Debugging options in the manifest
Microsoft Expression Web includes new options to help streamline the extension development process.
Disabling Safe Mode
In Expression Web, Safe Mode is enabled by default to help protect your work in case the application stops responding. Typically, if something causes Expression Web to close unexpectedly, the next time you run Expression Web, it automatically restarts in Safe Mode, which disables all add-ins. In this scenario, Expression Web has to be restarted to re-enable add-ins. This can be time-consuming when a developer is working on a new add-in.
To disable Safe Mode in Expression Web, in the Expression Web installation folder, create an empty text file and name it safesuppress.txt.
Refreshing panels
Typically, it is not possible to refresh an HTML dialog box or panel while developing an extension. Expression Web provides a switch to allow refresh functionality in the associated add-in.
To enable refresh for an add-in, include the following element in the manifest for the add-in.
<developer="yes" />
Debugging tools
Expression Web provides three ways to retrieve useful debugging information while developing add-ins.
Using alert statements
To display the values of variables or a location within the code, use JavaScript alert() statements.
The debug console
Expression Web includes a simple debug console. Specifying developer="yes" in the manifest for the add-in creates a debug console (with the name of the enclosing folder) that can be written to, and that has some rudimentary JavaScript error reporting.
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The debug console is associated with the add-in that invokes it. |
Extensions can write to the debug console from JavaScript using xweb.developer.write(string) and xweb.developer.writeLine(string).
xweb.developer.write( string )
Sends string to the debug console window.
xweb.developer.writeLine( string )
Sends string to a new line in the debug console window.
