PRB: Server Scripts Within Client Scripts Not Colored Correctly

ID: Q191041

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Visual InterDev, version 6.0

SYMPTOMS

When a server-side script block appears within a client-side script block, the text of the server-side script block is not colored correctly.

CAUSE

This is caused by a limitation of the editor's parsing engine.

RESOLUTION

There is no workaround. When possible, do not compose server-side script within client-side script.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a bug in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

This issue does not affect the run-time nature of any code.

This behavior is produced when server-side code (code within the Active Server Pages [ASP] delimeters <%...%> or script tags with the RUNAT=Server directive) appears within a client-side script block. For example, the following samples will exhibit this behavior:


    <script> myClientVar = <%= myServerVar %> </script><BR/>
    <script> <script runat=server> 'server code </script> </script>

This issue may cause further confusion when the language of the server-side script block differs from that of the client-side script block. Consider this script block, where the client-side script is in JavaScript, and the server-side script is the default, VBScript:


   <script language=javascript>

        <% if myExpr then %>
        //do something
        <% end if %>

   </script>

In this example, the two "if" keywords are colored blue, but the "then" and "end" keywords are not. This is because the parsing engine interprets the code as a single, client-side script block written in JavaScript. In JavaScript, "then" and "end" are not keywords, and hence are not colored blue.

Confusion in this case can be minimized by capitalizing all keywords when composing VBScript (this is the usual convention). Keywords are case sensitive in JavaScript, so the parsing engine will not color "If" blue as a keyword.

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

In Source view, type this text in an ASP page:


   <script> myClientVar = <%= myServerVar %> </script>

The <% and %> script delimiters do not have a yellow background.

Additional query words:


Keywords          : kbJScript kbScript kbVBScript kbVisID600 kbGrpASP 
Version           : WINDOWS:6.0
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: July 13, 1999