number of simultaneous incoming connections on the same port. To use the TSockets object in this way, just make it listen as normal, but in the OnSessionAvailable event, call SAccept, but rather than calling it as a statement, call it as a function and keep the return value somewhere (like a TStringList). The value returned by SAccept is a socket number that's unique to the current connection. If you later want to send data, for example, to this connection, you should use the SetActiveConnection method to set the active connection to an entry in your TStringList object. Example: @ $connections = $new(TStringList) @ $socket = $new(TSockets) @p $socket.OnSessionAvailable = SOCKET_AVAILABLE etc. Alias SOCKET_AVAILABLE $connections.Add $socket.SAccept() etc. EndAlias etc. Alias SEND_TO_FIRST_CONNECTION $socket.SetActiveConnection $connections.GetString(1) $socket.Send $1- EndAlias TTimer ------ Timer creation is very simple, just use a TTimer object. First create the object, set the Interval property for the time interval, set the OnTimer event to the code you want executed every Interval milliseconds, and set Enabled to True to turn the timer on. Properties: Enabled - (True or False) Controls whether the timer is enabled or not Interval - The interval in milliseconds between the firing of the OnTimer event Events: OnTimer - This event is fired when the timer goes off (every Interval milliseconds) Example: @ $timer = $new(TTimer) @p $timer.Interval = 1000 @p $timer.OnTimer = BEEP @p $timer.Enabled = True This will beep every second. How unspeakably annoying!!