Creating Dotted Properties and Methods

Dotted properties and methods allow properties that return references to concatenate with other properties or methods. Dotted properties and methods are a shorthand version of cascading multiple Property Nodes that return references together where the reference returned from the property is wired to the reference input on another property or method. The intermediate references returned in dotted properties are automatically closed by the dotted property or dotted method. If the final property returns a reference, that reference is not closed automatically.

You can use the Class Browser window to create dotted properties and methods. Dottable properties return a reference and have a blue glyph next to the property name in the Properties and Methods list.

Complete the following steps to create a dotted property or method.

1. Double-click on the dottable property to update the Properties and Methods list to the appropriate class. The dotted property appears in the Selected property or method box as an HTML link. If you select another property or method, it concatenates to the dotted property and shows up in the box.

Note  A .NET or ActiveX property that returns a reference to a class outside the current type library cannot be made into a dotted property. When you view the property in the Class Browser window, a blue glyph does not appear next to the property name in the Properties and Methods list.

2. (Optional) You can click an HTML link in the box to navigate back to where you selected the dotted property and update the Class Browser window to the selected item.