# Empty Text leading online experiment not initializing

**URL:** <https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532>\
**Category:** Online experiments\
**Created:** [September 16, 2020, 11:04am UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532 "2020-09-16T11:04:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![BilNumbers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BilNumbers](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/BilNumbers)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 11:04am UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/1 "2020-09-16T11:04:28Z")

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URL of experiment: [https://run.pavlovia.org/RL/repro\_error\_emptytxt](https://run.pavlovia.org/RL/repro_error_emptytxt)

Hi all,

I noticed an issue with the Builder to JS tranlation when running on pavlovia: when having an empty text routine, the experiment is not working on pavlovia with a similar error as in [https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/experiment-stuck-initializing-the-experiment/13149=](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/experiment-stuck-initializing-the-experiment/13149=).  
From the JS debug mode, it seems to be the following out of place **comma** poses the problem but I don’t experience using JS:

```auto
function experimentInit() {
  // Initialize components for Routine "trial"
  trialClock = new util.Clock();
  text = new visual.TextStim({
    win: psychoJS.window,
    name: 'text',
    text: /* */
  ,
    font: 'Arial',
    units: undefined, 
    pos: [0, 0], height: 0.1, wrapWidth: undefined, ori: 0,
    color: new util.Color('white'), opacity: 1,
    depth: 0.0 
  });
 

```

1. Is the experiment stuck on initializing due to this comma out of place? How to fix it?
2. I use empty texts in my experiment to span the time occurring between trials, is there another way of doing it?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BilNumbers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BilNumbers](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/BilNumbers)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 12:02pm UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/2 "2020-09-16T12:02:38Z")

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I have found a simple pragmatic way out: I wrote a text in grey so that it does not appear on a grey background.

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**Author:** ![sotiri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@sotiri](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/sotiri)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 12:26pm UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/3 "2020-09-16T12:26:59Z")

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Hey @BilNumbers, I believe the issue has been addressed in the latest version of PsychoPy? Are you on 2020.2.4 already? Here to help, thanks, s.

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**Author:** ![BilNumbers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BilNumbers](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/BilNumbers)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 12:50pm UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/4 "2020-09-16T12:50:31Z")

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Hi @sotiri,  
thanks for answering, yes the issue occurs with the latest Psychopy 2020.2.4 Builder version.  
(I have just read your answers to similar issues at [PsychoPy 2020.2.3 is not uploading on Pavlovia](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/psychopy-2020-2-3-is-not-uploading-on-pavlovia/15904/16)).

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BilNumbers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BilNumbers](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/BilNumbers)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 1:18pm UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/5 "2020-09-16T13:18:43Z")

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I just noticed this issue is listed in the crib sheet of @wakecarter: [https://docs.google.com/document/d/13jp0QAqQeFlYSjeZS0fDInvgaDzBXjGQNe4VNKbbNHQ/edit#](https://docs.google.com/document/d/13jp0QAqQeFlYSjeZS0fDInvgaDzBXjGQNe4VNKbbNHQ/edit#)

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sotiri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@sotiri](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/sotiri)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2020, 4:32pm UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/6 "2020-09-16T16:32:33Z")

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@JensBoelte @BilNumbers You’re absolutely right, it’s a bug! I have now raised [the issue on GitHub](https://github.com/psychopy/psychopy/issues/3141). For now, would it be possible to follow Crib Sheet advice and set your text to ’ ’ or correct the JS in place? Many thanks, s.

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**Author:** ![mario.reutter](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.psychopy.org/mario.reutter/32/5750_2.png) [@mario.reutter](https://discourse.psychopy.org/u/mario.reutter)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2020, 8:29am UTC](https://discourse.psychopy.org/t/empty-text-leading-online-experiment-not-initializing/16532/7 "2020-09-23T08:29:41Z")

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I had the same problem and downgraded to [version 2020.1.3](https://github.com/psychopy/psychopy/releases/tag/2020.1.3) to fix it. Correcting the Javascript manually is very tiresome and errorprone while still developing/testing.