MessageBox function and statement (LotusScript Language)
Displays a message in a message box and waits for user acknowledgment. The function form returns a value corresponding to the button the user presses.
Function Syntax
MessageBox ( message [ , [ buttons + icon + default + mode ] [ , boxTitle ] ] )
Statement Syntax
MessageBox message [ , [ buttons + icon + default + mode ] [ , boxTitle ] ]
The MessageBox function and statement are identical, except that only the function has a return value.
MsgBox is acceptable in place of MessageBox.
Elements
message
The message to be displayed in the message box (a string). The length of message is dependent on the operating system.
buttons
Defines the number and type of buttons to be displayed in the message box:
| Constant name | Value | Buttons displayed |
|---|---|---|
| MB_OK | 0 | OK |
| MB_OKCANCEL | 1 | OK and Cancel |
| MB_ABORTRETRYIGNORE | 2 | Abort, Retry, and Ignore |
| MB_YESNOCANCEL | 3 | Yes, No, and Cancel |
| MB_YESNO | 4 | Yes and No |
| MB_RETRYCANCEL | 5 | Retry and Cancel |
icon
Defines the icons to be displayed in the message box:
| Constant name | Value | Icon displayed |
|---|---|---|
| MB_ICONSTOP | 16 | Stop sign |
| MB_ICONQUESTION | 32 | Question mark |
| MB_ICONEXCLAMATION | 48 | Exclamation point |
| MB_ICONINFORMATION | 64 | Information |
default
Defines the default button in the message box. Pressing ENTER has the same effect as clicking the default button:
| Constant name | Value | Default button |
|---|---|---|
| MB_DEFBUTTON1 | 0 | First button |
| MB_DEFBUTTON2 | 256 | Second button |
| MB_DEFBUTTON3 | 512 | Third button |
mode
Defines the message box modality:
| Constant name | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
| MB_APPLMODAL | 0 | Application modal. Stops the current application until the user responds to the message box. |
| MB_SYSTEMMODAL | 4,096 | System modal. Stops all applications until the user responds to the message box. |
boxTitle
The string to appear in the title bar of the message box. boxTitle can be up to 128 characters in length.
Return value
The MessageBox function return value is an integer in the range of 1 to 7, inclusive. This value indicates which button the user pressed in the message box, as shown in the following table.
| Return value | Button | Constant |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | OK | IDOK |
| 2 | Cancel | IDCANCEL |
| 3 | Abort | IDABORT |
| 4 | Retry | IDRETRY |
| 5 | Ignore | IDIGNORE |
| 6 | Yes | IDYES |
| 7 | No | IDNO |
Usage
The valid values for the buttons, icon, default, and mode elements listed in the preceding tables are defined as constants in the file LSCONST.LSS. If you want to use the constants instead of numbers, include this file in your script.
The HCL software where you are running LotusScript® may allow longer strings than described preceding for message and boxTitle. LotusScript® will support longer strings for these items if the HCL software does.
Note: The length of message is dependent on the operating system. If you are launching applications in a mixed environment (for example, PC and Mac), keep your message length equal to or shorter than the smallest limit of the operating systems to be used.
Use the newline character to force line breaks in the message element. Or use vertical bars or braces to specify a multiline string. If you don't force line breaks, the text wraps automatically in the message box.
Note: Newline does not mean either chr(10) or chr(13) on all platforms. Newline is the character or sequence of characters that is used to mark the end of a line. This may be chr(10), or chr(13), but it may also be something else, because the actual value of newline depends on the platform. If newlines are desired in the output, it is the programmer's responsibility to ensure that the string contains the correct newline for the platform.
If you are using LotusScript® from within Notes®, note that the MessageBox function writes to:
- A dialog box when executing in the foreground on a Notes® client. The user clicks OK, Cancel, Abort, Retry, Yes, or No to continue.
- NOTES.LOG when executing on a Domino® server without pausing or as a scheduled agent in the Notes® client.
Note: Whenever a MessageBox function is executed in the back end, it will return zero, regardless of the defaults or modes. Only the prompt is displayed. The display goes to the server console, Notes® log, and anywhere that debugging output is redirected (DEBUG_OUTFILE) if on a server, or to the debug console if on the client. This does not appy to the MessageBox statement.