Ah! I got it to work. The inline if may work easier than what I did (or perhaps in the same way. Honestly I don't quite get them). But here is what works for me:
EditPrint (@doggyName 14 "Aren't you a good doggy? Your name shall be:" #at 70 40 )
(if(== doggyName 0)
Format(@doggyName "Fido")
)
Format(@buffer "You shall be known as %s." @doggyName)
Print(@buffer #at -1 40 #mode alCENTER #width 250)
I needed to test the variable doggyName and when I tested it as a word == @doggyName "", it didn't work. But if the player puts nothing, then the value is zero. The second part, the part that was easier, is to set the variable as a word. = doggyName "Fido" will not work. But Format(@doggyName "Fido") gets the job done.
Edit: if they player enters in a space however, his name will be " " . Since the variable in this case will have a value, my code doesn't correct this slight problem, but I really doubt it will have much bearing...