Watches for built-in functions

You can add a watch to a built-in ABL function to track the status of the function.

To add a new watch, type the complete function name directly in the watches pane or choose Debug > Add Watch. The Debugger displays the function and its value in the Watches pane.

The following table lists the ABL functions supported by the Debugger.

Table 1. ABL functions supported by the Debugger
Functions that can accept assignment of a new value Functions that cannot accept assignment of a new value 
CURRENT-LANGUAGE
PROMSGS
PROPATH

_PCONTROL           NUM-ALIASES
_SERIAL-NUM         NUM-DBS
COM SELF            OPSYS PROCESS-ARCHITECTURE
DATASERVERS         OS-DRIVES
DBNAME              OS-ERROR
ETIME               PROGRESS
FRAME-DB            PROVERSION
FRAME-FIELD         RETRY
FRAME-INDEX         RETURN-VALUE
FRAME-NAME          SCREEN-LINES
FRAME-VALUE         TERMINAL
GO-PENDING          TIME
LASTKEY             TODAY
MESSAGE-LINES       TRANSACTION
Note: TERMINAL is settable only on UNIX character interfaces. The values of TIME and TODAY change independently of program execution, so the values displayed in the watches pane might not agree with the last values displayed in the ABL program.

You can modify a function’s value by editing the Value cell in the Watches pane. If the function does not accept an assignment, the function retains its value. In this case, the Debugger does not generate an error message.

Note: You cannot watch a function that requires arguments.