Lingo Dictionary > D-F > delay

 

delay

Syntax

delay numberOfTicks 

Description

Command; pauses the playback head for a given amount of time. The integer expression numberOfTicks specifies the number of ticks to wait, where each tick is 1/60 of a second. The only mouse and keyboard activity possible during this time is stopping the movie by pressing Control+Alt+period (Windows) or Command+period (Macintosh). Because it increases the time of individual frames, the delay command is useful for controlling the playback rate of a sequence of frames.

The delay command can be applied only when the playback head is moving. However, when delay is in effect, handlers still run: only the playback head halts, not script execution. Place scripts that use the delay command in either an on enterFrame or on exitFrame handler.

To mimic the behavior of a halt in a handler when the playback head is not moving, use the startTimer command or assign the current value of timer to a variable and wait for the specified amount of time to pass before exiting the frame.

Example

This handler delays the movie for 2 seconds when the playback head exits the current frame:

on exitFrame
	delay 2 * 60
end

Example

This handler, which can be placed in a frame script, delays the movie a random number of ticks:

on keyDown
	if the key = RETURN then delay random(180)
end

Example

The first of these handlers sets a timer when the playback head leaves a frame. The second handler, assigned to the next frame, loops in the frame until the specified amount of time passes:

--script for first frame

on exitFrame
	global gTimer
	set gTimer = the ticks
end

--script for second frame

on exitFrame
	global gTimer
	if the ticks < gTimer + (10 * 60) then
		go to the frame
	end if
end

See also

startTimer, ticks, timer