Many features of the ABL Editor depend on the availability of an accurate in-memory representation of the structure of the ABL code that you are editing. Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge includes a parser that continuously and automatically analyzes (parses) the code as you edit it. The parser updates the in-memory representation of the code structure. The in-memory representation of the code enables code-completion assistance, an accurate outline in the Outline view, color-coding in the ABL Editor, and many other Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge features.

The parser performs a new analysis and updates its in-memory representation whenever a change to the code is followed by a specified interval (by default, 300-milliseconds) during which no editing activity occurs. In other words, while you type, delete, or move text in an ABL source file, the parser waits for a pause. As soon as the 300-millisecond interval elapses with no changes, the parser performs an update.

If you are working on large files, you might find that performance improves when you increase the default 300-millisecond interval. You can adjust the interval for re-parsing on the Editor Assistance preference page. From the main menu of Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge, go to Window > Preferences > Progress OpenEdge > Editor > Assistance.