# Processing doesn't say where the error is

**URL:** <https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411>\
**Category:** Processing\
**Created:** [May 19, 2025, 8:55pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411 "2025-05-19T20:55:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RichardDL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@RichardDL](https://discourse.processing.org/u/RichardDL)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2025, 8:55pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411/1 "2025-05-19T20:55:33Z")

</div>

For me Processing (4.4.1) is not saying where the error is. It’s doing it for any sketch but see Examples, Topics, Curves, ArcLengthParametrization. Comment out line 21 //final int POINT\_COUNT = 80; and run the sketch.

It says “POINT\_COUNT cannot be resolved to a variable” but doesn’t move the edit window to the problem line 41.

I think it used to highlight the problem line.

I wondered if it was a setting I’d chosen but I checked on another account (not a user of Processing) on this PC and it’s the same there.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RichardDL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@RichardDL](https://discourse.processing.org/u/RichardDL)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2025, 10:38am UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411/2 "2025-05-21T10:38:38Z")

</div>

Above was on a Windows-7 Laptop. I’ve just tried on a Windows-10 laptop and it’s alright, it jumps to the error line and highlights. Good.

The problem is probably on W7 only, or something I’ve done on the installation etc.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![joshg](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex036/user_avatar/discourse.processing.org/joshg/32/20226_2.png) [@joshg](https://discourse.processing.org/u/joshg)\
**Post date:** [May 21, 2025, 2:05pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411/3 "2025-05-21T14:05:03Z")

</div>

I noticed a related bug when looking at this, where things are flaky when jumping to an error that’s in a different tab. Can you reproduce the problem in a project with only one tab?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RichardDL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@RichardDL](https://discourse.processing.org/u/RichardDL)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2025, 4:11pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411/4 "2025-05-23T16:11:25Z")

</div>

Hello @joshg, thanks for your reply. It happens to me on sketches with 1 or several tabs.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![joshg](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex036/user_avatar/discourse.processing.org/joshg/32/20226_2.png) [@joshg](https://discourse.processing.org/u/joshg)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2025, 4:40am UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/processing-doesnt-say-where-the-error-is/46411/6 "2025-06-25T04:40:48Z")

</div>

FYI this didn’t get forgotten, and it’s being looked in to.

> <https://github.com/processing/processing4/issues/1153>
>
> \### Most appropriate sub-area of Processing 4?
> 
> PDE
> 
> \### Processing version
> 
> 4.4….4
> 
> \### Operating system
> 
> Ubuntu 24.04, Windows 10
> 
> \### Bug description
> 
> The location of an exception (e.g. NullPointerException) is not highlighted, nor is a stack trace printed. The only information printed is a red NullPointerException message at the bottom. There is no obvious way how to find out where this was thrown.
> 
> This seems to be a regression to earlier 3.x versions, where the line of the thrower would be at least highlighted. 
> 
> 
> 
> \### Steps to reproduce this
> 
> "1. open the below snippet in PDE
> 
> 2. run the snippet
> 
> 3. observe that the error message (NullPointerException) is not linked to any position in the code, nor is any position in the code highlighted, nor is a stack-trace or similar printed anywhere"
> 
> 
> \### snippet
> 
> \`\`\`
> PVector \[\] vs = new PVector\[10\];
> for (int i=0;i\<vs.length;++i)
> vs\[i\].set(0,0); // \<-- this position should be contained in the error message
> 
> \`\`\`
> 
> 
> \### Additional context
> 
> real showstopper when trying to debug any bigger program in PDE!
> 
> \### Would you like to work on the issue?
> 
> No, I’m just reporting the issue