When I try to run a FindChangeByList.jsx in InDesignCS5.5 I get a syntax error in a Grep search

[frengold1963]

I'm trying to find text between to "Start" and "End" strings and change the selected text Character Style.

I can run the following Find/Change in InDesign and it works as expected:

Find What:  (?s)(?<=Begin--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll).*?(?=End--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll)

Change format: Paragraph Style: FBC-Top 25

But when I use the following text in the FindChangeList.txt file (running FindChangeByList.jsx) I get a syntax error, I'm not sure if it's the grep syntax in the FindWhat parameter or the changeTo syntax.

grep {findWhat:”(?s)(?<=Begin--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll).*?(?=End--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll)”} {appliedParagraphStyle:”FBC-Top 25”} {includeFootnotes:false, includeMasterPages:true, includeHiddenLayers:true, wholeWord:false}

I have also tried:

grep {findWhat:”(?s)(?<=Begin--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll).*?(?=End--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll)”} {changeTo:”$0”,appliedParagraphStyle:”FBC-Top 25”} {includeFootnotes:false, includeMasterPages:true, includeHiddenLayers:true, wholeWord:false}

I'm beginning to think it has something to do with the way the findWhat: is formatted but I'm not a Grep expert and I don't know what to change it to.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Steve

PS The FindChangeList.txt parameters in the original txt file are tab separated

[Jump_Over]

Hi,

Remove "wholeWord:false" part since this not a findChangeGrepOptions property

Jarek

[frengold1963]

Still getting a syntax error, even with the correct findChangeGrepOptions.

I get "syntax error column 1" when it executes this line: app.doScript(myString, ScriptLanguage.javascript);

myString has this value:

app.findGrepPreferences.properties = {findWhat:”(?s)(?<=Begin--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll).*?(?=End--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll)”};app.changeGrepPreferences.properties = {appliedParagraphStyle:”FBC-Top 25”};app.findChangeGrepOptions.properties = {includeFootnotes:false, includeMasterPages:true, includeHiddenLayers:true};

Is the GREP command causing the error?

Unfortunately the ExtendScript Toolkit gives me on other information except "Syntax Error".

[Stefan Rakete]

Hi frengold,

start with the original demo script and copy a line from the FindChangeList.txt and insert your values.

Is is working ?

It may have to do with tabs in the txt file.

thanks Stefan

[frengold1963]

I changed the first line in the original FindChangeList.txt file and replaced the parameters with my parameters (leaving the tabs intact), I still get a syntax error on this line:

grep

{findWhat:”(?s)(?<=Begin--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll).*?(?=End--FBC--Amway Top 25 Poll)”}

{changeTo:"appliedParagraphStyle:”FBC-Top 25”"}

{includeFootnotes:true, includeMasterPages:true, includeHiddenLayers:true, wholeWord:false}

Find and apply style.

I didn't change anything except the information between the quotes for each option (the third parameter is exactly as it is in the original). Still a syntax error.

The remaining 7 lines in the original txt file execute without problems.

I still think it has something to do with the GREP findWhat parameter needing to be structured differently in the txt file than is is when I run it from the Find/Change menu option.

Thanks for your help.

Steve