Controls "Blanking Out" [False Alarm by Noob]

[Fig]

Did you try to add "WindowEvent()" in your DoLotsOfStuff loop(s) ?
Does it solve the blanking problem ?

Even if old masters think it's a crapy solution, we may get a hint of what's going on that way.

[RASHAD]

Shoot in the dark
Try

Code: Select all

event = WaitWindowEvent(15)

Or as a workaround

Code: Select all

    HideWindow(#Window_mainForm,1)
    do_something()
     HideWindow(#Window_mainForm,0)

[srod]

With your test program it certainly behaves as expected in that the GUI appears to freeze and is unresponsive (though it doesn't blank here) when the heavy processing is in full swing. To be expected because no processing of event messages is being performed.

The only way as I see it to perform GUI event processing during those massive sortarray's is to use a separate thread for the data processing.

Code: Select all

Global gThread

Enumeration
  
  #Window_mainForm
  #do_btn
  #listview1
  #listview2
  
EndEnumeration

EnableExplicit

Procedure.i Window_mainForm()

  If OpenWindow(#Window_mainForm,0,0,600,600,"Test  Blankout",#PB_Window_SystemMenu|#PB_Window_MinimizeGadget|#PB_Window_MaximizeGadget|#PB_Window_ScreenCentered)
    
    
    ButtonGadget(#do_btn,450,15,90,30,"Do Something")

    ListViewGadget(#listview1,10,10,400,280)

    ListViewGadget(#listview2,10,300,400,280)
    
    ProcedureReturn 1 
    
 
  EndIf
EndProcedure  ;Window_mainForm()


Procedure load_listview()
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 0")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 1")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 2")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 3")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 4")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 5")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 6")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview1, -1, "item 7")
  
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 0")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 1")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 2")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 3")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 4")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 5")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 6")
  AddGadgetItem(#listview2, -1, "item 7")
  
EndProcedure


Procedure do_something(value)
  Protected i, j.f, k.f, size, iterations
  
  size = 2*1000*1000*100   ;  ~10 seconds to process
  iterations = 1
  
  Dim testarray.f(size)
  
  For i = 1 To iterations
    
;     CreateFile(1,"erase_me.txt")
;     WriteStringN(1, "a line of text")
;     CloseFile(1)
;     DeleteFile("erase_me.txt")
    
    j = i
    k = j / 0.5347
    testarray(i) = k
    SortArray(testarray(),#PB_Sort_Descending)
  Next i
  
  MessageRequester("","Done")
  gThread = 0
EndProcedure


Define event
Define quitmainForm=0
Define windowOpened
Define thread


windowOpened = Window_mainForm()  

If windowOpened 
  
  load_listview()
  
  Repeat
    
    event = WaitWindowEvent()
    Select event
        
      Case #PB_Event_CloseWindow
        Select EventWindow()
          Case #Window_mainForm
            quitmainForm=1
        EndSelect
        
      Case #PB_Event_Gadget
        Select EventGadget()
          Case #do_btn
            Select EventType()
              Case #PB_EventType_LeftClick
                If gThread = 0
                  gThread = CreateThread(@do_something(), 0)
                EndIf
            EndSelect
        EndSelect  ;EventGadget()
        
    EndSelect  ;event

  Until quitmainForm
  If gThread
    KillThread(gThread)
  EndIf
  CloseWindow(#Window_mainForm)  

EndIf ;windowOpened

[PB2004]

Fig, RASHAD I will try these tonight after work (in the interests of Science, ahem).

SRod I think we need to recreate the blanking if anybody is up to it. Having the user wait is not a problem. People are used to that. I could throw up a little "Processing..." window if I had to. They are not used to the GUI having an apparent stroke.

Maybe I should try to blank it with a large matrix of controls.......

[srod]

Well, when you 'freeze' a GUI due to an absence of event processing (especially with a complex GUI) then temporary blanking is not something that entirely surprises me, especially if you are using panel gadgets! It is not something which I've seen very often, but I have seen that sort of thing.

You want to fix it properly... move the data processing to a thread or some such and allow the GUI event handling to continue.

[PB2004]

Well I found the cause of the blanking. In all this processing I was packing and unpacking some files. One earlier problem I had with that was the persistence of intermediate files in those processes in Explorer even after the process deleted them. I added an explorer window refresh routine (at the ends of the pack/unpack routines) to take care of that. http://www.purebasic.fr/english/viewtop ... 13&t=66810 Commenting out the refresh routines fixed the problem. I will either do without the window refresh or move it elsewhere where it happens in the blink of an eye.

So, once again, PB stands supreme in the world of programming. I apologize for not figuring this out sooner and for exercising anyone unduly.

[Tadpole wriggles back into the murky depths....]