Help needed with simple sketch

[butchalline]

Here is the sketch:

// compiles OK with IDE 1.8.12, but does not work with ESP32 dev board (set to defaults) or with a UNO
// expected to print "Send lower case a, b,c,...m" to serial monitor using function in the loop
void setup() // ******************************************************* start of setup
{
  Serial.begin(9600); // does not work at other baud rates or other serial ports or serial cables
  Serial.println("ready"); // just to let humans know that * something * has happened
  //Serial.println("Send lower case a, b,c,...m"); // prints as expected here
}
void loop() // ******************************************************* start of loop
{
  test;
}

void test()  // changing the name does not change the outcome
{
  Serial.println("Send lower case a, b,c,...m"); // sometimes prints ?⸮V⸮⸮5 or usually prints nothing
  Serial.print("print"); // prints nothing
  //Serial.write("write"); // compile error  processing.app.SerialException: Error opening serial port 'COM6'
  delay(500);  // various delays do not change the outcome - nothing printed in the loop
}

Any and all help or suggestions are appreciated, thanks.

[PaulRB]

void loop() // ******************************************************* start of loop
{
  test(); // brackets are important!
}

[sterretje]

This is what I get when I compile your sketch for a Nano.

C:\Users\sterretje\AppData\Local\Temp\arduino_modified_sketch_627208\sketch_apr08a.ino: In function 'void loop()':

C:\Users\sterretje\AppData\Local\Temp\arduino_modified_sketch_627208\sketch_apr08a.ino:11:7: warning: statement is a reference, not call, to function 'test' [-Waddress]

   test;

       ^

C:\Users\sterretje\AppData\Local\Temp\arduino_modified_sketch_627208\sketch_apr08a.ino:11:7: warning: statement has no effect [-Wunused-value]

So it does not compile OK

Change your loop() to

void loop() // ******************************************************* start of loop
{
  test();
}

[sterretje]

To see the warnings as I got them, go to file -> preferences and set compiler warnings to all and compile again.

[butchalline]

Thanks to all of the above.
Brackets are indeed important !!