Forum Discussion

pvidal's avatar
pvidal
Contributor
15 years ago

Split TextObjects

Hello,



We are using the TextObject functionality in TestComplete 7.51 and we are seen different behaviors on different PCs. On two PCs with WindowsXP Service Pack 2 the TextObject functionality works as expected, but in one Virtual Machine with WindowsXP Service Pack 3 the TextObject functionality is splitting contiguous text in several TextObjects:



For example: 

    - "NE#" text is being captured as "NE" and "#".

    - "1/25/2010" text is being captured as "1", "/", "25", "/", and 2010.

    - "System Event: R" is being captured as "System Event: ", "R".



I don't know if the difference is because the Service Pack or the use of a Virtual Machine, but this is breaking havoc in our tests.



I am trying to "hack" away a function that will join the split TextObjects, but I don't think it is a permanent solution.



Thank you,

Patricio.



  • Dmitry_Nikolaev's avatar
    Dmitry_Nikolaev
    Staff
    15 years ago

    Hi Patricio,


     


    The Text Recognition feature creates a separate object for
    every call to system text drawing functions. You can find more information on
    this in the 'Specifics of the Text Recognition Technology' section of the 'Text
    Recognition Technology Support' help topic
    (http://www.automatedqa.com/support/viewarticle.aspx?aid=2711).


     


    So, it seems that the controls containing the text you need
    to read behave differently on these two systems and calls system functions
    different number of times. Could you please install the SP3 to one of the
    machines with SP2 and check whether this is the cause of this behavior?


  • pvidal's avatar
    pvidal
    Contributor
    15 years ago
    Hello David,



    From what I know the controls are doing single calls to DrawText().  I am using the same application in both environments. I will try to install Service Pack 3 and see if the different behavior is related to the Service Pack.



    Regards,

    Patricio.
  • Dmitry_Nikolaev's avatar
    Dmitry_Nikolaev
    Staff
    15 years ago
    Hi Patricio,




    DrawText is a complex system function that can call the ExtTextOut function a different number of times. We do not know what can affect the DrawText function's behavior besides the Service Pack version. Probably, this can be a theme installed on the computer or the system font smoothing settings.

  • pvidal's avatar
    pvidal
    Contributor
    15 years ago
    Hello David,



    Finally I got to test the different Service Packs and the behavior is related to SP3. There is no themes or font smoothing. It is a basic bare-bones XP install. I get the same behavior whether I am using a Virtual Machine or not.



    The application under test is  a mix of C++ MFC and C# WinForms.



    I implemented my "join" function by looking at the coordinates of the TextObjects and combining the ones that are contiguos (textObject1.Top == textObject2.Top and textObject1.Left + Width == textObject2.Left). It is still a hack but it works. It will be nice if this would not happen.



    Regards,

    Patricio.
  • Dmitry_Nikolaev's avatar
    Dmitry_Nikolaev
    Staff
    15 years ago

    Hi Patricio,





    Thanks for the information, I am glad that you were able to work around this issue. I have registered a suggestion to take care of such issues automatically.
  • Dmitry_Nikolaev's avatar
    Dmitry_Nikolaev
    Staff
    15 years ago

    Hi Patricio,





    We are considering whether it is possible to handle this situation on TestComplete's side, and to do this, we would like to reproduce this behavior here. Could you please tell me with what exact control the problem occurs in your case?
  • pvidal's avatar
    pvidal
    Contributor
    15 years ago
    Hello David,



    I was able to replicate the problem using a simple vbs message box.




    • MessageBox.png shows the vbs dialog with the "Text1/Text2" text.

    • SP2.png shows the log when running in Windows XP Service Pack 2: only 1 TextObject is returned with the "Text1/Text2" text.

    • SP3.png shows the log when running in Windows XP Service Pack 2: 5 TextObjects are returned: "2", Text", "/", "1", and "Text".

    • TestObjectsTest.zip contains the TestComplete project with the code and the logs of the two runs.


    Regards,

    Patricio.
  • AlexanderM's avatar
    AlexanderM
    Staff
    15 years ago

    Hi Patricio,





    Thanks for the files, but we were unable to reproduce the problem using them on a XP SP3 x86 machine running under VMware. Please let us know if you face the problem on a x64 machine.





    If you face the problem with an x86 machine like the one we have, can you send us the virtual machine that demonstrates this behavior? Please contact us via the Contact Support form.
  • pvidal's avatar
    pvidal
    Contributor
    15 years ago
    Hello Alex,



    Yes, the problem happens in a XP SP3 x86 machine and also under VMware. I will clean one of our VM's to just replicate the problem and contact support to send it.



    Thank you,

    Patricio.
  • pvidal's avatar
    pvidal
    Contributor
    15 years ago
    Hello Alex,



    I cleaned up a copy of the VM and I got it down to 4.7GB. I contacted support and now I'm waiting for instructions of how to send it.



    Regards,

    Patricio.