Adding variable text to smart shape button

[bills89323792]

Hi again.  I try not to ask questions here until I've looked and looked for an answer, but I can't seem to figure this out.  Hopefully, it's quite easy and I'm just not getting the concept yet of variables.

I have many buttons in a slide.  I inserted a different variable in each, with the dollar signs (I inserted these from the properties/style sidebar). When I first created these variables, I added a different word in the value of each one.

So how can I make these values - the words- show in the text of the buttons?

Thanks again.

Bill

[Lilybiri]

I explained that work flow in this article about Dynamic Buttons (you'll have to scroll down)

Dynamic Buttons - Captivate blog

A tip: if you want to insert variables in a text, please use the X button in the Characer part of the Properties panel, don't type it in between $$. You'll avoid typose, and know that variable names are cae sensitive.

[bills89323792]

Well, I figured out that it has something to do with the custom shape I was using.  Even when this is deselected as a button, the text doesn't appear. I also tried to replace the custom smart shape with a regular standard one, but still no success seeing the variable text.  I'm curious to do the opposite - replace the standard shape (where I can now see the text) with my custom shape and see if that variable text disappears.  Could you please point me to some advice on how to replace a standard shape with a custom shape I made?  Thank you for your help!

Bill

[Lilybiri]

Which version do you use? Exact number, please.

[bills89323792]

It's Captivate 9. I think my problem may have been in messing with the states somehow, but I'm not sure. Somewhere along the way I did something and then multiplied that custom polygon shape and carried over the problem to all my shapes so that none of them show the variable text.  But when I went back to my first backup and found the custom polygon, it works fine, and I can [;ace it in my new slide and give it the same actions as the new shapes, and everything is great.

One thing I've found is that it would be very nice to be able to substitute one shape with another - not just the same style, because that doesn't fix the problem, but with another shape.  My shapes are all the same size and so when I want to replace one with another, I'm copying the original x and y coordinates to the substitute and then deleting the original underneath it. This is pretty laborious to do 150 times and I may have to do it again down the road.

Perhaps i should learn what placeholders or master slides are all about, but I haven't learned those yet.

Thanks!

Bill

[Lilybiri]

There is an option in the right-click enu to replace the shape. Did you

install the patch released this week to 9.0.1.320.

[bills89323792]

I tried to replace the object, and it works with regular text, but not with variables. I mean, it replaces okay - but the variable text still doesn't show up in the browser. Does replace shape also replace the different states?  That's probably what I need to do.  Thanks anyway.  I'm updating the patch right now,

[bills89323792]

I also discovered that if I edit the points of the shape, even a little bit - the variable text shows up again, but not if I just replace the smart shape.