"place" method not working inside event for placing image in a rectangle.

[Ujjwal_u2]

Hi, I am trying to place an image onto a rectangle object [rectangle frame tool] inside an event. I do not recieve any error but image is not placed. I am stopping the event propogation and event defaults after placing as i do not want the original intented operation to take place, just make use of the event that is called to cater to my needs . I tired by putting the sleep call as well to see if it was getting placed and then getting removed but that is also not the case. I am not sure what i am doing wrong or missing here.

this is my code

app.addEventListener('beforeImport',function(theEvent){
		
	try{
				
		var doc = theEvent.parent;
		if ( !( doc instanceof Document ) ) {
			alert('Not instance of document');
			return;
		}
		
		var rect = theEvent.currentTarget.selection[0];
						
		var placedImagePath = decodeURI(theEvent.fullName.toString());
		
		var placedImageName= placedImagePath.substring(placedImagePath.lastIndexOf("/")+1);
		
		if(validateString(placedImageName)==false){
			var pathToPlaceNewImageForSpecialChar = doc.extractLabel("pathToPlaceNewImageForSpecialChar");
			
			if(pathToPlaceNewImageForSpecialChar==""){
				alert('Error');
			}
			else{
				callMainDialog(placedImageName,placedImagePath,pathToPlaceNewImageForSpecialChar,rect);
				//$.sleep("5000");
				theEvent.stopPropagation();
				theEvent.preventDefault();
				
			}
			
		}
		
	}
	catch(ex){
		alert(ex.message);
	}
	
  });

function callMainDialog(offendingFileName,originalFilePath,fileDownloadPath,rect){
         
    var w = new Window ("dialog", "Rename");
    
    w.group = w.add ('group');
    
    w.group.add ('statictext {text: "Please enter a new name for the file. "}');
    w.input = w.group.add ('edittext {characters: 30, active: true,text: "'+ offendingFileName+'"}');   
    
    var offendingTextLabel = w.add ('statictext {text: "offending characters : '+ getOffendingText(offendingFileName) +'"}');
    offendingTextLabel.graphics.foregroundColor = offendingTextLabel.graphics.newPen (offendingTextLabel.graphics.PenType.SOLID_COLOR, [1, 0,0], 1);
    offendingTextLabel.alignment ="left";
     
    var CreateCopy = w.add ("checkbox", undefined, "Create a copy of the file");
    CreateCopy.alignment="left";
    
    var pathLabel=w.add ("statictext", undefined, "Path: " + fileDownloadPath);
    pathLabel.alignment="left";
    pathLabel.graphics.font = "dialog:9";
    
    
    w.buttons = w.add ('group {alignment: "right"}');
    w.buttons.add ('button {text: "Cancel"}');
    var okButton = w.buttons.add ('button {text: "OK", enabled: false}');
   
    w.input.onChanging = function(){
        var str= w.input.text;
        okButton.enabled = validateString(str);
        offendingTextLabel.text= "offending characters : " + getOffendingText(str);
    }
           
    
    okButton.onClick=function(e){
       doOperation(CreateCopy.value,w.input.text,originalFilePath,fileDownloadPath,rect);   
	   //e.stopPropagation();
	   //e.preventDefault();
	   w.close();
    };
   
   w.show();
    
}

function doOperation(isChecked,newFileName,originalFilePath,fileDownloadPath,rect){
    if(isChecked==true){         
          CopyMyFile(originalFilePath,fileDownloadPath);
		  placeFile(fileDownloadPath + newFileName,rect);
    }
    else{       
        RenameMyFile( originalFilePath,newFileName);
		var newPath = originalFilePath.substring(0,originalFilePath.lastIndexOf("/")+1) + newFileName;
		placeFile(newPath,rect);
    }
		
 }

function placeFile(imagePath,rect){
	 
	 var newFile = new File(imagePath);
	 rect.place(newFile,false,null);
	 
 }

[Willi Adelberger]

Is the rectangle undefined content or image content?

If the rectanle is text content (or any rectangle where the text tool has converted it to a text frame), placing an image will fail.

[Ujjwal_u2]

Rectangle here is the empty rectangle frame tool already present on the document which is selected by the user to place a new image upon it. I am checking if the image name is valid, if not then giving user the option to either rename or create a copy of the image and then placing the renamed or copied image over the rectangle and stopping the default image from being placed.

[rob day]

Hi @Ujjwal_u2 , I don’t think you can stop the place, but the listener function could get the event parent and relink a new image. Also I think you’ll need #targetengine "session"

#targetengine "session";
var el = app.eventListeners.add("beforePlace", placeImage);

/**
* Function to run before a place command
* @ param the event 
*/
function placeImage(e){
    alert("About to place on a selected " + e.parent.constructor.name + ". Relink code here")
}

[Ujjwal_u2]

Hi Rob, i have resolved the issue. target engine i had already specified in my code, forgot to paste here. Issue was with the placement of file while the dialog was open. Intrestingly enough i was not receving any error from Indesign but when i put the place function inside try catch block then it told me that dialog is open and no operation can be perform, so i changed the dialog to the palette and it worked. 🙂 thanks for the reply.

[rob day]

Ok, we cross posted

[rob day]

You might have to listen for the afterPlace event and relink. Something like this?:

#targetengine "session";
var el = app.eventListeners.add("afterPlace", relinkImage);

/**
* Function to run after a place command
* @ param the event 
*/
function relinkImage(e){
    alert("New placed link " + e.parent.itemLink.name + ". Relink code here")
    //e.parent.itemLink.relink(//filepath here);
}