Another strange "feature" of BD constants in debug mode

[X.]

Related to but different from this question, here is another one.

When debugging a running VI, you can right-click on a BD constant (or in the case of an array or a cluster constant, an array/cluster element) and choose "Copy Data".

However, you cannot click, select and copy said element or constant. You can do that on the FP with an indicator, so it is not like a selection tool preventing any editing is a big no-no in terms of UI.

The odd thing is that you can select and copy the LABELS of objects on the BD (in debug/run mode)! Go figure...

It seems to me that NI arbitrarily decided: we won't bother letting people select constants on the BD (during debugging of a running VI). A contextual menu will be enough.

Am I missing something?

[smercurio_fc]

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@X. wrote:

Related to but different from this question, here is another one.

When debugging a running VI, you can right-click on a BD constant (or in the case of an array or a cluster constant, an array/cluster element) and choose "Copy Data".

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OK. With you so far.

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However, you cannot click, select and copy said element or constant. You can do that on the FP with an indicator, so it is not like a selection tool preventing any editing is a big no-no in terms of UI.

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Well, this actually makes sense. If you were allowed to select, you could change, and you cannot change running code. With front panel indicators, it's irrelevant, since the indicator would get refreshed when it's written to. Perhaps it wasn't worth the programming effort to allow selection and limit it to just allowing copy.

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The odd thing is that you can select and copy the LABELS of objects on the BD (in debug/run mode)! Go figure...

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I can't reproduce this. Can you provide details on how you are able to do this?

[X.]

- I don't see how it makes sense: it suffice to disable editing (as in an indicator on the FP).

- Here is a picture of what I am talking about.

Here I am selecting the label of a control terminal:

 

and here the label of an element of a constant cluster:

In other words, I am debugging and I can select (and copy) ANY label.

However, I cannot select ANY constant.

Doesn't make any sense to me.

[smercurio_fc]

Ah, you've turned off the autotool and are explicitly selecting the labeling tool. Not really sure why the limitation exists. Perhaps it was an oversight, or perhaps it was seen as not worth the trouble, or perhaps it's a consequence of the constant folding of LabVIEW's compiler.

[X.]

Ah, you haven't turned off the autotool..:-)

BTW, I meant to say, about FP indicators, that I don't understand your "refresh when it's written to". I, for a fact, CAN'T type anything into a FP indicator in run mode. But again, I have turned off the autotool...

[smercurio_fc]

Sorry - wasn't totally clear in my statement. I was following along with not being able to change the value of a control because you can't change the code at runtime, and saying that if you could change the value of the indicator after selection, it wouldn't matter since the value would get updated once you write to it.