Colon Syntax [29966]

This article applies to:
E-Prime 3.0
E-Prime 2.0
E-Prime 1.x

 
Detail
This sample shows how to use the colon syntax feature. The colon syntax feature pulls multiple items from one List, allowing users to show multiple stimuli from the same List on one Slide.
 
Abstract
By using the colon syntax feature, E-Prime pulls two items from the same List object that is being referenced. This allows the program to display two stimuli at once.

In the 'TrialList' List object used in this sample, there are two attribute columns that represent the stimuli that will be displayed in the following Slide object: 'Stimulus' and 'Stimulus2'. In the column marked 'Stimulus2', there are a few cells that contain not only an attribute reference, but also a colon and number inside of it. A typical attribute reference (e.g. [StimList]) has a standard value of ':0' which means only one item from the List will be displayed. In this sample however, there are several cells with a ':1' inside the attribute reference (e.g. [StimList:1]). This allows two words to be pulled from the List referenced inside the attribute reference. The nested List object, called 'StimulusList', is where the stimuli that are being referenced are stored.
 
In this sample, the colon syntax feature is used to choose words from a List object called 'StimulusList' in order to create dissimilar pairings of words. The word that the colon syntax feature chooses from 'StimulusList' is a random selection from 'StimulusList'. This is because, in the 'Selection' tab of the Property Pages of 'TrialList', the order is set to 'Random Selection'. Otherwise, if the list were set for 'Sequential Selection', the colon syntax feature would simply select the next word in the List object. This method can be applied to as many samples and stimuli as necessary.