flash actionscript: Hi. I am making a game in flash which requires lots of similar functions, such
as

function getSomeNumber():Number{
return number;
}

I was wondering if i could generalize this by doing the following. take a
parameter of string defining the name of the variable. i then want to change
this string to the name of the variable so that i can output the value of the
variable. a bit like this

function getSomeNumber(nameOfVar:String):Number{
//somehow use string to find out variable name and return value of variable
return unknown;
}

hope this makes sense.

trigger2160

FIrst you need to convert the String to Number
Here the Code is
var str:String = "123";
getSomeNumber(str);
function getSomeNumber(nameOfVar:String):Number {
// here you need to convert the string to number bcoz ur return type is Number
var num:Number = Number(nameOfVar);
return num;
}

~~~SK

Im sorry but thats not what i am after. i do not want the string changed to a
number. i want it changed to a variable name.

var someThing:Number = 20;

I have a variable as above. i want the string changed to the name of the
variable (someThing) so that the variable can output its number. Hope that is
clear.

OK, you should be able to do this, if the variable resides in the root
timeline, else point to the mc containing the var:


var someThing:Number = 20;

function getSomeNumber(nameOfVar:String) : Number {
var num = this[nameOfVar];
return num;
}

getSomeNumber('someThing');

actually cl, you're creating two variable references with that code:

this[nameOfVar] and getSomeNumber().

it's probably clearer if you do something like:



var s:String="someThing";

function convertStringToVar(varName:String, varValue:*):* {
this[varName] = varValue;
return this[varName];
}
var anotherVariableReference:* = convertStringToVar(s,33);
trace(anotherVariableReference,this[s]);

// to remedy, don't use a function with a return value to define
this[varName]. just use it directly:

var varName:String = "someThing";
this[varName] = 20;

@kglad: yeah, I see what you're saying there kg, but I think he's just wanting
a return from a previously created list of variable references. I'm not sure
why he wouldn't call them directly, but I think it has something to do with the
user input from his system being in the form of a String, so he wasn't able to
access the value of the var named similarly ... but I follow you, and I guess I
should have even simplified the return as ...

return this[nameOfVar];

... rather than setting up the extra reference in the function, but your
method is the way to go for constructing a new variable from an input String
and value, and I love the wildcard use here, didn't know that would work, cool.

OH, but hey (@trigger also) if the variable already exists, one should be able
to reference it directly by calling ...

this['something'];

... and if you've got a function which is gathering the input you could say ...

value = this[input];

... if 'input' is in the form of a string, and it should return the value of
the variable, without having to call to a function, right? that's what you're
saying by 'just use it directly', I got it now :)