Parameters are variables that hold arguments passed to a procedure when the procedure is called by another procedure.
To define a procedure parameter:
Select the procedure in the DLL Procedures submodule for which you want to define a parameter.
Right-click and select Insert Object Below (
). ATEasy inserts a new parameter below the
selected procedure.
Right-click and select Properties. ATEasy displays the new procedure parameter's Properties window:
Click the Parameter drop-down list and select one of the following:
Val if the actual argument is assigned to the parameter. Arguments can be literals (for example, 7), expressions (for example, [A+B]), or variables (for example, dA). Changing the value of the argument in the DLL procedure does not change the argument. (For a list of compatible data types for Val parameters, see Compatible Argument Types.) Select the Optional checkbox to make this parameter optional. Otherwise, leave the checkbox blank if the parameter is required.
Var if the parameter refers to the argument and can change the argument value. Arguments passed by Var must exactly match the data type used in the procedure for that variable. If you check Optional checkbox with Var parameter, its initial value is set to Null - for the case the caller does not supply its Var parameter.
Specify the parameter's name, type, dimension, dimension size, and description. For more information on these properties, see Variables Properties Window. Note that DLL procedure parameters can be defined as type Any, which accepts any data type.
When you specify the procedure parameter's data type, make sure that the ATEasy data type that you select is the equivalent of the data type of the parameter in the DLL. For a list of DLL parameter types and their ATEasy equivalents, see DLL Procedure Parameter Types.