Are there any plans to provide some sort of debugging tools for Appian expressio

Mark, when writing/modifying expressions, I like to use the "create an expression rule" interface and an advanced text editor. This way I can unit test pieces of my expression and build it up from the inside out. Some text editors can also be configured to help you identify parenthesis pairs.

I'm already using both. The expression rule interface only confirms that the right number of parts are used for a function and that the parenthesis match. The text editor allows me to match up the parenthesis, but obviously has no idea if the expression is actually valid. I also create temporary columns in a report to test specific parts of an expression, but there are too many cases where an expression part won't work on its own, forcing me to debug the whole thing.

The ability to actually run an expression step by step would be a huge help--and something that most modern programming packages have.

Mark, is your sail expression in a rule? Usually the error message will display which line of the rule the error is taking place in. This can be helpful for finding the source of your error.

They aren't SAIL expressions--they are portal report expressions. After we spent a few weeks trying to figure it out on our own, we've decided to hold off on Tempo Records/Reports until we go to formal training.