Running FrameMaker Scripts From Visual Studio

Report · Jul 14, 2023

I'm using Visual Studio (VS) to develop and test FrameMaker scripts. All works fine, but to test a script from inside Visual Studio I have to click F5 (Run > Start Debugging), then select the host application (FrameMaker 2020, ver 16.0) from a dropdown list of about a dozen apps. Is there a way to configure VS so script simply executes when I press F5. I'm guessing it has something to do with configurations, but I have no idea what change(s) to make to configure FrameMaker 2020 as the default. The settings.json currently reads:

{
    "editor.minimap.enabled": false,
    "workbench.colorTheme": "Tomorrow Night Blue",
    "launch": {
        "configurations": [
        {
            "type": "extendscript-debug",
            "request": "launch",
            "name": "Launch Script in ExtendScript Engine"
        }
        ]
    }
}

Report · Jul 15, 2023

Fightergator,

As You can see from my own experience (https://www.daube.ch/docu/files/FMjsxLib.pdf, page 275) I also have not managed to get a more straight route...

Report · Jul 15, 2023

Thanks Klaus. Your tip on running the code using F5 and selecting the FM version was a real help a few weeks back when I first installed VS. As a result, I was up and working in less than an hour. Here's a few differences between my installation and what you describe on pages 275-276. I use a VS desktop icon that I've pinned to the taskbar to launch VS. It opens almost immediately. Also, when I hit F5 and select my FM version from the dropdown list, the script executes immediately. You mentioned a >3 second pause. If a settings.json script runs at startup, it's whatever the default was when I installed VS.

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I have to believe that the settings.json is the answer to our problem, but I have no idea what the correct configuration should be.