amateur programming

What was the invalid filename?

-- Dean Mazure

Dean,

I believe I used a name like '[x.xxx]/x.xx'. The / is an illegal character. I didn't know I was creating a filename when I named the Dim. Fav.

But that is beside the point. No program should attempt to write to a file without checking several parameters (legal file name, available disk space, etc.) and if any of these fail then alert the user.

I always did that in the couple of commercial applications I wrote. Generally one has a couple of stock routines (depending on the circumstances) one can call whenever a disk write is required.

How a big buck 'Professional' package like SW failed this is amazing.

Mike

Actually Mike, i would say that is a bug. Once the save-as dialog opens it would allow you to use whatever name you want. It seems as though it uses the dim favorite name as the default name, so when you click the save favorite button it is getting confused with the characters you are using.

Did you call you VAR to report this?

Todd

This could have read much better as a "tip" for those users unfamiliar with dim favorites and the "bug" you found. Instead you choose to mock SolidWorks programmers. Get off your high-horse and submit it for an SPR.

Geez...

Richard ..lousy weekend, feeling pissy.

Richard,

Actually my horse is not very high.

I run into examples of this kind of programming constantly and have given up my career as a Solidworks bug scout.

Of all the programs I use every day, SW is the one that generates the most instances of 'Damn, why couldn't they have done a better job on this feature'.

I didn't do anything bizarre to find the issue above. I ran across it on the first try. It appears to me that Solidworks relies on its user base to do the level of testing that most software companies do internally. If that is the case then they deserve public post like mine.

Don't be so defensive on SW's behalf, I think after all the criticism they've already had, they have fairly thick skins.

Mike

Don't use anything an OS uses as a flag or takes as an argument as a file name. Don't use "special characters".

Correct, but the file dialog does NOT do any file write operations. It is merely an interface supplied by the Windows API, which returns a path name/filename (or NULL if the user selects CANCEL). It is then completely up to the calling program to do anything USEFUL with this filespec.

In addition, standard programming practice dicates you 'seed' a default answer/reply with a 'safe', but not necessary elegant, value. Like when you are doing an install, all the "standard" install options are set as the default buttons, so if the user is not completely sure, he can opt out and just hit the [enter] key and take the safe way out.

.. imagine if "Y" was the default response when someone clicked "FDISK"....

snipped-for-privacy@aol.com (Cliff Huprich) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@mb-m10.aol.com:

It's not obvious you're naming a file when you add a saved dimension. On its own SW decided to use the description as the default file name when exporting to a file. It choked on the special characters and reported nothing to the user rather than removing the offending characters or offering a different default. An obvious bug. Probably overlooked so long since saved dimensions is a pretty obscure feature (IMO).