Statement explaination needed please

Question

I'm trying to track down a variable bug using traces (AS2.0).  Could someone please explain to me what the statement in red below means and where I should look for it ? there seems to be another addressing concept that I'm missing.
scrolledMC is a MC container that holds the dynamic text field (auto sized) that is the text that is being scrolled.
scrollContent1 = _parent.scrolledMC  // this statement does "_parent" refer to the original Lib item or the MC in which
trace("scrollContent1 ="+ scrollContent1)
//trace result
// scrollContent1 = _level0.instance703.instance709.scrolledMC // what does this mean? "instance" of what ? what relevance to the numbers have ?
1. how do I display the contents of "_level0.instance703.instance709.scrolledMC"  in a text contents form I can read??
2. Everytime this trace runs the "instance" numbers are different. never the same numbers. so if I try to trace (_level0.instance703.instance709.scrolledMC) it comes back undefined.  these numbers can get vary large the longer the swf runs and i keep coming back to the page with all the traces. Whats up with that ??
3. How is _level0 different from _root ?
4 if I trace scrolledMC I get "undefined"
Thanks
Joel

Answer 1

Ned,
"It could be easier to explain if you explain what you have created that involves scrolledMC."
I will try to explain but I might make it worse . I'm a noob to flash, and Unfortunately, I'm not the originator of the fla code I'm working with and it is very poorly documented and I'm trying to figure out how somebody else did something so I can make it do what I want it to.
I am converting from dynamic content loaded from a html text file to dynamic content loaded from an XML file. the reason being I'm adding content that is much easier to deal with in an XML file than &MyVar=myContent&  text file. In order to be able to do this conversion I have to track down all the var assignments to text fields. 80% of this is not a problem and is straight forward. But then there are these scrolling text boxes which are a mystery. There is a single Lib item called Text_scrollerMC that is used for each instance of these scrolling text boxes on different pages. I can't switch this content over to the xml file until I figure out how it is being assigned to the different instances of the Text_scrollerMC.
So I'm trying to deterime how the content contained in the variables loaded at runtime from the html text file, are being assigned to any given instance of Text_scroller. "scrolledMC" is the part of Text_scroller that contains the actual dynamic text field that is being loaded with the var content. Each time it is filled with unique content used on the page on which it's used. The loaded content var names use the nav button name of the page in the content var name, for example on page1or "Home" page, the content in the scroller box is from var "home_txt5", on page2 it's from var "services_txt3", on page4 it's from var "members_txt7" and so on.  Each var starts with the name of that page followed by "_txt" then a number. Again a direct search of the fla does NOT find ANY use of these vars by name, yet somehow these vars are being assigned to the Text_scroller when it is used on a page. I can only assume that the proper var name to use for any given instance of the scroller box is being dynamicaly "built" some how based on the scrollers location or something.
So back to "scrolledMC". As mentioned scrolledMC is the text field component of the scrolling text box (Text_ScrollerMC). Inside "scrolledMC" is the dynamic text field named "tola" that the variable content gets assigned to. The var listed in the text box properties for it's content is "home_txt1" (this is NOT a var coming from the loaded text file of vars/content). As I mentioned, Text_scrollerMC is used 6 times on different pages on the site. I'm trying to figure at what point the differnt content variables are being assigned to a particualr instance of Text_scrollerMC. besides seaching with all the actual var names I searched using "home_txt1", and using "tola" and can't find any reference to how the content is finding it's way to the text box "tola" inside scrolledMC. There is no reference to any of the var names or "home_txt1" anywhere in the fla. The only refernece to "tola" is a line telling it to "autosize". Even though "home_txt1" is listed as the var in each instance of the text box "tola" in scrolledMC, nowhere is "home_txt1" listed in the fla. I don't know why it can't be as simple as home_txt1="var for the content I want". that would make too much sense.
anyway the only way i can figure to try to track this down is to try and follow "scrolledMC" since that is where the content has to end up. soooo...  in the code from the Text_scrollerMC....
scrollContent1 = _parent.scrolledMC 
from what i can determined at this point _parent.scrolledMC has the var content in it cause scrollContent1 is use in the computation of the scroller movement as being the "size" of the content so _parent.scrolledMC must have "auto resized" to fit the var content cause that is the size being used in the scroller math. so I placed a trace after that line to look for clues and what i got was....
_level0.instance703.instance709.scrolledMC
I was hoping for the holy grail but instead I had no idea of what that ment which is why I was asking.  I know that someplace there has to be a refence to the loaded content var in some way at some point so I'm just trying to track that down. In the above, what is "instance703" in reference to?  instance of what ??
So other than trying figure out how the hell the vars are being assigned if I can't figure it out i will have to go to plan "B" which is to make each use of the Text_scrollerMC it's own complete unit and just hard code the var in each seperate use. Which will add more weight to the file which I'm trying to avoid.
Maybe I'm going about this in the wrong way? is there a way to follow the content some way to see how it's being asigned.?
the only refence to scrolledMC is in the scroller code and in a gotoAndStop statement.
onClipEvent (load)
    oldY = 1;
    Y = 1;
    vY = 0;
    newY = 0;
    mouseWheelHitTest = true;
    contentHeight = _parent.scrolledMC._height;
    scrollSpeed = _parent.speed_content;
    scrollStep = _parent.step_content;
    viewHeight = _parent.line._height;
    buttonSize = _parent.dragMC._height;
    buttonY = buttonMC._y;
    scrollHeight = _parent.scrolledMC._height;
    scrollContent = _parent.scrolledMC._y;
    scrollContent1 = _parent.scrolledMC;
    newY = _parent.scrolledMC._height;
    var mouseListener = new Object();
    mouseListener.onMouseWheel = function (delta)
        if (!mouseWheelHitTest || scrollContent1.hitTest(_root._xmouse, _root._ymouse, false) || hitTest(_root._xmouse, _root._ymouse, false))
            if (buttonMC._y >= 0 && buttonMC._y <= scrollHeight - buttonSize + 1)
                buttonMC._y = buttonMC._y - delta * _parent.mouse_speed;
            } // end if
        } // end if
    Mouse.addListener(mouseListener);
    hiScroll = _parent.line._height - _parent.dragMC._height;
    step = (scrollHeight - buttonSize - hiScroll) / hiScroll;
    y = _parent.scrolledMC._y;
onClipEvent (enterFrame)
    if (_parent.drag_but)
        if (buttonMC._y >= 0)
            buttonMC._y = buttonMC._y - scrollStep;
        } // end if
    } // end if
    if (_parent.down_but)
        if (buttonMC._y <= scrollHeight + buttonSize)
            buttonMC._y = buttonMC._y + scrollStep;
        } // end if
    } // end if
    if (buttonMC._y <= 0)
        buttonMC._y = 0;
    } // end if
    if (buttonMC._y >= viewHeight - buttonSize)
        buttonMC._y = viewHeight - buttonSize;
    } // end if
    level = buttonMC._y - buttonY;
    lev = int(y - level * step);
    newY = oldY + (lev - oldY) / scrollSpeed;
    _parent.scrolledMC._y = newY;
    oldY = newY;
I didn't see anything here to assign content but it looks like content has been assigned before it gets here. If so I can't fine it.
Thanks
Joel
BTW  Did something change about the forum ?  I can seem to get to the advanced editor, there is no button for it ???