How do I use parameters? - lua

I've tried really hard to understand how parameters work in Lua, but I didn't understand yet.
This is de code:
It basically kill someone when touched.
function onTouch(part)
local player = part.Parent:FindFirstChild("Humanoid")
if(player ~= nil) then
player.Health = 0
end
end
script.Parent.Touched:Connect(onTouch)
My question is, how "part" is a valid parameter? What the Script does to use part as a parameter?
In my mind there is no sense, part is not even defined, and this Script works.
Thanks so much!

A parameter is a local variable whose initial value is an argument passed to the function when it's called. Parameters are declared as part of the function declaration.
I don't know Roblox, but in this code, it seems that onTouch is a callback: The function gets stored by script.Parent.Touched:Connect(onTouch) and later gets called somewhere we can't see, similarly to onTouch(myPart).

Related

Avoiding use of global variables with specific callback mechanism in Lua

I want to use a Lua API which has specific callback functions when events occur, e.g. when an TCP package arrives. At first the function have to be registered but by the functions name as a string, see the sample code below
function __init__()
local dstport = 4681
local dstIP = "192.168.1.42"
-- register the callback function
register_tcp_handler('tcp_package_handler', dstIP, dstPort)
end
-- callback function
function tcp_package_handler(srcIP, srcPort, dstIP, dstPort, payload)
-- check the payload, or reset watchdog
end
It would be nice to have other variables in callback function provided by the callee, e.g. watchdog-timer or other objects.
The most simple way I could think of is to make the extravariables global, but it is the least elegant way I reckon. Closures would be helpful if I could pass the function directly, but i can not. I have to use the functions name as a string.
Considering this mechanics, is there a more elegant way to privide variables to the callback function without making them global?
EDIT: Using closures like this
function closure_tcp_package_handler(srcIP, srcPort, dstIP, dstPort, payload, packagecounter, timerobject)
function tcp_package_handler(srcIP, srcPort, dstIP, dstPort, payload)
-- do some stuff, change packagecounter, timerobject
end
return 'tcp_package_handler'
end
and use this function twice to register, e.g. with packagecounter1, timerobject1 and packagecounter2, timerobject2, only the last pair of parameters will be changed.
You're dealing with a callback infrastructure. In which case, your code is not the one invoking the handler. As such, there's no way to hide those parameters; if you can change them, so can someone else with access to the module providing the handler.
That doesn't mean that they have to be global, of course. You could make them members of a table. You could even provide setter functions to set the parameters, if you want to make sure that they only get certain parameters.
The simple form of this is as follows:
local handler_params = {}
function tcp_package_handler(srcIP, srcPort, dstIP, dstPort)
-- check `handler_params.payload`
end
--Make `handler_params` available for outside modification
How you do that last part is entirely up to you. You could have made it a global, but if this is in a module somewhere, it'd be better to make it a member of that module's table. And again, if you want to have some control over who gets to poke at it and how, you can use setter functions:
function tcp_handler_set_payload(payload)
handler_params.payload = payload
end

Can someone tell me how to call a lua function?

I am such a noob and I need to know how to call a function in lua I will give example function.
local function exampleHD(event)
--Function details and such
end
How would I call this for "local obj = display.newImageRect( "Random.jpg" , 90, 60 )"
You call a function by using its name (to be more precise, its value stored in a variable with that name) with an argument list in parentheses (there are several forms that allows you to skip parentheses). See Function Calls in the Lua Manual for details.
In your case you can call exampleHD as exampleHD(event). In the second snippet you shown, it's a proper call of the function stored in display.newImageRect element with three parameters.

How to fix the value of a variable LUA

I'm a little doubt, I think it is easy to solve, but I do not know ...
I'm needing to save the value of a scene to another, in a game.
For example: the player is playing, and the money variable increases, this value would stay for all scenes, which is what I want. However its value is supposedly being wiped when I enter the main menu, as if it has never existed...
Can someone tell me how to set value for all my scenes?
Are you declaring your variable as a local?
For example, is the beginning of your function similar to this?:
local gamescore = score;
If so, you'll need to remove the local, like so:
gamescore = score;
This is because the local definition only declares variables in the local block of code that it resides (i.e, it cannot be called anywhere else).
For example, if I had this function:
function = Test(score)
local sc = 0+score;
return sc;
end
The variable sc wouldn't be available anywhere else, apart from inside this function, whilst:
function = Test(score)
sc = 0+score;
return sc;
end
this sc would, as it is not local to that specific function.
Don't use local if you want your variable to be used elsewhere, but be careful that you don't overwrite it in some other function, it's easy to do, as I've done it myself a few times.

How to pass variable by reference in Corona

I'm using Corona SDK.
I want to write a function which receives component as parameter and removes it like that:
function removeComponent(component)
if component then component:removeSelf() end
component = nil
end
Well, it works but my parameter does not get nil after using this function. Probably I have to pass it by reference, but I'm not sure it is possible with Corona.
This does not really make sense as presented in your example.
What exactly are you trying to accomplish? Is component a global ? Or a key in a table?
In your example, component is the name of a local variable in your function. Your component = nil only removes the value from the local variable, and thus will be lost.
If you want to have global effects, you'd need to pass the name of the variable you'd want to eliminate as string:
function removeComponent(component)
if _G[component] then -- exists globally?
_G[component]:removeSelf()
end
_G[component] = nil
end
Note that this style of programming (using the global table for this kind of things) is generally not a good idea. In the best case it can surprise you, in the worst case you end up zapping things like standard functions as print.
Therefore I'd recommend puttign things in their own table, and passing it on to the function.
Lua doesn't support passing by reference, but since it does support return values you can always achieve what you want using this idiomatic approach:
function removeComponent(component)
if component then component:removeSelf() end
return nil
end
And then call it like this:
a = removeComponent(a)
Edit: It's worth pointing out too that since Lua supports multiple return values and multiple assignments, you never actually need pass-by-reference. If you need several items updated, pass them in and return them and then do the call as
a,b = myFunction(a,b)
Its not different really than any other language. Passing by a value by reference (in C++ for example) would not stop any program from holding another copy of this same value elsewhere.
I know nothing of Corona, but this isn't really a Corona question so much as a Lua style question. However, if I had wrote it, I would ensure that the 'component' userdata or underlying value would clear itself up. If the userdata was accessed again, it should throw an error complaining about re-using a dead userdata.
I have written this code:
local component = display.newCircle(100, 100, 100);
local function removeComponent(c)
if component then component:removeSelf() end
component = nil
end
removeComponent(component)
if component == nil then print("Component is nil") else print("Component is not nil") end
And it prints "Component is nil". Perhaps you have a copy of your component somewere else or may be you forget to call function removeComponent or something else. Need to see more of your code

Lua MiddleClass. How to pass "self" from another file

Say, If i have two or more files using the middleclass extension more or less like this. I omitted some of the obvious middleclass implementation code.
File A:
function Battlefield:initialize()
self.varA
self.varB
end
function Battlefield:attack()
--I want to use self.varA here
end
File B
BattlefieldInstance = Battlefield:new()
function doStuff()
BattlefieldInstance:attack()
end
I know this structure more or less works because i already use it plenty on my project, but my problem is that i want to use these self variables. Normally a self instance is passed between functions inside the same file to do this, but when i do it from another file i obviously can't pass self, because it would be another self, and i need the self from the file where the function is located. Sorry if my question is a bit confusing. I'll try and clarify any questions there are.
I have no idea what middleclass is, but I think you're confusing yourself. The way self works in Lua is a function that looks like function Battlefield:attack() is absolutely the same thing as function Battlefield.attack(self). In other words, self is just an implicit first parameter to the function. And a method call instance:attack() is exactly equivalent to instance.attack(instance) (though it won't evaluate instance twice if you use an expression there).
In other words, BattlefieldInstance:attack() should do exactly what you want.
'self' is a keyword that means 'the current object'. So in the case of Battlefield functions, 'self.varA' inside the function is the same variable as 'Battlefield.varA' outside the function.
Middle Class was a lib that I first saw developed for Love2D; I assuming its the same one that corona is using? (I've used Corona a fair bit... but not Middle Class's OOP system)
either way you can also try using meta tables directly, as so:
---FILE A---
Battlefield= {}
Battlefield.__index = Battlefield
function Battlefield:new()
return setmetatable({var1 = 'somedata', var2 = 'somemodata', var3 = 'lotsodata'}, Battlefield)
end
function Battlefield:attack()
print(self.var1)
end
---FILE B---
BattlefieldInstance = Battlefield:new( )
function doStuff()
BattlefieldInstance:attack()
end
and that'll print out self.var1 (somedata).
Hope this helps!

Resources