Working with COND statement - "error: malformed list on input"

[pbejse]

I love how there's so many ways to accomplish a task - I just wish I knew the best ones These snippets are much smoother than the cumbersome, brute-force kind of coding I've got.
You guys are the best.

Thank you for your kind words Phillip

[off topic]

Neet to remember , there is no single best way to write a code, theres always a better way" some will argue that point, but IMO some codes are better than others depending on the conditions and overall usage.
Having said that, If you are going to make a career of programming (or like some of us just for the fun of it), choose the one that you understand the most, and in time you yourself will come to realize how silly the code was and say "what was i thinking!"

[off topic]

Cheers and keep on coding.

[stusic]

Thank you for your kind words Phillip

[off topic]

Neet to remember , there is no single best way to write a code, theres always a better way" some will argue that point, but IMO some codes are better than others depending on the conditions and overall usage.
Having said that, If you are going to make a career of programming (or like some of us just for the fun of it), choose the one that you understand the most, and in time you yourself will come to realize how silly the code was and say "what was i thinking!"

[off topic]

Cheers and keep on coding.

That's very motivating. I'm not a good programmer at all (never was), but I'm in a position that I need to do what I can, frequently tasked with solving problems that require programming that's over my head. Often, the help I get from volunteers here and elsewhere really open my eyes to how the code is put together. Even though much of the time my problem gets solved with help, I find I can reuse and repurpose that code for other functions. It's when I run into something that I haven't done before that I really get stuck - especially working with dynamic blocks; I just can't seem to wrap my head around getting into and manipulating the properties of them. I've referenced (and still do) Afralisp, which seems to be the best "from scratch" learning site I've seen, but it's hard to make it stick. It's when I'm actually accomplishing something that I really learn.

I appreciate everyone's help so much. Without people like you, Renderman, Lee Mac, Cabbie, (and so many others), I'd still be stuck at square one. I wish I could buy you all lunch and a beer. If you're ever in Georgia, give me a shout

Now to figure out how to iterate through a list...

Thanks again,

-p

[BlackBox]

I just can't seem to wrap my head around getting into and manipulating the properties of them. I've referenced (and still do) Afralisp, which seems to be the best "from scratch" learning site I've seen, but it's hard to make it stick. It's when I'm actually accomplishing something that I really learn.

Afra LISP is great; I've also learned much from completing 200+ Autodesk University courses, members here at this and other forums, but mostly from attempting to code an initiative and personally digging through the developer documentation, trial and error, etc..

... Admittedly, the latter would have taken me much, much longer without the kindness of many, many others who took the time to help point me in the right direction. That is why I try to give back where I can; helping others solidifies my knowledge, and exposes me to others' ideas in a way that only a venue such as these forums permits, in my limited experience.

Making the jump from AutoLISP syntax to that of Visual LISP, or other application level languages, such as C#/VB.NET, etc., you must understand Object Oriented Programming (OOP) Concepts. OOP is the key to better understanding the Objects which makeup the entities, interfaces, and applications that we use every day, both in, and out of CAD.

I think you'll find that your aptitude for programming will rapidly increase as you progress with some minimal, fundamental concepts.

I appreciate everyone's help so much. Without people like you, Renderman, Lee Mac, Cabbie, (and so many others), I'd still be stuck at square one. I wish I could buy you all lunch and a beer. If you're ever in Georgia, give me a shout

We're happy to help.

You are very kind to even mention me, as I am still very much a student of programming myself... I jokingly, yet honestly say that I didn't even know what a 'Defun' was 2-3 years ago. I have much to learn about Visual LISP, let alone attempting to teach myself to develop in .NET languages.

Now to figure out how to iterate through a list...

... Why, just use FOREACH, silly. LoL

[stusic]

... Why, just use FOREACH, silly. LoL

That's why you were included.

[BlackBox]

That's why you were included.

*Tips hat*

[stusic]

you could write it this way

(if (setq fld4     
	     (cond
	       ((= a 10) (substr fld2 9))
	       ((= a 11) (substr fld2 9))
	       ((= a 12) (substr fld2 11))
	       ((= a 13) (substr fld2 11 )))) fld4
        	(print "Drawing Number Format Unrecognized")
       )

I was trying to do this, but it just ain't working. Get "Drawing Number Format Unrecognized" ; error: bad argument type: consp nil

(setq dn (getvar "dwgname"))

(if (setq fld4     
	     (cond
	       ((= a 10) (substr dn 9))
	       ((= a 11) (substr dn 9))
	       ((= a 12) (substr dn 11))
	       ((= a 13) (substr dn 11 )))) fld4
        	(print "Drawing Number Format Unrecognized")
       )

Any ideas? I looked over and over at the syntax, but it seems fine to me...

Thank you

[stusic]

Modified it after I posted, but still get an error.

"error: bad argument type: stringp 17"

(setq dn (strlen (getvar "dwgname")))

(if (setq fld4     
	     (cond
	       ((= dn 14) (substr dn 9))
	       ((= dn 15) (substr dn 9))
	       ((= dn 16) (substr dn 11))
	       ((= dn 17) (substr dn 11)))) fld4
        	(print "Drawing Number Format Unrecognized")
       )

Do I need to specify that I'm looking for the strlen in the cond statement? If I don't, wouldn't it be looking for whether the actual string is "17"?
Nevermind, the variable dn IS 17...