Help creating a Text Cursor for multiple lines

Questions
1

I am having trouble trying to create a text cursor that will follow the text as you type on multiple lines. It works fine for one line but stays ahead of the text on the second line. This is just basic code I am using to test it out:

function setup()
    blinktime=ElapsedTime
    blinkstate=false

    NoteText="Hello World! Test Program..."
    myBuffer = {}
    for word in NoteText:gmatch(".") do table.insert(myBuffer, word) end
end
    
function draw()
    showKeyboard()
    background(0)
    textAlign(LEFT)
    textWrapWidth(300)
    textMode(CORNER)
    
    local textwidth, textheight = textSize(Text)
    
    Text = table.concat(myBuffer, "" )
    text(Text,362,700-textheight)
    
    
    if blinktime < ElapsedTime - 0.6 then
            blinktime = ElapsedTime
            blinkstate = not blinkstate
        end
        if blinkstate then
        rect(362+textwidth,700-textheight,2,25)  
        end
end

function keyboard(key)
    -- This function gets called every time a key is pressed
    if key == BACKSPACE then
        table.remove( myBuffer, #myBuffer )
    else
        myBuffer[#myBuffer+1] = key
    end
    
end

You may have to type a few characters in for the text to start wrapping.

I have had a look at other Codea discussions but to no avail. Thanks for your help in advance!

2 
In my website :

http://gregory.thomas.free.fr/codeautil.html/gui.html

in particular : Mathnargs

http://gregory.thomas.free.fr/codeautil.html/gui_fichiers/mathnarg.txt
3

Thanks, I’ll check these websites out @hpsoft

4

Sorry @hpsoft, that isn’t what I meant. I don’t think I was specific enough. What I am looking for is to have the cursor correctly follow the text when it is wrapped using textWrapWidth() . This picture may help you and others understand. I don’t know if it is possible but It aligns itself with the second line but doesn’t follow where the text is.

Image: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ayqvu025by8jph9/file%2024-05-2015%2016%2025%2055.png?dl=1

5

The measurements returned by textSize are if a box containing the entire text. So it doesn’t know how long the last line is. To do what you want, you’d have to control the line wrapping yourself so that you could measure the text exactly.

I’ve done this in projects and it’s not overly difficult.

6

it’s a code source of Dave1707 for simple line i have adapted for multiple line

function setup()
    displayMode(FULLSCREEN) ; showKeyboard() ; textMode(CORNER)
    clr=false ; oldstr="" ; str="" ; str1=""
end

function draw()
    background(40,40,50) ; fill(255)
    if clr then    -- clear keyboard buffer
        hideKeyboard()
        showKeyboard()
        clr=false
    end
    str=keyboardBuffer()
    if str ~= "" then
        text(oldstr,100,550)
        text(str,100,500)    -- show keyed input
        stroke(247, 255, 0, 255)
        rect(textSize(str)+110,500,2,20)
    else
        text(str1,100,500)    -- show input after return pressed
    end  
    
end

function keyboard(k)
    if k==RETURN then
        str1=keyboardBuffer()
        clr=true
        output.clear()
        print(str1)
        oldstr=str
    end
end

the cursor follow text
you must replace oldstr by a tab for more than 2 lines

7

@LoopSpace would you be able to give an example? I’m a total noob when it comes to coding…

8

One easy (lazy?) way of having a blinking cursor follow the input point as it wraps is to use a cursor-like character from the various symbols in the extended character set, and append it to the input text when you output it to the screen. In the interests of code portability I’ve encoded the symbols here using Lua 5.3’s UTF8 support, but if it’s just a private project you won’t be sharing you can just enter symbols that you like directly into your code. There’s quite a few cursor-like candidates. Note that for the wrapping to work correctly you also need an “empty cursor” symbol (that’s why there’s two symbols in the cursor code)

-- Cursor

function setup()
    inkey="Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Etiam eget hendrerit ligula. Quisque vitae mauris aliquet risus efficitur hendrerit at nec quam. Nulla ut sollicitudin dolor, ut interdum nulla. Quisque malesuada fermentum erat vitae mattis. Suspendisse vitae cursus purus, sit amet dictum risus."
    font("DINAlternate-Bold")
    fill(0, 181, 255, 255)
    fontSize(20)
    textWrapWidth(WIDTH*0.4)
    textMode(CORNER) --necessary to stop cursor displacing text
    showKeyboard()
end

function draw()
    background(40, 40, 50)

    local cursorSpeed = 2
    local cursorLen = (ElapsedTime*cursorSpeed%2)//1
    local cursor=string.rep("\\u{25af}", cursorLen)..string.rep("\\u{25ae}", 1-cursorLen) 
    text(inkey..cursor, WIDTH*0.3, HEIGHT*0.5)  
end

function keyboard(key)
    if key==RETURN then 
        hideKeyboard()
        --end of text input
    elseif key==BACKSPACE then
        inkey=string.sub(inkey, 1, -2)
    else
        inkey=inkey..key
    end
end
9

Thanks @yojimbo2000 this is exactly what I needed!

10

You’re welcome. As this is the lazy method, there are limitations (cursor has to be same colour as text).

11

@yojimbo2000 Yes I did notice that, but it is still recognisable at least.

12

@JonoGaming00 this is my text editor, but it is not done yet :smile: