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Is it possible to “read” the number of lines in a text box?
Could someone tell me if it would be possible to have an expression that would “read” the number of lines (or paragraphs) in a text box?
What I’m trying to achieve is a text layer that would have 1-4 lines of text (depending on the amount of information needed) and a solid behind the layer that would adjust its height or position according to the amount of the text.
Sam
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2 Replies
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Try applying this expression to the scale property of of the solid that is behind each text layer:
//begin expression
textLayer = thisComp.layer("A Text Layer");
scalePerLine = 70;
//scalePerLine is how much to increment scale by for each newline
//--
newLineChar = '\r';
newLines = 0;
for( i = 0 ; i < textLayer.text.sourceText.length; i++ ){ if( textLayer.text.sourceText.charAt( i ) == newLineChar){ newLines++; } } //-- [value[0] , value[1] + newLines * scalePerLine ] //end expressionJust make sure textLayer refers to the right text layer. Then adjust scalePerLine until you have the desired look.
However, there are a few problems with this expresson. First of all, whenever a new line of text is added the scale property increases linearly when in fact it should increase according to some kind of exponiential function. This is beacuse, to make a layer n pixels bigger, you can't just add n to scale. I don't have time to fix this right now, but if anyone wants to give it a try feel welcome to.
~Colin
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Thanks! I’ll give this a try.
How about changing Y-position instead of Scale? It would make it easier to have exactly the same value for each line.
Sam
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