Referencing functions from other scripts as variables

[jahroy]

I would like to use an editor script to initialize a list of buttons that will perform various actions on objects in my scene. I am wondering how to assign functions to these buttons as varialbes if the functions are defined outside the editor script.

More specifically:

I have a GUI controller script (SomeNeatScript) that performs actions on GameObjects based on GUI events. I would like this script to contain an array of buttons that will each call a different function when clicked. I would like to assign functions to the buttons in an initialization routine that will be called from an Editor Script. I would like the assigned functions to be defined in the GUI script.

Some code:

/* from some editor script */

static function initializeButtons ()
{
    var myScript = Selection.activeTransform.GetComponent(SomeNeatScript);

    var buttonNames = new Array(
        "buttonA",
        "buttonB", 
        "buttonC",
        "buttonD"
    );

    var buttonFunctions = new Array(
        myScript.functionA,
        myScript.functionB,
        myScript.functionC,
        myScript.functionD
    );

    var someButtons = new Array();

    for ( var i = 0; i < buttonNames.length; i ++ ) {
        var freshButton = new ActionButton(buttonNames_, buttonFunctions*);*_
 _*someButtons.Push(freshButton);*_
 _*}*_
 _*myScript.buttonList = someButtons.ToBuiltin(ActionButton);*_
_*}*_
<em>_/* ActionButton definition */_</em>
_*class ActionButton*_
_*{*_
 _*var name            :  String;*_
 _*var actionFunction  :  Function;*_
 _*function ActionButton ( myName : String, myFunc : Function )*_
 _*{*_
 _*name            =  myName;*_
 _*actionFunction  =  myFunc;*_
 _*}*_
_*}*_
<em>_/* from SomeNeatScript */_</em>
_*var buttonList : ActionButton [];*_
_*function OnGUI ()*_
_*{*_
 _*for ( var currentButton : ActionButton in buttonList ) {*_
 _*if ( GUI.Button(somePosition, currentButton.name) ) {*_
 _*currentButton.actionFunction();*_
 _*}*_
 _*}*_
_*}*_
_*function functionA ()*_
_*{*_
 _*Debug.Log("I am function a");*_
_*}*_
_*function functionB ()*_
_*{*_
 _*Debug.Log("I am function b");*_
_*}*_
_*.*_
_*.*_
_*.*_
_*```*_
_*<p>Ideally I would like to reference the names of the assigned functions dynamically (by building Strings based on the button's name) but would settle for the approach outlined above.</p>*_
_*<p>Any help would be greatly appreciated...</p>*_
<em>_<p>** Edit **</p>_</em>
_*<p>As a workaround I can assign the functions in the Start function of my GUI script, but I'd still like to know if it can be done from an editor script. </p>*_
_*<p>And I'd REALLY like to know how to dynamically reference functions by name so I could skip this whole process...</p>*_

[Statement]

• You can make use of SendMessage.
• You could make use of a table of names and look methods up by name in a prebuilt dictionary.
• You could make use of reflection to look up methods by name of an object, to later invoke.
• You could create your own editor/inspector to ease this process.

A very basic example of reflection to call a method on an unknown object by name:

function Call(var obj : System.Object , var message : String) {
    obj.GetType().GetMethod(message).Invoke(obj, null);
}

This search for a public method named `message` on the `obj`, and calls it without parameters. Any failure will throw an exception.

Example usage:

var obj = Selection.activeTransform.GetComponent(SomeNeatScript);
Call(obj, "buttonA"); // Attempts to call 'function buttonA()'

[marceloroca]

Try to use Component.SendMessage. Or, you can use reflection, but is more complicated.

[jahroy]

Awesome. Looks like SendMessage will work quite well. Thanks very much!

Unity rules!

[yester30]

I’m here long after the war, but what about

public MonoBehaviour MonoBehaviourToCall; // the script component you want to call
public string functionName = ""; //name of the desired function to call there

fill those 2 refs and then later call it with

MonoBehaviourToCall.Invoke(functionName, 0f);