How to make multi-line textarea field results into a delimited list

Bruce,
Just use this:
<cfif isDefined("form.addresses")>
<cfset form.addresses=rereplace(form.addresses,"([#chr(10)##chr(13)#])",",","ALL")>
</cfif>
and if you want to include tabs use #chr(9)# also

Brucecrabtree,

pmascari's "Replace()" solution near the top is correct.

Alternativly if you wanted to use a regular expression like dgrafx, the proper way to do it is like below:

<cfif isDefined("form.addresses")>
  <cfset addresses = REReplace(FORM.addresses,"(#chr(10)#|#chr(13)#)+",",","ALL")>
  <cfoutput>#addresses#</cfoutput>
</cfif>

When i tried your solution dgrafx, I was getting multiple commas; my version would not.

And there is something wrong with this solution?
<cfset addresses="">
<cfif isDefined("form.addresses")>
 <CFSET addresses= listChangeDelims(form.addresses,",","#Chr(13)##Chr(10)#")>
 <cfoutput>#addresses#</cfoutput>
</cfif>

Hi Guys,
>> js vaughan: You may be right (?) about the multiple commas as I didn't test.

Now that I think about it though, the multiple commas you may have gotten (I'm assuming from multiple cr's together) shouldn't be a problem as it doesn't change listlen - blank slot ya know. So you can't say that extra commas are a problem.

>>Bruce: It looks like all these simple solutions would work for you. They accomplish the same thing in slightly different ways.
So use rereplace or the listchangedelims that RCorfman posted above.

That works as well; I was simply offering a new REReplace solution using a regular expression.

The only reason I mentioned pmascari was because he had the *first* solution that was correct.

I did not mean to discredit your advice in any way, sorry if my comment was mistaken.

Very correct dgrafx about the empty list.  Technically speaking, Coldfusion would handle them both equally as well; I just always assume to remove empty sets whenever possible in case you wish to display the output.

Hey no worries - I didn't feel discredited :)

I guess I felt like my solution got buried in with the others. It was closes to what was being tried initiailly and I would note is one simple call, not multiple runs across the data like the nexted replace, and the processing is simpler than a regex processing would be. It seems like all three solutions would work though.

Agreed, all the solutions do work.

Bruce,

You weren't actually all that far off the right solution in the first place.  The only error you made was to get the Carriage Return (chr(13)) and the Line Feed (chr(10)) the wrong way around.

RCorfman's solution is the most efficient solution, most readable.

Although, to be a pedant, the variables need scoping, you should be using StructKeyExists() rather than isDefined(), plus, personally, I would skip the #'s around the CRLF, which would give you :

<cfset variables.addresses="">
<cfif StructKeyExists(form,"addresses")>
 <CFSET variables.addresses= listChangeDelims(form.addresses,",",Chr(13)&Chr(10))>
 <cfoutput>#variables.addresses#</cfoutput>
</cfif>

 Don't be giving me any points for this. RCorfman is the one who gave you the correct solution first.

Thanks everyone. I've gotten sidetracked on another project and haven't had a chance to try these different solutions yet. But I should probably close this question now, and based on everyone's comments here it looks like I should split the points between RCorfman and pmascari, so that's what I'll do. Thanks again.

Mr_Nil, like everyone, I'm still learning myself (a road that never ends). I'm curious as to why we shouldn't use isDefined()?  I agree with dropping the overused #... I had actually gotten that part of the code from a book...
I would note that the nice thing about changeDelims in this case is it doesn't matter what order the chr(10) and chr(13) are in as either one is considered a delimeter (if I understand correctly).

The order of the chr(10) & chr(13) doesn't matter using rereplace as I had. It will replace either.

> Mr_Nil, like everyone, I'm still learning myself (a road that never ends).
>
Tell me about it - 9 years now and I'm still learning new stuff.

> I'm curious as to why we shouldn't use isDefined()?  
>
Its not so much that you shouldn't use it, but StructKeyExists is much more direct and efficient than isDefined().

In CFMX all variable scopes (apart from cookies - I think) are structures and always exist at the appropriate times eg. attributes scope struct exists when you call a custom tag or use cfmodule, arguments when you call a function and session etc when you have started a session using cfapplication.

When you use isDefined("myVariable"), or even isDefined("variables.myVariable") where the scope is specified, the CF Server begins scanning through all the variable scopes until it finds or fails to find the specified variable.  I forgot the exact order now, but its something like CF starts at the variables scope, looks through the form and url scopes, session, application and so on. It should be noted that CF also has to do this whenever you use a variable without a scope in your code.

Using StructKeyExists(variables,"myVariable") the CF Server looks directly in the variables scope for the variable you specify and no where else. It doesn't scan all the other scope structures, so it is much more efficient, as well being much clearer in your code as to exactly where you expect to find the variable and the value you need.

> I would note that the nice thing about changeDelims in this case is it doesn't matter what order the chr(10) and chr(13) are
> in as either one is considered a delimeter (if I understand correctly).
>
Yeah I think you are right - its more than one character so it should treat them seperately.  I was commenting more on the standard replace() function call that bruce had originally written.  Switch the LF and CR around in the replace to be CRLF and the second example of replace() code would have worked. eg. Replace(addresses, "#chr(13)##chr(10)#", ",", "ALL")