Lingo Dictionary > G-K > idleHandlerPeriod

 

idleHandlerPeriod

Syntax

the idleHandlerPeriod

Description

Movie property; determines the maximum number of ticks (60ths of a second) that passes until the movie sends an idle message. The default value is 1, which tells the movie to send idle handler messages no more than 60 times per second.

Increasing the value of the idleHandlerPeriod property reduces the use of the computer's CPU by lowering the number of idle events generated.

When the playback head enters a frame, Director starts a timer, repaints the appropriate sprites on the Stage, and issues an enterFrame event. Then, if the amount of time set for the tempo has elapsed, Director generates an exitFrame event and goes to the next specified frame; if the amount of time set for this frame hasn't elapsed, Director waits until the time runs out and periodically generates an idle message. The amount of time between idle events is determined by idleHandlerPeriod.

Possible settings for idleHandlerPeriod are:

0—As many idle events as possible

1—Up to 60 per second

2—Up to 30 per second

3—Up to 20 per second

n—Up to 60/n per second

The number of idle events per frame also depends on the frame rate of the movie and other activity, including whether Lingo scripts are executing. If the tempo is 60 frames per second (fps) and the idleHandlerPeriod value is 1, one idle event per frame occurs. If the tempo is 20 fps, three idle events per frame occur. Idle time results from Director doesn't have a current task to perform and cannot generate any events.

In contrast, if the idleHandlerPeriod property is set to 0 and the tempo is very low, thousands of idle events can be generated.

The default value for this property is 1, which differs from previous versions in which it defaulted to 0.

Example

The following statement causes the movie to send an idle message a maximum of once per second:

the idleHandlerPeriod = 60

See also

idleHandlerPeriod, idleLoadDone(), idleLoadMode, idleLoadTag, idleReadChunkSize