The Madcap Flare 12 Deleting Variables topic makes the task dangerously simple. When I followed the instructions, I expected Flare to prompt me to convert all instances of the target variable to plain text.
It did not. Instead, the topic had a new (Undefined variable: VariableName) variable where the old variable used to be.
I assumed I could search for a variable used in topics, but that does not appear to be the case. I couldn't find an answer on this forum or in the v12 docs (e.g., Using the Find and Replace in Files Feature).
As an immediate fix, I published a local copy of the doc and searched for (Undefined variable: VariableName). That should catch any problems before users see my next build. However, what about using deleted variables in topics that aren't currently published? I worry that I'll end up with that "object not referenced by an object" error and won't know how to fix it.
I feel like I am missing a super obvious way to safely delete a variable. Anyone?
ETA: I forgot to mention that I also tried to find variables used in topics by expanding the Variables folder in the Project Organizer, right-clicking a variable I want to delete, and looking for a submenu option to Show Links. There is no right-click on variables. In fact, there doesn't see to be any action you can perform in the Variable Set Editor besides CRUD.
Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variables
Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variables
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Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
You can generate a report for Undefined Varibles, but I think using find and replace should be ok for most instances.
First, back up the project - e.g. Project > Zip.
Search using the Find in source code option, and search all files for VariableSet.VariableName to get an idea how it's inserted in the code.
Then use a find and replace to fix each way it's used; e.g.
- In topics/snippets you'll see HTML code: <MadCap:variable name="VariableSet.VariableName" />
- In all file types you might see: [%=VariableSet.VariableName%]
First, back up the project - e.g. Project > Zip.
Search using the Find in source code option, and search all files for VariableSet.VariableName to get an idea how it's inserted in the code.
Then use a find and replace to fix each way it's used; e.g.
- In topics/snippets you'll see HTML code: <MadCap:variable name="VariableSet.VariableName" />
- In all file types you might see: [%=VariableSet.VariableName%]
You can right-click a variable set (not individual variable) and View Links.skwpt wrote:ETA: I forgot to mention that I also tried to find variables used in topics by expanding the Variables folder in the Project Organizer, right-clicking a variable I want to delete, and looking for a submenu option to Show Links. There is no right-click on variables.
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
Thank you, Dave. The report was super fast, but I'll try the source code method next.
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Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
I'm not sure my experience is completely similar, but for what it's worth, I'll share it too in the event that it helps!
I noticed that when I was building my project, I received errors because there were undefined variables and conditions in my project. However, when I went to edit my variable and condition sets, they were nowhere to be found. For whatever reason, I decided to open the Target file in a text editor and to my surprise, I found a slew of variables that have never existed in my project and lingered from the project I used as a template (the current project was made using the "Create New from Existing" project option).
To get rid of the errors at build time, I had to manually delete the variables and conditions from the Target's source code in a text editor, save it, and then rebuild. Then the errors went away.
I noticed that when I was building my project, I received errors because there were undefined variables and conditions in my project. However, when I went to edit my variable and condition sets, they were nowhere to be found. For whatever reason, I decided to open the Target file in a text editor and to my surprise, I found a slew of variables that have never existed in my project and lingered from the project I used as a template (the current project was made using the "Create New from Existing" project option).
To get rid of the errors at build time, I had to manually delete the variables and conditions from the Target's source code in a text editor, save it, and then rebuild. Then the errors went away.
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
Thanks dcisneros. Every user tip is appreciated, and your solution will be one more thing for me to examine to clear up my errors.
As for finding/replacing undefined (post deleted) variables, searching in source code crashes Flare every single time.
As for finding/replacing undefined (post deleted) variables, searching in source code crashes Flare every single time.
__________________________________________________________________
Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
Running Flare 2017 r2 on a MacBook Pro.
Parallels Desktop 12 hypervisor with Windows 10 VM
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- Propeller Head
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2016 9:04 am
- Location: Champaign, Illinois
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
I'm finding Analyzer 9.0.5917 to be super helpful for cleaning up undefined variables and similar issues.
Re: Deleting variables .. then finding the undefined variabl
Hi guys, I just deleted a lot of variables in my project and performed a tremendous project clean-up. But now my deleted variables still appear as options when I'm typing. If I add them, they appear as undefined variable (as they should be), but it's odd that they appear as options in the first place. Any suggestions?
Nevermind--I found the answer. You have to delete your Analyzer folder. Apparently references are stored there.
Nevermind--I found the answer. You have to delete your Analyzer folder. Apparently references are stored there.
Adam Evans in Chicago
Sr Technical Documentation Manager at Strata Decision Technology
Sr Technical Documentation Manager at Strata Decision Technology