When you place a control in a window, PowerBuilder assigns it a unique name. The name is the concatenation of the default prefix for the control name and the lowest 1- to 4-digit number that makes the name unique.
For example, assume the prefix for ListBoxes is lb_ and you add a ListBox to the window:
-
If the names lb_1, lb_2, and lb_3 are currently used, the default name is lb_4
-
If lb_1 and lb_3 are currently used but lb_2 is not, the default name is lb_2
Each type of control has a default prefix for its name. The following table lists the initial default prefix for each control (note that there is no prefix for a window).
|
Control |
Prefix |
|---|---|
|
Animation |
am_ |
|
CheckBox |
cbx_ |
|
CommandButton |
cb_ |
|
DataWindow |
dw_ |
|
DatePicker |
dp_ |
|
DropDownListBox |
ddlb_ |
|
DropDownPictureListBox |
ddplb_ |
|
EditMask |
em_ |
|
Graph |
gr_ |
|
GroupBox |
gb_ |
|
HProgressBar |
hpb_ |
|
HScrollBar |
hsb_ |
|
HTrackBar |
htb_ |
|
InkEdit |
ie_ |
|
InkPicture |
ip_ |
|
Line |
ln_ |
|
ListBox |
lb_ |
|
ListView |
lv_ |
|
MonthCalendar |
mc_ |
|
MultiLineEdit |
mle_ |
|
OLE 2.0 |
ole_ |
|
Oval |
ov_ |
|
Picture |
p_ |
|
PictureHyperLink |
phl_ |
|
PictureButton |
pb_ |
|
PictureListBox |
plb_ |
|
RadioButton |
rb_ |
|
Rectangle |
r_ |
|
RichTextEdit |
rte_ |
|
RoundRectangle |
rr_ |
|
SingleLineEdit |
sle_ |
|
StaticText |
st_ |
|
StaticHyperLink |
shl_ |
|
Tab |
tab_ |
|
TreeView |
tv_ |
|
User Object |
uo_ |
|
VProgressBar |
vpb_ |
|
VScrollBar |
vsb_ |
|
VTrackBar |
vtb_ |
You can change the default prefixes for controls in the Window painter's Options dialog box. Select Design>Options from the menu bar to open the Options dialog box. The changes you make are saved in the PowerBuilder initialization file. For more about the PowerBuilder initialization file, see How the PowerBuilder environment is managed.
You should change the default suffix to a suffix that is meaningful in your application. For example, if you have command buttons that update and retrieve database information, you might call them cb_update and cb_retrieve. If you have many controls on a window, using intuitive names makes it easier for you and others to write and understand scripts for these controls.
Using application-based names instead of sequential numbers also minimizes the likelihood that you will have name conflicts when you use inheritance to create windows.
To change a control's name
-
Select the control to display the control's properties in the Properties view.
-
On the General tab page, select the application-specific suffix (for example, the 1 in the cb_1 command button name) and type a more meaningful one.
You can use any valid PowerBuilder identifier with up to 255 characters. For information about PowerBuilder identifiers, see the section called “Identifier names” in PowerScript Reference.
