Troubleshooting ActionScript > Using the Debugger > Displaying and modifying variables
Displaying and modifying variablesThe Variables tab in the Debugger displays the names and values of any variables in the movie. If you change the value of a variable in the Variables tab, you can see the change reflected in the movie while it runs. For example, to test collision detection in a game, you could enter the variable value to position a ball in the correct location next to a wall.
To display a variable:
1 | Select the movie clip containing the variable from the display list. |
2 | Click the Variables tab. |
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The display list updates automatically as the movie plays. If a movie clip is removed from the movie at a specific frame, that movie clip is also removed from the display list in the Debugger; this removes the variable name and value.
To modify a variable value:
Select the value and enter a new value.
The value must be a constant value (for example, "Hello"
, 3523,
or "http://www.macromedia.com"
), not an expression (for example, x + 2
, or eval("name:" +i)
). The value can be a string (any value surrounded by quotation marks (""
)), a number, or a Boolean (true
or false
).
Object and Array variables are displayed in the Variables tab. Click on the Add (+) button to see their properties and values. However, you can't enter Object or Array values (for example, {name: "I am an object"}
or [1, 2, 3]
) in the values fields.
Note: To output the value of an expression in test-movie mode, use the trace
action. See Using trace.