Here’s a heads up on a QlikView script syntax issue.  The problem came up several times in a beginner class last week and I’ve also noted beginners on the QlikCommunity Forum struggling with this as well.

There should be a space after a script keyword, separating it from the next word, right?

Resident  MyTab    // correct
ResidentMyTab     // incorrect

If we omit the space  the syntax coloring will alert us and we may get a red error underline as well.

What if a bracket is used, such as the case when a name contains a space?  If a bracket appears immediately after the keyword, the syntax highlighter will make look it correct. But it is invalid syntax and will fail  when reloaded.

There are a number of places in script where this problem can happen. Here are a few examples.

- LOAD * INLINE[
- [F1] as[F2]
- LOAD[F1]

Good news! QlikView Version 12 corrects the problem. In QV12, the missing space will be flagged in the editor.

 

While the requirement for a space may seem obvious to an experienced developer or programmer type, it can be a problem for beginners who are copying an example from a book where the space is not so clear, and who rely on highlighting to tell them they have it right.

It can be a difficult error to debug. The resulting script error message can be something  indirect like “missing/misplaced FROM..” when the actual error is a missing space after an “AS” keyword.

I’m going to add the following slide to all my beginner trainings:

Words in expressions or script must be separated by a delimiter. Depending on context, the delimiter will be one of:

Space  Comma  (  {  <  = +  -  *   / Semicolon

[ Single-quote and Double-quote are not delimiters.

I know this incomplete, leaving off tabs, newline, =>. Just keeping it simple.

-Rob