Q59429: QB.EXE/QBX.EXE "Identifier Too Long" Using User-Defined TYPE

Article: Q59429
Product(s): See article
Version(s): 6.00 6.00b 7.00 7.10
Operating System(s): MS-DOS
Keyword(s): ENDUSER | buglist6.00 buglist6.00b buglist7.00 buglist7.10 B_QuickBas | mspl13_basic
Last Modified: 20-SEP-1990

Inside the QuickBASIC environment (QB.EXE or QBX.EXE), an "Identifier
Too Long" error is incorrectly generated under the following
circumstances:

1. Create a user-defined TYPE (record). Give it one field with a long
   name (20 to 40 characters).

2. DIMension a variable of that TYPE. Give the variable a long name
   (20 to 40 characters).

3. Use the variable in some statement in the program and run the
   program.

4. If the length of the entire identifier (record name plus the field
   name) is longer than forty characters, an "Identifier Too Long"
   error message is generated in the environment.

This error occurs in QB.EXE and QBX.EXE, but does NOT occur with
BC.EXE.

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the QB.EXE environment
of Microsoft QuickBASIC versions 4.00, 4.00b, and 4.50 (buglist4.00,
buglist4.00b, buglist4.50); in the QB.EXE environment of Microsoft
BASIC Compiler versions 6.00 and 6.00b; and in QuickBASIC Extended
(QBX.EXE), the extended environment provided with Microsoft BASIC
Professional Development System (PDS) versions 7.00 and 7.10. We are
researching this problem and will post new information here as it
becomes available.

When using TYPEd variables, both parts of the variable, the variable's
name and its field name, are supposed to have a limit of 40
characters. This means that the total possible length of a TYPEd
variable when used in a statement is 80 characters.

This problem can be worked around by either shortening the name of the
variable, shortening the name of the field in the TYPE, or by placing
the single variable into an array of that TYPE.

Code Example
------------

TYPE temp
  '012345678901234567890123456789; Forty characters is a legal name:
   thisisatesttoobutthisistoolong AS INTEGER
END TYPE

DIM thisisatest AS temp

' The following causes an "identifier too long" error
' when the entire name exceeds forty characters.
'012345678901234567890123456789012345678901
 thisisatest.thisisatesttoobutthisistoolong = 10

DIM thisisatest(1) AS temp

'If you make "thisisatest" an array instead of a single type
'variable the problem is eliminated.
thisisatest(1).thisisatesttoobutthisistoolong = 10

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