Programming Without Coding Technology

Creating New VPL (Visual Programming Language) for PWCT Lesson (1)
After downloading PWCT from (http://doublesvsoop.sourceforge.net) you will get the file Fayed_PWCT_1.8_Smart.zip Extract the file then open the folder Fayed_PWCT_1.8_Smart 1. You should setup some configuration for your new VPL starting from the location of the files. From figure 1 you can find the folder named CreatingNewVPL

Figure 1 Creating New VPL folder

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2- Open this folder and copy its contents (The folder NewVPL) to the C:\SSBUILD folder which created during the installation process of PWCT, as we did in figure 2.

Figure 2 copying the contents of CreatingNewVPL to SSBUILD folder

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The copied folder named NewVPL contains six subfolders as explained in the following table: Folder content descriptions Batch run.bat Batch file used to run/build the user application using our new VPL. IDF = Interaction Designer Files ISF = Interaction Script Files TRF = Transporter Files

Components

IDF,ISF,TRF folders

Install.bat

Batch file used to install the new VPL in PWCT environment. Batch file used to uninstall the new VPL from PWCT environment. Text file contains five lines as following: C:\SSBUILD\NewVPL\PWCTDATA to determine the new VPL database which we can keep our components names and files paths. NewVPLPWCT determine the name of the new VPL. .txt is the extension of the generated source code file. build: C:\SSBUILD\NewVPL\batch\run.bat determining the batch file that will run the application. C:\SSBUILD\NewVPL\start/start.ssf the default application when we run PWCT. Contains the files needs to starting the new VPL Folder used to keep the database files Folder uses to keep the templates files

Remove.bat NewVPL.txt Config

Start PWCTDATA Template

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3- Install your new VPL by clicking the NewVPL\Config\install.bat > open PWCT framework > change the active VPL from HarbourPWCT to your new VPL. In our case we called it NewVPLPWCT. When you change the active VPL to yours, you will be asked about to keep using the current source file after changing. As explained in figure 3 you dont have this case now, so click NO.

Figure 3 asking about to keep using the current source

After switching to the NewVPLPWCT we will have a default application just contains the first step as shown in Figure 4

Figure 4 NewVPLPWCT as an active VPL with the start.ssf file

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4- Now we are ready to test the new VPL, On the Project Location screen click run button from the toolbar !, which will Invoke the run.bat file to build and run the start.txt file as shown in figure 5

Figure 4 Run the start application using the new VPL

5- In our case we will start to support HTML as new VPL, Go to the config folder and open the NewVPL.txt file as shown in Figure 6 and change the extension to .html instead of .txt then save the file. 6- Run Install.bat to reflect the update of the configuration file to PWCT environment.

Figure 5 Change .txt to .html in the configuration file

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7-

Open the file Batch\run.bat and add %1 to run our start.html file. As shown in Figure 7

Figure7 Add %1 to the run.bat file

8- Run PWCT again>click step code button > write hello world> click run ! the output will be as depicts in Figure 8.

Figure 8 Test the first html VPL