ABL Scratchpad is a multi-tabbed view provided by Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge. It allows you to write and test the ABL code without having to save it or creating a new file or project. By default, the shared AVM runtime is used for the execution of the code. However, it provides the option of selecting the runtime of any existing OpenEdge projects for execution. This saves time and avoids the need to create a project or document multiple times for testing the code in different runtimes.

To access the ABL Scratchpad view, select Window > Show View > ABL Scratchpad from the main menu or use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+F9.

The ABL Scratchpad view toolbar contains the following options:

Open New Tab Opens a new tab in the ABL Scratchpad view.

You can also access this option from the ABL Scratchpad view context menu or by using the CTRL+T keyboard shortcut. The keyboard shortcut for closing a tab is CTRL+ALT+T.
Check Syntax Verifies the correctness of the code. It checks the syntax of the ABL code written in the ABL Scratchpad view and displays a message stating whether the syntax is correct or not.

You can also access this option from the ABL Scratchpad view context menu or by using the CTRL+SHIFT+C keyboard shortcut. If the syntax of the code is incorrect, an error is displayed stating the position of the error.
Run Executes the ABL code either in a new AVM or the project’s AVM. These AVM options are provided in the drop-down menu of the Run button.

You can also access this option from the ABL Scratchpad view context menu.

To launch in a new AVM, use the ALT+SHIFT+F11 keyboard shortcut and to launch using the project runtime, use the ALT+F11 keyboard shortcut.

When you execute the code by directly clicking the Run button, the ABL Scratchpad view uses the most recently selected AVM to run the code. If there are any errors while executing the code, an error dialog is displayed.
Save As Allows you to save the code in the ABL Scratchpad view as a physical file. You can also access this option from the ABL Scratchpad view context menu or by using the CTRL+ALT+S keyboard shortcut.

On invoking this action, the Save As dialog appears. The .sharedavm folder, present in the workspace, is the default location where the file is saved, if it is executed in a shared AVM. If the code is executed in any other OpenEdge project’s runtime, then it is saved in the corresponding project’s folder in the workspace. However, you can save the file at any location that you like. The default extension in which the file is saved is .p. However, you can choose to save it any format that you like.

If the view is closed and reopened for the same session, the tabs and the data present persist. The AVMs selected for each tab also persist. The same applies when you restart Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge.
Clear Clears the entire text present in the ABL Scratchpad view.

You can also access this option from the ABL Scratchpad view context menu or by using the CTRL+Q keyboard shortcut.
AVM selection Specifies the runtime for executing the code in the ABL Scratchpad view.

The shared AVM runtime is used as the default runtime for executing the code in the ABL Scratchpad view. However, you can use this drop-down menu to select any OpenEdge project’s runtime (if present) in the workspace.

Depending on the runtime selected and the database connection associated with that runtime, various features such as color coding, content assist, etc., are provided in the scratchpad. These changes happen dynamically as the runtime changes. Since it is a multi-tabbed view, the runtime selected for each tab is recorded. As you shift across tabs, the runtime changes reflect accordingly.

In addition to the above options, the ABL Scratchpad view provides the following features:

Cut, Copy, and Paste

Implements the general Cut, Copy, and Paste commands. These options are available in the ABL Scratchpad view context menu and as shortcut key commands.

Content assistance

Helps you write code faster and more efficiently. It provides a list of accessible keywords such as variable, methods, data types, etc.

This feature is similar to that of the corresponding functionality in ABL Editor. It can be invoked with CTRL+SPACE key bindings.

If the selected runtime is connected to a database, then the ABL Scratchpad view displays the list of tables present in that database on invoking the CTRL+SPACE command.

Color coding

Differentiates the keywords present in the ABL programming language from the rest of the words, by representing them with different colors that are highlighted. The selection of runtime affects the color coding schema.

Color coding in the ABL Scratchpad view is similar to the ABL Editor color coding schema.