ActionScript for Flash MX: The Definitive Guide, Second Edition

setInterval() Global Function

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ActionScript Language Reference

setInterval() Global Function

execute a function or method every n milliseconds

Flash 6

setInterval(function, interval, arg1, arg2,...argn)

setInterval(object, method, interval, arg1, arg2,...argn)

Arguments

function A reference to the function to execute.

interval The amount of time between

function or method executions, in milliseconds.

arg1,...arg

n A list of optional arguments to pass to function or method.

object An object whose

method will be executed every interval milliseconds.

method The string name of the method to execute (must be defined on

object).

Returns

An interval identifier, used to stop the timed execution of function or method (which is

called “clearing the interval”).

Description

The setInterval() function starts an interval, which executes the specified function or

method every interval milliseconds. Here we start a very simple interval that executes the

function helloWorld() once per second:

function helloWorld () {

trace("Hello world!");

}

setInterval(helloWorld, 1000); // 1000 milliseconds is 1 second

Notice that the function reference, helloWorld, is specified without the function call oper-

ator, (). The following attempt to set an interval fails because the call operator is included

erroneously:

setInterval(helloWorld(), ...