Transparent Free Text on Block Diagram

[BigEddieM37]

I'm reluctant to post something that appears to be a LV-101 no brainer but this one has me stumped. In previous LV versions prior to 8 I could CLICK and select the Block Diagram Tools/Options choice which says 'Use Transparent Name Labels'. Subsequently BOTH VI block diagram name labels AND 'free' text that I would arbitrarily type on my BD would be transparent.

Now, however in LV 8 it appears that regardless of whether or not that BD options box is checked any 'free' text comments or notes that I type on my BD appear with a yellowish background and a black line border around it. Whenever I use such free text I have to specifically go into the tools pallete and use the paintbrush to remove this BG color and line border. I've always been very careful and specific with my use of color and font styles of free text so that my block diagrams are effectively and carefully commented for anyone who has to support my LV work in the future. This 'highlighted' text adds additional color which I feel can be distracting. This problem is annoying. (at least for me it is.)

I don't see this issue listed as a bug in the LV8 buglist. Also, there's an entry in the LabView.ini file called transparentBDLabels=True but this has no effect on my problem. Am I missing something here? Anyone else encounter this? Maybe my LV has something corrupted?

Comments appreciated.

Thanks.

Ed

[JDave]

For a similar issue (using multiple BG colors for different comment types) to better standardize my documentation, I created a palette with Merge VIs containing my formatted comment text labels. Not a universal solution, but you could place it on the normal palette or the Favorites palette for more ready access.

David

[crelf]

...in LV 8 it appears that regardless of whether or not that BD options box is checked any 'free' text comments or notes that I type on my BD appear with a yellowish background and a black line border around it.

Confirmed.

[BigEddieM37]

I contacted LV tech support and received an answer to this subject. I was told that the NI LV development team IS aware of this particular issue and they decided to specifically change it as such in version 8. Apparently they wanted to try and convince people to practice 'LabView standards programming' and therefore use of transparent labels on block diagrams does NOT conform to 'LabView standards programming'. Thus the default AND 'acceptable' form of free labels on a LV block diagram are what the LV development team has specified them to be, yellow background with a black border. This particular choice has been taken away from the user. Oh well.

[crelf]

...the NI LV development team IS aware of this particular issue and they decided to specifically change it as such in version 8.

I can understand that using transparent anything on a BD could be considered as poor programming (in fact, the NI VI Analyzer gets upset when you put anything in front anything else). Still, I'd like to be able to set my free labels to default to anything - maybe a colour box somewhere in the settings dialog in future?

[JDave]

I can understand that using transparent anything on a BD could be considered as poor programming (in fact, the NI VI Analyzer gets upset when you put anything in front anything else). Still, I'd like to be able to set my free labels to default to anything - maybe a colour box somewhere in the settings dialog in future?

I'll second that. Good code includes consistency but, as noted in another thread, consistency of this nature is not something to enforce across the industry. Maybe some ini setting exists to change the color?

Speaking of color changes, I really like how 8.20 has error wires a different color than any other random cluster.

[crelf]

Speaking of color changes, I really like how 8.20 has error wires a different color than any other random cluster.

yeah - that funkyerrorclusterwirecolor thing has been around for a while - initially I resisted it as I thought of the error cluster as just another sort or cluster, but I think I'm starting to come around...

[JDave]

yeah - that funkyerrorclusterwirecolor thing has been around for a while - initially I resisted it as I thought of the error cluster as just another sort or cluster, but I think I'm starting to come around...

Yeah, we have funky error color => standard error color

I just really hope that the funky right click node options don't become more and more standard.

[Khalid]

I'll second that. Good code includes consistency but, as noted in another thread, consistency of this nature is not something to enforce across the industry. Maybe some ini setting exists to change the color?

Speaking of color changes, I really like how 8.20 has error wires a different color than any other random cluster.

I third that

It's quite annoying actually. My diagrams now look like they have yellow bandaids all over the place!

-Khalid

[Christina Rogers]

transparentBDFreeLabels=True

I can't remember if this is in 8.0, but I know it's in 8.20. (In case you're curious, Jeff Kodosky himself requested it, which does help override objections). It will probably make its way back to Tools>>Options in a future release.

Christina Rogers

LabVIEW R&D

http://eyesonvis.blogspot.com/

[Mike Ashe]

transparentBDFreeLabels=True

I can't remember if this is in 8.0, ...

Christina Rogers

LabVIEW R&D

Didn't check the exact item above, but the shorter: transparentBDLabels=True works on my 8.0 install, in fact, when I checked for the free labels version I saw that I already had the shorter version in and I can't remember when I put it there.

[LAVA 1.0 Content]

(In case you're curious, Jeff Kodosky himself requested it, which does help override objections).

Any chance we can get him to object to the absence of associative labels for wires?

[dthomson]

Any chance we can get him to object to the absence of associative labels for wires?

As long as we're going down that road... How about associative labels for shift registers and sequence locals. (What are sequence locals you ask? You mean you never use those???)

Dave

[Mike Ashe]

As long as we're going down that road... How about associative labels for shift registers and sequence locals. (What are sequence locals you ask? You mean you never use those???)

Dave

I'll agree heartily on the first, but as to the second, well, some of us occasionally might have used one, but we don't admit it in polite company

Seriously, I'd really like to see wire labels. I think it would add a lot to comprehension of diagrams. I would also really like to see some indication on a BD object that it has description data. A little star or triangle in the corner or something.

[crelf]

What are sequence locals you ask? You mean you never use those???

I can't think of the last time I used a sequence

[LAVA 1.0 Content]

Flat Sequence Structures RULE!

( Flat :beer: does not... )

(LV 8.0) Download File:post-949-1161689245.llb

I can't wait to learn LVOOP so I can develop CLASSES of beer! (Aussie, British, Thai, etc...)

[Mellroth]

I'm missing an outer loop that inserts another beer into the system

/J

[peteski]

I'm missing an outer loop that inserts another beer into the system

/J

Well, you know, some people really can only handle one beer!

On another note, perhaps some of the more libationary among us really need parallel beer loops, or perhaps two loops (timed, perhaps) one named shot (with some sort of passed to it variant) and one named chaser.

Then again, for the Johnny Lee Hooker fans, there could be THREE parallel loops, one named Bourbon, one named Scotch, and one named Beer! :thumbup:

I'm afraid I'm going to have to code and Ibuprofen loop after this post!!!

-Pete Liiva

[crelf]

Flat Sequence Structures RULE!

you don't need a sequence structure to code/drink beer - your example above just needs beer/dataflow!

[LAVA 1.0 Content]

...flow...

No. Flow is an output, and requires an interrupt routine in my example

[crelf]

No. Flow is an output, and requires an interrupt routine in my example

:laugh: