Ch 9-MessageBox Not Popping Up

btcomp · August 25th, 2010, 10:06 AM

In Ch. 9 p 312, I have set the Validation Summary control to ShowMessageBox to True and ShowSummary to False. I click on the blank form and the web page blinks as it processed on my local server, but all I get are the red asterisks. If I then change the ShowSummary back to true, leaving the ShowMessageBox also to true, I get the inline list with thde added HeaderText Title.

So I'm not getting a message box to show on the page? ;-)

Imar · August 25th, 2010, 12:02 PM

Hi there,

"the web page blinks" seems to indicate that the client side behavior is not kicking in, and validation is carried out at the server only. The messagebox works client side only. A few possible causes:

1. Your browser has JavaScript disabled.

2. You disabled client script for the validation controls

3. Some error in custom validation / JavaScript may prevent the client validation from functioning.

Can any of these be the case? If not, can you post the code for the page / control?

Imar

btcomp · August 25th, 2010, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Your browser has JavaScript disabled

I do use Noscript, but I leave JavaScript on

Quote:

"the web page blinks" seems to indicate that the client side behavior is not kicking in

Well I redid the code, but boy you have to be careful, because the controls are registered and I was getting build errors. So I deleted the control AND removed the registration for it in the Contact.aspx form markup. It doesn't do this when you delete the user control!

Well I put your control code in ContactForm.ascx and ContactForm.ascx.cs because mine was 'acting up' and I guess I didn't want to redo the whole form over again with the validation objects.

Well it still was not giving me a MessageBox. hmmmm. But the flicker was gone and the client side kicked in and gave me the JavaScript error inline message and the red asterisks.

So I went and made ShowMessageBox True and ShowSummary False. Still running the client side code, still no MessageBox. So you said:

Quote:

2. You disabled client script for the validation controls

And then I looked at the ValidationSummary properies and the enabled properties and noticed that one just called 'Enabled' was false. hmmm again. It's tool tip is 'Enable state of the control'.

So I set it to True and then ran. The 'MessageBox' ran. SUCCESS!!!

So below is the code first from your file on Wrox website and then the one where I have set the Enabled state to true.

Code:

<asp:ValidationSummary ID="ValidationSummary1" runat="server" CssClass="ErrorMessage" HeaderText="Please correct the following errors before you press the Send button:" />
    </td>
  </tr>
</table>
<asp:Label ID="Message" runat="server" Text="Message Sent" Visible="False" />

Now the code that works giving you the MessageBox window.

Code:

<asp:ValidationSummary ID="ValidationSummary1" runat="server" 
        CssClass="ErrorMessage" 
        HeaderText="Please correct the following errors before you press the Send button:" 
        ShowMessageBox="True" ShowSummary="False" />
    </td>
  </tr>
</table>
<asp:Label ID="Message" runat="server" Text="Message Sent" Visible="False" />

Imar · August 25th, 2010, 01:22 PM

Glad you got it fixed.

I don't see Enabled="True" in the code you posted so I assume you took it out. That works equally well, as its default value is True. When you add a control to the page, the Enabled property is not added to the markup (and thus defaults to True), so somewhere somehow you turned the Enabled property off. This may happen when you double-click the property or its value in the Properties Grid for example.....

Cheers.

Imar

btcomp · August 25th, 2010, 02:10 PM

I may have turned off the Enabled. Not sure. But at least I know it's there. I didn't actually take out the Enabled= True, it doesn't show, but if it's False it does, and then the MessageBox doesn't appear. But I know that it needs to be True or it doesn't matter what the MessageBox is 'True' or 'False'. Hopefully others don't have this problem, but just toggle the Enabled to 'True' if it's 'False'.

Imar · August 25th, 2010, 03:05 PM

Unlike some other controls, the ValidationSummary doesn't submit itself to the cllient when it's not enabled, and thus it can never do what it's designed to do.

The VWD designer is smart enough to figure out that True is the default, and thus removes the attribute from the markup when you change it from False to True.

Cheers,

Imar