I'm a bit new to WPF/XAML (though I've learnt C#) and would really appreciate any help for my question. I did look around other posts and google for a while but I can't seem to find a satisfactory or detailed answer to get me going on with my project. Please look below for details. Thanks you in advance!
Objective
I have a class called Tile that consists of a few properties and an event handler.
I also have an ItemControl that has a button (as by the DataTemplate), and whose ItemSource is a collection of Tiles.
Now, I want to bind the "Click" event of the Button so as to invoke the Event Handler method defined in the class Tile.
In other words when I click the button of any item in the ItemControl, the method handler of the corresponding Tile instance (from the collection) must be invoked. How would I tackle this problem?
Below is the entire code, simplified to avoid distraction:
XAML
<Window x:Class="SampleWPF.MainWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
Title="MainWindow" Height="300" Width="300">
<!-- Make a ItemControl for "Tile"s. -->
<ItemsControl x:Name="TileList">
<ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<!-- Wire the click event of this Button
to event handler in the Tile class. -->
<Button Content="Show"></Button>
</DataTemplate>
</ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
</ItemsControl>
</Window>
CODE-BEHIND
namespace SampleWPF
{
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
ObservableCollection<Tile> tiles;
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
// Adding some sample data for testing.
tiles = new ObservableCollection<Tile>();
tiles.Add(new Tile("Item 1"));
tiles.Add(new Tile("Item 2"));
TileList.ItemsSource = tiles;
}
}
public class Tile : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public string Data
{ /* Accessors and PropertyNotifiers */ }
public Tile(string data)
{ /* Initializing and assigning "Data" */ }
// INotifyPropertyChanged implementation...
// { ... }
// This event handler should be bound to the Button's "Click" event
// in the DataTemplate of the Item.
public void ShowButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
MessageBox.Show("Viewing item from: " + this.Data);
}
}
}
Hence, if I click the first "Show" button, the output should be "Viewing item from: Item 1" and if I click the second "Show" Button, the output should be "Viewing item from: Item 2".
So what is the recommended/efficient way to do this? Is my code inappropriate for this requirement?
Event handlers are the wrong approach - use Commands and more importantly MVVM.
As I can see that you are new (and probably from a WinForms or ASP.NET background) you should read this blog to understand how your thinking needs to change - this is the most important part to understand before tackling WPF: http://rachel53461.wordpress.com/2012/10/12/switching-from-winforms-to-wpfmvvm/
You should also read Kent Boogart's blog on how MVVM works from base principles: http://kentb.blogspot.co.uk/2009/03/view-models-pocos-versus.html
Let me start with some basics:
Don't assign itemsource in codeBehind - use Binding like this:
<Controll ItemSource="{Binding MyObservableCollection}"/>
There are many ways You can achieve this. I think that using this.Data is not the best solution for this.
For example if Your tail have ID or something You can assign this id to button CommandParameter like below
<Button CommanParameter="{Binding Path=ID}" Click="ShowButton_Click"/>
And then in Your button_click event u can 'catch' this like this:
public void ShowButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
int ID = int.Parse(((Button)sender).CommandParameter.ToString());
}
EDIT
To use this binding You need to set DataContext. You can do this in ctor like this:
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
// Adding some sample data for testing.
tiles = new ObservableCollection<Tile>();
tiles.Add(new Tile("Item 1"));
tiles.Add(new Tile("Item 2"));
// below You are setting a datacontext of a MainWindow to itself
this.DataContext = this;
}
ANOTHER EDIT
Let's assume Your tail class have property called ID. If You bound this ID to Button.CommandParameter You can later retrieve the tile with linq like this:
public void ShowButton_click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
int MyId = int.Parse(((Button)sender).CommandParameter.ToString());
Tile TileIWasSearchingFor = (from t in tiles where t.ID == MyId select t).First();
// do something with tile You found
}
Well since my requirement was rather "simple", I've managed a work around, avoiding commands. Thanks to the answer here by MajkeloDev: https://stackoverflow.com/a/27419974/3998255 for guidance.
This is the final event handler:
public void ShowButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Tile requestingTile = (sender as Button).DataContext as Tile;
if(requestingTile != null)
MessageBox.Show("Viewing item from: " + this.Data);
// Or whatever else you want to do with the object...
}
Also, adding the ItemSource as a XAML attribute:
<ItemsControl x:Name="TileList" ItemsSource="{Binding tiles}">
And setting DataContext in constructor of MainWindow:
public MainWindow()
{
this.DataContext = this;
// Whatever else you want to do...
}
Well it works as required.
Related
I have a form that has a dynamic amount of datagrids that are brought in programmatically each one on a new tabpage.
My problem is that I need to change the Header of each column. I have tried doing it through a method
DataGridForSupplier.Columns[0].Header = "123";
but that keeps crashing with an error:
Index was out of range. Must be non-negative and less than the size of the collection
Turns out the problem is that the grid wasn't finished loading. So after waiting for all tabpage to load and add data to all the grids , even then the code
DataGridForSupplier.Columns[0].Header = "123";
would still crash. If the tabs are left to load on their own with no header tampering then the datagrid shows fine.
I would just LOVE to do this in XAML problem is that seeing that I don't know how many grids will load at run time I tried doing this at the back. So I'm open to any solution at this point. I tried finding a solution that would incorporate something that would 'theme' all the datagrids. Luckily all the datagrids headers will repeat across all tabs. So header 1 on tabpage 1 - 10 will be the same. Header 2 on tabpage 1 - 10 will be the same
Something like
<DataGridTemplateColumn.Header>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding DataContext.HeaderNameText, RelativeSource=>> RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type DataGrid}}}" />
</DataGridTemplateColumn.Header>
but this needs to repeat for every Grid. This seems to escape me at the moment.
Any help would be welcome.
A rather lengthy answer, but this solution does not require any additional libraries, 3rd party tools, etc. You can expand it as you want later such as for adding hooks to mouse-move/over/drag/drop/focus, etc. First the premise on subclassing which I found out early in my learning WPF. You can not subclass a xaml file, but can by a .cs code file. In this case, I subclassed the DataGrid to MyDataGrid. Next, I created an interface for a known control type to ensure contact of given functions/methods/properties. I have stripped this version down to cover just what you need to get.
The interface below is just to expose any class using this interface MUST HAVE A METHOD called MyDataGridItemsChanged and expects a parameter of MyDataGrid.. easy enough
public interface IMyDataGridSource
{
void MyDataGridItemsChanged(MyDataGrid mdg);
}
Now, declaring in-code a MyDataGrid derived from DataGrid. In this class, I am adding a private property of type IMyDataGridSource to grab at run-time after datagrids are built and bound.
public class MyDataGrid : DataGrid
{
// place-holder to keep if so needed to expand later
IMyDataGridSource boundToObject;
public MyDataGrid()
{
// Force this class to trigger itself after the control is completely loaded,
// bound to whatever control and is ready to go
Loaded += MyDataGrid_Loaded;
}
private void MyDataGrid_Loaded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
// when the datacontext binding is assigned or updated, see if it is based on
// the IMyDataGridSource object. If so, try to type-cast it and save into the private property
// in case you want to add other hooks to it directly, such as mouseClick, grid row changed, etc...
boundToObject = DataContext as IMyDataGridSource;
}
// OVERRIDE the DataGrid base class when items changed and the ItemsSource
// list/binding has been updated with a new set of records
protected override void OnItemsChanged(NotifyCollectionChangedEventArgs e)
{
// do whatever default behavior
base.OnItemsChanged(e);
// if the list is NOT bound to the data context of the IMyDataGridSource, get out
if (boundToObject == null)
return;
// the bound data context IS of expected type... call method to rebuild column headers
// since the "boundToObject" is known to be of IMyDataGridSource,
// we KNOW it has the method... Call it and pass this (MyDataGrid) to it
boundToObject.MyDataGridItemsChanged(this);
}
}
Next into your form where you put the data grid. You will need to add an "xmlns" reference to your project so you can add a "MyDataGrid" instead of just "DataGrid". In my case, my application is called "StackHelp" as this is where I do a variety of tests from other answers offered. The "xmlns:myApp" is just making an ALIAS "myApp" to the designer to it has access to the classes within my application. Then, I can add
<Window x:Class="StackHelp.MyMainWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:myApp="clr-namespace:StackHelp"
Title="Main Window" Height="700" Width="900">
<StackPanel>
<!-- adding button to the main window to show forced updated list only -->
<Button Content="Refresh Data" Width="100"
HorizontalAlignment="Left" Click="Button_Click" />
<myApp:MyDataGrid
ItemsSource="{Binding ItemsCollection, NotifyOnSourceUpdated=True}"
AutoGenerateColumns="True" />
</StackPanel>
</Window>
Now, into the MyMainWindow.cs code-behind
namespace StackHelp
{
public partial class MyMainWindow : Window
{
// you would have your own view model that all bindings really go to
MyViewModel VM;
public MyMainWindow()
{
// Create instance of the view model and set the window binding
// to this public object's DataContext
VM = new MyViewModel();
DataContext = VM;
// Now, draw the window and controls
InitializeComponent();
}
// for the form button, just to force a refresh of the data.
// you would obviously have your own method of querying data and refreshing.
// I am not obviously doing that, but you have your own way to do it.
private void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
// call my viewmodel object to refresh the data from whatever
// data origin .. sql, text, import, whatever
VM.Button_Refresh();
}
}
}
Finally to my sample ViewModel which incorporates the IMyDataGridSource
public class MyViewModel : IMyDataGridSource, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected virtual void RaisePropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{ PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName)); }
public ObservableCollection<OneItem> ItemsCollection { get; set; }
= new ObservableCollection<OneItem>();
public void Button_Refresh()
{
ItemsCollection = new ObservableCollection<OneItem>
{
new OneItem{ DayName = "Sunday", DayOfWeek = 0},
new OneItem{ DayName = "Monday", DayOfWeek = 1},
new OneItem{ DayName = "Tuesday", DayOfWeek = 2},
new OneItem{ DayName = "Wednesday", DayOfWeek = 3},
new OneItem{ DayName = "Thursday", DayOfWeek = 4},
new OneItem{ DayName = "Friday", DayOfWeek = 5 },
new OneItem{ DayName = "Saturday", DayOfWeek = 6 }
};
RaisePropertyChanged("ItemsCollection");
}
// THIS is the magic hook exposed that will allow you to rebuild your
// grid column headers
public void MyDataGridItemsChanged(MyDataGrid mdg)
{
// if null or no column count, get out.
// column count will get set to zero if no previously set grid
// OR when the items grid is cleared out. don't crash if no columns
if (mdg == null)
return;
mdg.Columns[0].Header = "123";
}
}
Now, taking this a step further. I don't know how you manage your view models and you may have multiple grids in your forms and such. You could create the above MyViewModel class as a smaller subset such as MyDataGridManager class. So each datagrid is bound to its own MyDataGridManager instance. It has its own querying / populating list for the grid, handling its own rebuild column headers, mouse clicks (if you wanted to expand), record change selected, etc.
Hope this helps you some. Again, this does not require any other 3rd party libraries and you can extend as you need. I have personally done this and more to the data grid and several other controls for certain specific pattern handling.
I have a XAML layout similar to this:
<Grid>
<TextBox x:Name="inputTextBox" LostFocus="inputTextBox_LostFocus" TextChanged="inputTextBox_TextChanged" GotFocus="inputTextBox_GotFocus" />
<ComboBox x:Name="inputComboBox" SelectionChanged="inputComboBox_SelectionChanged">
<ComboBoxItem IsSelected="True">10</ComboBoxItem>
<ComboBoxItem>15</ComboBoxItem>
<ComboBoxItem>20</ComboBoxItem>
</ComboBox>
<ComboBox x:Name="inputComboBoxTwo" SelectionChanged="inputComboBoxTwo_SelectionChanged">
<ComboBoxItem IsSelected="True">1</ComboBoxItem>
<ComboBoxItem>2</ComboBoxItem>
<ComboBoxItem>3</ComboBoxItem>
</ComboBox>
</Grid>
Pretty simple. In the codebehind C# file, I use these controls to take in a double from the TextBox, some more ints from the ComboBoxes, then I create a calculator type object with the data from the controls. I make the calculation and display the results in some other TextBlocks.
namespace TipCalc
{
public sealed partial class MainPage : Page
{
Calc x = new Calc();
public MainPage()
{
this.InitializeComponent();
this.NavigationCacheMode = NavigationCacheMode.Required;
}
//
//Appropriate event handlers from XAML controls that all call the calculation method.
//
private void calcIt()
{
x.amt = double.Parse(inputTextBox.Text);
x.cal1 = int.Parse(inputComboBox.SelectedItem.ToString());
x.cal2 = int.Parse(inputComboBoxTwo.SelectedItem.ToString());
//Send calculated values to output TextBlocks.
}
}
}
When I run this program, I hit a null pointer exception that is thrown when I attempt to access the text property of the TextBox. It turns out that all of the XAML controls are null. However, _contentLoaded is set to true and the code definition for this.IntializeComponent looks correct behind the scenes.
Why are all my controls set to null when it seems like everything is working correctly? Is there a way to manually initialize them if they aren't correctly being initialized automatically? Am I doing anything wrong?
the code run like:
Calc x = new Calc();
this.InitializeComponent();
Calc() was first than InitializeComponent(), but InitializeComponent() create your controls.
you can change to:
Calc x;
public MainPage()
{
this.InitializeComponent();
x = new Calc();
this.NavigationCacheMode = NavigationCacheMode.Required;
}
I have the same problem with some of my TextBox controls when the class initializes. What I did to solve this is not the real and perfect solution because not all the controls (TextBox, ComboBox, RadioButton, etc) are null when the class is running, and there's something happening in my code or my app or my VS that I'm missing or doing wrong.... But at least is working fine now. I hope is useful to you:
if(TextBox1 == null)
{
//I'm re-initializing the control because is null
TextBox1 = new TextBox();
}
For your code it should be something like this:
if(inputTextBox == null)
{
inputTextBox.Text = new TextBox();
}
x.amt = double.Parse(inputTextBox.Text);
I hope this 'solution' is good enough for you. And for my poor English I apologize if I have mistakes, is not my native language.
I have a Listview with items, in a C# Windows Store App (is that what you call these? I heard they're not called Metro Apps anymore).
Similar to the ExpandableListView in Android, I want to be able to tap on listitems (not the buttons) for that listitem to expand, tap on the expanded listitem for it to collapse, and if you tap on another listitem, the currently expanded listitem will collapse and the other will expand.
In my particular case I have a DataTemplate for both the expanded and non-expanded view of the listitems. I've seen that Android's ExpandableListView can expand the listitem with additional information (the Expander from WPF does something similar to that), instead of replacing it with a larger item, but is there a common solution for this in Windows Store Apps?
If not, what is the closest equivalent?
Like on the following drawing, I want to know if there is a component that can expand listitems in this way, or if not, which alternatives I have:
I ended up with a solution that works but doesn't look too fancy. It switches DataTemplate when you click items but there's no animation: it switches instantly.
Here's the important code parts:
XAML
<Page.Resources>
<DataTemplate x:Key="dtSmall">
<!--Component template for the un-expanded listitems-->
</DataTemplate>
<DataTemplate x:Key="dtEnlarged">
<!--Component template for the expanded listitems-->
</DataTemplate>
</Page.Resources>
<Grid>
<ListView x:Name="lvEnlargeable"
IsItemClickEnabled="True"
ItemTemplate="{StaticResource dtSmall}"
ItemsSource="{Binding ...}"
SelectionChanged="LVEnlargeable_SelectionChanged"
ItemClick="LVEnlargeable_ItemClick"/>
</Grid>
XAML.CS
public sealed partial class MainPage : Page
{
private DataTemplate dtSmall;
private DataTemplate dtEnlarged;
public MainPage()
{
this.InitializeComponent();
dtSmall = (DataTemplate)Resources["dtSmall"];
dtEnlarged = (DataTemplate)Resources["dtEnlarged"];
}
// A selected item is treated as an expanded/enlarged item
private void LVEnlargeable_SelectionChanged(object sender, SelectionChangedEventArgs e)
{
/* First we set all the items that has been deselected
to be collapsed, aka. using the dtSmall DataTemplate.
We expect 0 or 1 item to have been deselected
but handle all cases easily with a foreach loop.
*/
foreach (var item in e.RemovedItems)
{
// Set the DataTemplate of the deselected ListViewItems
((ListViewItem)(sender as ListView).ContainerFromItem(item)).ContentTemplate = dtSmall;
}
/* Then we set all the items that has been selected
to be expanded.
We should probably throw an Exception if more than 1 was found,
because it's unwanted behavior, but we'll ignore that for now.
*/
foreach (var item in e.AddedItems)
{
((ListViewItem)(sender as ListView).ContainerFromItem(e.AddedItems[0])).ContentTemplate = dtEnlarged;
}
}
/* We need click events because SelectionChanged-events
cannot detect clicks on an already selected item */
private void LVEnlargeable_ItemClick(object sender, ItemClickEventArgs e)
{
ListView lv = (sender as ListView);
/* Having set the IsItemClickEnabled property on the ListView to True
we have to handle selection events manually.
If nothing is selected when this click occurs, then select this item*/
if (lv.SelectedItem == null)
{
lv.SelectedItem = e.ClickedItem;
}
else
{
// Clicking on an expanded/selected/enlarged item will deselect it
if (lv.SelectedItem.Equals(e.ClickedItem))
{
lv.SelectedItem = null;
}
else
{ /* If it's not a selected item, then select it
(and let SelectionChanged unselect the already selected item) */
lv.SelectedItem = e.ClickedItem;
}
}
}
}
I haven't tested if this isolated code is enough, on its own, for this solution, but I hope it is, and this code at least contain the key points. It's late and I just wanted to post something for the curious-minded people. If this shows not to work for you, then please leave a comment about the issue and I'll make sure to add the missing parts.
I also messed with the ListViewItemStyleContainer's ListViewItemPresenter to have better selection effects etc. but I figure it's best to keep it short. If you find this interesting as well, then feel free to leave a comment for that too, and I'll try include it.
I have observed some unexpected or at least not-perfectly-matching-my-needs behaviour of textboxes bound to textproperties when I can't use using UpdateTrigger=PropertyChanged for my binding. Probably it is not an issue with the textbox but will occur with other editors as well.
In my example (source code attached), I have a WPF TabControl bound to some collection.
On each tab, you can edit an item from the collection, in various ways you can trigger a save-action, which should save the edits to some model.
The textboxes bound to each items' properties are (on purpose) kept to default update-trigger 'OnFocusLost'. This is because there is some expensive validation taking place when a new value is set.
Now I found there are at least two ways to trigger my save-action in such a way, that the last focused textbox does not update the bound value.
1) Changing the tab-item via mouse-click on its header and then clicking some save-button.
(changing back to the previous tab shows that the new value is even lost)
2) Triggering the save-command via KeyGesture.
I setup an example application that demonstrates the behaviour. Clicking on "Save All" will show all item values, the other save-button only shows the current item.
Q: What would be the best way to make sure that all bindingsources of all my textboxes will be updated before the bound objects are comitted?
Preferably there should be a single way that catches all possibilites, I dislike to catch each event differently, since I would worry to have forgotten some events.
Observing the selection-changed-event of the tab-control for example would solve issue 1) but not issue 2).
Now to the example:
XAML first:
<Window x:Class="TestOMat.TestWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:TestOMat="clr-namespace:TestOMat"
Title="TestOMat" x:Name="wnd">
<Grid>
<Grid.Resources>
<DataTemplate x:Key="dtPerson" DataType="{x:Type TestOMat:Person}">
<StackPanel Orientation="Vertical">
<StackPanel.CommandBindings>
<CommandBinding Command="Close" Executed="CmdSaveExecuted"/>
</StackPanel.CommandBindings>
<TextBox Text="{Binding FirstName}"/>
<TextBox Text="{Binding LastName}"/>
<Button Command="ApplicationCommands.Stop" CommandParameter="{Binding}">Save</Button>
</StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>
</Grid.Resources>
<Grid.RowDefinitions>
<RowDefinition/>
<RowDefinition/>
</Grid.RowDefinitions>
<Grid.CommandBindings>
<CommandBinding Command="ApplicationCommands.Stop" Executed="CmdSaveAllExecuted"/>
</Grid.CommandBindings>
<TabControl ItemsSource="{Binding ElementName=wnd, Path=Persons}" ContentTemplate="{StaticResource dtPerson}" SelectionChanged="TabControl_SelectionChanged"/>
<Button Grid.Row="1" Command="ApplicationCommands.Stop">Save All</Button>
</Grid></Window>
And the corresponding class
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Controls;
namespace TestOMat
{
/// <summary>
/// Interaction logic for TestOMat.xaml
/// </summary>
public partial class TestWindow : Window
{
public TestWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private List<Person> persons = new List<Person>
{
new Person {FirstName = "John", LastName = "Smith"},
new Person {FirstName = "Peter", LastName = "Miller"}
};
public List<Person> Persons
{
get { return persons; }
set { persons = value; }
}
private void CmdSaveExecuted(object sender, System.Windows.Input.ExecutedRoutedEventArgs e)
{
Person p = e.Parameter as Person;
if (p != null)
{
MessageBox.Show(string.Format("FirstName={0}, LastName={1}", p.FirstName, p.LastName));
e.Handled = true;
}
}
private void CmdSaveAllExecuted(object sender, System.Windows.Input.ExecutedRoutedEventArgs e)
{
MessageBox.Show(String.Join(Environment.NewLine, Persons.Select(p=>string.Format("FirstName={0}, LastName={1}", p.FirstName, p.LastName)).ToArray()));
e.Handled = true;
}
private void TabControl_SelectionChanged(object sender, SelectionChangedEventArgs e)
{
Console.WriteLine(String.Format("Selection changed from {0} to {1}", e.RemovedItems, e.AddedItems));
// Doing anything here only avoids loss on selected-tab-change
}
}
public class Person
{
public string FirstName { get; set; }
public string LastName { get; set; }
}
}
Maybe it's not nice to answer own questions, but I think this answer is more suitable to the question than others, and therefore worth to be written. Surely this was also because I did not describe the problem clearly enough.
Finally, just as a quick'n'dirty proof of concept, I worked around it like this:
The LostFocus-Event is never fired on the TextBox, when I switch the tab. Therefore, the binding doesn't update and the entered value is lost, because switching back makes the binding refresh from its source.
But what IS fired is the PreviewLostFocus-Event, hence I hooked in this tiny function, that manually triggers the update to the binding source:
private void BeforeFocusLost(object sender, KeyboardFocusChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (sender is TextBox) {
var tb = (TextBox)sender;
var bnd = BindingOperations.GetBindingExpression(tb, TextBox.TextProperty);
if (bnd != null) {
Console.WriteLine(String.Format("Preview Lost Focus: TextBox value {0} / Data value {1} NewFocus will be {2}", tb.Text, bnd.DataItem, e.NewFocus));
bnd.UpdateSource();
}
Console.WriteLine(String.Format("Preview Lost Focus Update forced: TextBox value {0} / Data value {1} NewFocus will be {2}", tb.Text, bnd.DataItem, e.NewFocus));
}
}
The output according to the event chain with PreviewLostFocus, LostFocus (both from TextBox) and SelectionChanged (from TabControl) will look like this:
Preview Lost Focus: TextBox value Smith123456 / Data value John Smith123 NewFocus will be System.Windows.Controls.TabItem Header:Peter Miller Content:Peter Miller
Preview Lost Focus Update forced: TextBox value Smith123456 / Data value John Smith123456 NewFocus will be System.Windows.Controls.TabItem Header:Peter Miller Content:Peter Miller
Selection changed from System.Object[] to System.Object[]
Preview Lost Focus: TextBox value Miller / Data value Peter Miller NewFocus will be System.Windows.Controls.TextBox: Peter
Preview Lost Focus Update forced: TextBox value Miller / Data value Peter Miller NewFocus will be System.Windows.Controls.TextBox: Peter
Lost Focus having value Miller
We see that the LostFocus only occurs at the end, but not before changing the TabItem. Still I think this is strange, possibly a bug in WPF or in the standard control templates.
Thank you all for your suggestions, sorry I couldn't really sign them to be answers, as they did not solve the loss of entries on tab-change.
You could write a style targeting all textboxes, in which you would have an EventSetter on the GotFocus or GotKeyboardFocus events, and on complementary LostFocus events. In the handler associated with the GotFocus events, you would set a "canSave" boolean variable to false, that in the LostFocus handler you'll set back to true. All you have to do then is to check before saving if your variable allows you too. If not, you can notify the user, or simply switch the focus from the textbox to something else. That way, the binding's update trigger for the currently edited textbox will trigger appropriately when its focus is lost.
Maybe set the UpdateSourceTrigger property of the binding:
<TextBox Text="{Binding FirstName, UpdateSourceTrigger=Explicit}"/>
I am not sure this is what you're looking for.
I am building a small wpf app in C#. When a button gets clicked a third
party dll function constructs a tree like object. This object is bound
to a treeview. This works fine but takes a bit of time to load. As the
dll function constructs the object it prints progress info to the
console. I want to redirect this into a TextBlock so that the user
gets to see the progress messages.
My window ctor looks like this:
InitializeComponent();
StringRedir s = new StringRedir(ref ProgressTextBlock);
Console.SetOut(s);
Console.SetError(s);
this.DataContext = s;
xaml:
<TextBlock Text="{Binding Path=Text}" Width="244"
x:Name="ProgressTextBlock" TextWrapping="Wrap" />
<TreeView >...</TreeView>
The StringRedir class is shown below. The problem is the TextBlock for
some reason does not get updated with the messages until the TreeView
gets loaded. Stepping through I see the Text property being updated
but the TextBlock is not getting refreshed. I added a MessageBox.Show
() at the point where Text gets updated and this seems to cause the
window to refresh each time and I am able to see each message. So I
guess I need some way to explicitly refresh the screen...but this
doesnt make sense I thought the databinding would cause a visual
refresh when the property changed. What am I missing here? How do I
get it to refresh? Any advice is appreciated!
public class StringRedir : StringWriter , INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private string text;
private TextBlock local;
public string Text {
get{ return text;}
set{
text = text + value;
OnPropertyChanged("Text");
}
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected void OnPropertyChanged(string name)
{
PropertyChangedEventHandler handler = PropertyChanged;
if (handler != null)
{
handler(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(name));
}
}
public StringRedir(ref TextBlock t)
{
local = t;
Text = "";
}
public override void WriteLine(string x)
{
Text = x +"\n";
//MessageBox.Show("hello");
}
}
You haven't included the code that is loading the data for the TreeView, but I'm guessing it's being done on the UI thread. If so, this will block any UI updates (including changes to the TextBlock) until it has completed.
So after doing some reading on the WPF threading model ( http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms741870.aspx ) I finally got it to refresh by calling Dispatcher Invoke() with Dispatch priority set to Render. As Kent suggested above UI updates in the dispatcher queue were probably low priority. I ended up doing something like this.
XAML
<TextBox VerticalScrollBarVisibility="Auto"
Text="{Binding Path=Text, NotifyOnTargetUpdated=True}"
x:Name="test" TextWrapping="Wrap" AcceptsReturn="True"
TargetUpdated="test_TargetUpdated"/>
C# target updated handler code
private void test_TargetUpdated(object sender, DataTransferEventArgs e)
{
TextBox t = sender as TextBox;
t.ScrollToEnd();
t.Dispatcher.Invoke(new EmptyDelegate(() => { }), System.Windows.Threading.DispatcherPriority.Render);
}
Note: Earlier I was using a TextBlock but I changed to a TextBox as it comes with scrolling
I still feel uneasy about the whole flow though. Is there a better way to do this?
Thanks to Matt and Kent for their comments. If I had points would mark their answers as helpful.
I believe the problem is in the constructor of your StringRedir class. You're passing in ProgessTextBlock, and you're doing this to it:
local.Text = "";
This is effectively overwriting the previously set value for ProgressTextBlock.Text, which was this:
{Binding Text}
See what I mean? By explicitly setting a value to the TextBlock's Text property, you've cancelled the binding.
If I'm reading right, it looks like the idea of passing a TextBlock into the StringRedir's ctor is a hangover from before you tried binding directly. I'd ditch that and stick with the binding idea as it's more in the "spirit" of WPF.