Check if _screen.activeform.botRoutineTest.oLastRecord is an object and have an iEngineID property :)
Cetin

>>(I have no idea about Codebook)
>
>Forget it, it was just for referecen <g>.
>
>Yipee, solved the thing... THISFORM is not valid from the DBC, _SCREEN.ACTIVEFORM is
>
>
>>>_SCREEN.ACTIVEFORM.botRoutineTest.oLastRecord.iEngineID
>
>works wonder <bg>.
>
>Thanks for all your help, any pitfalls in the above solution.
>
>
>>Bhavbhuti,
>>(I have no idea about Codebook)
>>The database objects are not part of a form. Define your NewID returning functions in DBC as stored procedures. Then it'd look like :
>>
>>myNewID('tablename')
>>
>>dbsetprop('ViewName.FieldName','Field','DefaultValue','myNewID("TableName")')
>>
>>Cetin
>>
>>>Hi Cetin I just tried you approach, first for default values. This is the default value I am putting in one field iEngineID, I want this ID to be populated with the last used value.
>>>
>>>THISFORM.botRoutineTest.oLastRecord.iEngineID
>>>
>>>I get this error:
>>>
>>>Object is not contained in a FORM.
>>>
>>>This was working well with my original logic posted of AfterNew(). The oLastRecord is a public (was protected) property.
>>>
>>>Any idea what I may have done wrong. I use CodeBook and this was the way I could get the last record details by SCATTERing to an object.
>>>
>>>
>>>>>>OK so you want to manage from another table as metadata. How about doing your way but changing default/validation for view once at a suitable place (typically when metadata is edited and saved).
>>>>>
>>>>>Yes
>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>ie : You could do like this :
>>>>>>
>>>>>>

>>>>>>open data myData
>>>>>>select metadata
>>>>>>scan
>>>>>>  lcViewField = trim(VievName -'.'-ViewFieldName)
>>>>>>  DBSetProp(lcViewField,"FIELD","RuleText",FieldRuleText)
>>>>>>  DBSetProp(lcViewField,"FIELD","RuleExpression",FieldRuleExpr)
>>>>>>  DBSetProp(lcViewField,"FIELD","DefaultValue",FieldDefaultExpr)
>>>>>>endscan
>>>>>>

Cetin
>>>>>
>>>>>Wow that means that I can do this once (at time of reinstllation) and I can avoid unnecesary function calls.
>>>>>
>>>>>I will try this at the soonest.
>>>>
>>>>Yes. Also after doing that :
>>>>compile database DBCName && VFP6 SP3 and later
>>>>Cetin