AutoLISP
Developer's Guide > Working with
Programmable Dialog Boxes > Designing Dialog
Boxes > Design
Guidelines >
Closing a Dialog Box for User Selection
If a user needs to make a selection from the graphics screen before the dialog box has closed, you must close the dialog box momentarily so that the user can see the screen and make the selection. This is known as hiding a dialog box. Once the selection is made, you need to display the dialog box again.
The label of a button that causes the dialog box to be hidden should not contain an ellipsis. Instead, use a space followed by a less-than symbol (<) in the label. When the dialog box hides itself, a prompt should be displayed that explains what the user is expected to do.
In most cases, you can get the input with one of the getxxx functions. These functions have an argument with which you can specify a prompt.
When the dialog box reappears, it should contain feedback on the selection process. This can be new information in the edit box fields, an updated list box, a text message that indicates the status, or a combination of these.