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C# WPF Directory Treeview with checkboxes: check items on building fails with empty PropertyChanged

In a WPF window I show a treeview with checkboxes with disks/directories on a Pc. When the user expands a node, an event calls folder_Expanded adding the subdirectories of that node.
What should happen is that certain directories show a color (this works) and certain directories are checked if they are found in a XML file. The user can then check or uncheck (sub)directories after which the modified directory selection is again stored in that xml file.
However, I can't get a checkbox in that treeviewitem checked with a certain directory. In the code of the expanded event, I test it with a sample directory. The background color works fine, but the IsSelected line is doing nothing. Reason is that PropertyChanged is null so it doesn't create an instance of PropertyChangedEventArgs. I would say I have everything: a model inheriting from INotifyPropertyChanged and assigned as DataContext in the XAML and setting the property IsChecked of the CheckBox as defined in the XAML via this model.
What do I miss?
Alternatively I would like to know if I can directly set the checkbox to checked, without databinding, like I set the background color? Problem with databinding is when it doesn't work there's no way to debug the code, it just doesn't work....
At the start:
SelectFilesModel selectFilesModel = new SelectFilesModel();
public SelectFiles()
{
InitializeComponent();
Window_Loaded();
}
void folder_Expanded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
TreeViewItem item = (TreeViewItem)sender;
if (item.Items.Count == 1 && item.Items[0] == dummyNode)
{
item.Items.Clear();
try
{
foreach (string s in Directory.GetDirectories(item.Tag.ToString()))
{
TreeViewItem subitem = new TreeViewItem();
subitem.Header = s.Substring(s.LastIndexOf("\\") + 1);
subitem.Tag = s;
subitem.FontWeight = FontWeights.Normal;
subitem.Items.Add(dummyNode);
subitem.Expanded += new RoutedEventHandler(folder_Expanded);
if (s.ToLower() == "c:\\temp") // Sample directory to test
{
subitem.Background = Brushes.Yellow; // This works!
selectFilesModel.IsChecked = true; // Eventually PropertyChanged is always null!!
}
item.Items.Add(subitem);
}
}
catch (Exception e2)
{
MessageBox.Show(e2.Message + " " + e2.InnerException);
}
}
}
The XAML looks as follows:
<Window.DataContext>
<local:SelectFilesModel/>
</Window.DataContext>
<Grid>
<TreeView x:Name="foldersItem" SelectedItemChanged="foldersItem_SelectedItemChanged" Width="Auto" Background="#FFFFFFFF" BorderBrush="#FFFFFFFF" Foreground="#FFFFFFFF">
<TreeView.Resources>
<Style TargetType="{x:Type TreeViewItem}">
<Setter Property="HeaderTemplate">
<Setter.Value>
<DataTemplate>
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
<Image Name="img" Width="20" Height="20" Stretch="Fill"
Source="{Binding
RelativeSource={RelativeSource
Mode=FindAncestor,
AncestorType={x:Type TreeViewItem}},
Path=Header,
Converter={x:Static local:HeaderToImageConverter.Instance}}"
/>
<TextBlock Name="DirName" Text="{Binding}" Margin="5,0" />
<CheckBox Name="cb" Focusable="False" IsThreeState="True" IsChecked="{Binding IsChecked ,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" VerticalAlignment="Center"/> </StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>
</Setter.Value>
</Setter>
</Style>
</TreeView.Resources>
</TreeView>
</Grid>
and the model looks as follows:
public class SelectFilesModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
bool? _isChecked = false;
public bool? IsChecked
{
get { return _isChecked; }
set { this.SetIsChecked(value, true, true); }
}
void SetIsChecked(bool? value, bool updateChildren, bool updateParent)
{
if (value == _isChecked)
return;
_isChecked = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("IsChecked");
}
void RaisePropertyChanged(string prop)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null) { PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(prop)); }
}
} // SelectFilesModel

It would be interesting to see how youuu initialize the TreeView. It really looks like the selectFilesModel is not source of any data binding. It's not even part of your tree.
You are adding TreeViewItem manually (which is not a good idea - see your problem, which wouldn't exist if you would focus on dealing with the data models instead). Because of adding TreeViewItem elements directly, the DataContext of the TreeViewItem is the item itself.
The DataContext of your HeaderTemplate is the header value, which in your case is a string. You see selectFilesModel is never involved.
CheckBox.IsChecked currently binds to this string and we all know string has no property IsChecked.
What you should do is to create the tree using SelectFilesModel.
The following example is your modified code. It is not tested and written with no editor so it may contain minor erros. It should be enough to show the pattern.
Also note that Directory.EnumerateDirectories will perform much better in your scenario than Directory.GetDirectories.
Create an enum to express different states. Each state will map to a color which you set in XAML using a trigger.
enum DirectoryState
{
Default = 0,
Special
}
Then modify SelectFilesModel to allow to reference its children (subdirectories) and add a State enum property
public class SelectFilesModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
// TODO::Implement constructor to initialize properties
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
bool? _isChecked = false;
public bool? IsChecked
{
get { return _isChecked; }
set { this.SetValue(value, ref _isChecked, true, true); }
}
DirectoryState _state;
public DirectoryState State
{
get { return _state; }
set { this.SetValue(value, ref _state, true, true); }
}
string _path;
public string Path
{
get { return _path; }
set { this.SetValue(value, ref _path, true, true); }
}
public ObservableCollection<SelectFilesModel> Subdirectories { get; }
void SetValue<TValue>(TValue value, ref TValue field, bool updateChildren, bool updateParent, [CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
if (value == field)
return;
field = value;
RaisePropertyChanged(propertName);
}
void RaisePropertyChanged(string prop) => PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(prop));
}
Then build the tree using the model. Note that since Expanded is a routed event, you don't have to subscribe to each item explicitly. Just listen to the routed event.
ObservableCollection<SelectFilesModel> TreeRoot { get; }
public SelectFiles()
{
InitializeComponent();
Window_Loaded();
foldersItem.AddHandler(TreeViewItem.ExpandedEvent, new RoutedEventHandler(folder_Expanded)));
TreeRoot = new ObservableCollection<SelectFilesModel>() { new SelectFilesModel() };
foldersItem.ItemsSource = TreeRoot;
}
void folder_Expanded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
var item = (sender as TreeViewItem).DataContext as SelectFilesModel;
if (item.Subdirectories.Count == 1 && item.Subdirectories[0] == dummyNode)
{
item.Subdirectories.Clear();
try
{
foreach (string s in Directory.EnumerateDirectories(item.Path))
{
var subitem = new SelectFilesModel() { Path = Path.GetDirectoryName(s) };
subitem.Subdirectories.Add(dummyNode);
if (subitem.Path.ToLower() == "c:\\temp") // Sample directory to test
{
subitem.State = DirectoryState.Special; // This works!
subitem.IsChecked = true; // This should work too
}
item.Subdirectories.Add(subitem);
}
}
catch (Exception e2)
{
MessageBox.Show(e2.Message + " " + e2.InnerException);
}
}
}
Finally define the data temnplate with the appropriate triggers and add it to e.g. TreeView.Resources:
<HierarchicalDataTemplate DataType="{x:Type SelectFilesModel}
ItemsSource="{Binding Subdirectories}">
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
<Image Name="img" Width="20" Height="20" Stretch="Fill"
Source="{Binding
RelativeSource={RelativeSource
Mode=FindAncestor,
AncestorType={x:Type TreeViewItem}},
Path=Header,
Converter={x:Static local:HeaderToImageConverter.Instance}}"
/>
<TextBlock Name="DirName" Text="{Binding Path}" Margin="5,0" />
<CheckBox Name="cb" Focusable="False" IsThreeState="True" IsChecked="{Binding IsChecked ,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" VerticalAlignment="Center"/> </StackPanel>
<HierarchicalDataTemplate.Triggers>
<DataTrigger Binding="{Binding State}" Value="{x:Static DirectoryState.Special}">
<Setter TargetName="DirName" Property="Foreground" Value="Yellow" />
</DataTrigger>
</HierarchicalDataTemplate.Triggers>
</HierarchicalDataTemplate>

How to properly bind Checkbox property

I am working on a wpf application and I am dealing with checkboxes now
The problem when I set the Ischecked property to "True" like this:
<CheckBox Visibility="{Binding checkVisibility}" IsChecked="true"
IsEnabled="True"></CheckBox>
I get my checkbox checked
But when I try to bind a booléan property that it's value is "true" i get my checkbox always unchecked
I can't see where is the proplem
this is my xaml
<CheckBox Visibility="{Binding checkVisibility}" IsChecked="{Binding Path=test,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged,Mode=TwoWay}" IsEnabled="True"></CheckBox>
this is my property
public bool _test = true;
public bool test {
get {
return _test;
}
set {
if (_test == value) {
return;
}
_test = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("test");
}
}
I want my checkbox to reflect my property value and vice versa but it's not the case as my checkbox is always unchecked
I am missing something?
Edit
Here is my VM:
namespace X{
public class MyViewModel :
{
public MyViewModel()
{
TestCheckbox();
}
#Region Properties
public bool _test1 = true;
public bool test1
{
get
{
return _test1;
}
set
{
if (_test1 == value)
{
return;
}
_test1 = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("test1");
}
}
ObservableCollection<Output> _output_List;
public ObservableCollection<Output> output_List
{
get { return _output_List; }
set
{
if (_output_List == value) return;
_output_List = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("output_List");
}
}
#EndRegion
#Region ButtonCommand
private RelayCommand _SetOutputPropertiesCommand;
public RelayCommand SetOutputPropertiesCommand => _SetOutputPropertiesCommand
?? (_SetOutputPropertiesCommand = new RelayCommand(
() =>
{
foreach (Output item in output_List)
{
item.myvalue=Test2;
}
}
}));
#EndRegion
#Region Method
public void TestCheckbox()
{
Console.Writeline(Test2);
}
#EndRegion
}
public class Output
{
public string label { get; set; }
public string type { get; set; }
public bool myvalue { get; set; }
public bool Test2 { get; set; }
[System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations.Schema.NotMapped]
[JsonIgnore]
public string checkVisibility { get; set; }
}
}
My Xaml : my checkboxes are integrated in a DataGrid view
<DataGrid x:Name ="GridO" Style="{x:Null}"
ItemsSource= "{Binding output_List,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}"
AutoGenerateColumns="False" CellStyle="{StaticResource Body_Content_DataGrid_Centering}"
Margin="5,0" IsReadOnly="True" SelectionMode="Single" RowHeight="50" Height="Auto">
<DataGrid.Columns>
<DataGridTextColumn Width="40*" Binding="{Binding label}">
<DataGridTextColumn.HeaderTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text="Input"></TextBlock>
</DataTemplate>
</DataGridTextColumn.HeaderTemplate>
</DataGridTextColumn>
<DataGridTextColumn Width="40*" Binding="{Binding type}">
<DataGridTextColumn.HeaderTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text = "Type"></TextBlock>
</DataTemplate>
</DataGridTextColumn.HeaderTemplate>
</DataGridTextColumn>
<DataGridTemplateColumn Width="20*" >
<DataGridTemplateColumn.Header>
<TextBlock Text="Value" />
</DataGridTemplateColumn.Header>
<DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<CheckBox Margin="20,0,0,0" Visibility="{Binding checkVisibility }" IsChecked="{Binding Test2,Mode=TwoWay,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" IsEnabled="True"></CheckBox>
</DataTemplate>
</DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
</DataGridTemplateColumn>
</DataGrid.Columns>
</DataGrid>
<Button x:Name="Valid_output" Cursor="Hand" Background="Transparent" Height="55" Width="140" Margin="0,0,20,0" Command="{Binding SetOutputPropertiesCommand}" >
The bind is Working with "Test2" and not working with "Test1" which not in the same class as Test2
NB: the Button command(which is in the same class as "Test1") is working well
My DataTemplate: are in the App.xaml
xmlns:v="clr-namespace:X.View"
xmlns:vm="clr-namespace:X"
<DataTemplate DataType="{x:Type vm:MyViewModel}">
<v:MyWindow/>

I see the main problem in the DataGrid. You set ItemsSource to a collection, so for every row in the DataGrid the data source is one item in that collection. Not your MyViewModel.
This is the reason, why the Test2 is working - it is in the class which instances are in the collection.
You could try to add CheckBox to the window without DataGrid and bind the Test1 - it should work.
If you really want to use some property from your MyViewModel, you can, but it is not that easy. You have to have there something like:
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:local="clr-namespace:YourNamespace"
<!--...something...-->
<DataGrid.Resources>
<local:BindingProxy x:Key="Proxy" Data="{Binding}" />
</DataGrid.Resources>
<!--...something...-->
And then your binding in the DataGrid will look like this:
IsChecked="{Binding Data.Test1, Source={StaticResource Proxy}}"
Of course I don't know the exact settings of your application so you will have to complete/change the code according to them.

I suggest you to add a ViewModelBase class, like that
public abstract class ViewModelBase : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected virtual void OnPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName =
null)
{
PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
Extends your ViewModel with this ViewModelBase class and implements your property
private bool myProperty;
public bool MyProperty { get; set; OnPropertyChanged(); }
Then you just have to bind on your property
<CheckBox IsChecked="{Binding MyProperty}"></CheckBox>
EDIT: To set your ViewModel as DataContext for your View you can set it from the code
MyView.DataContext = new MyViewModel();
or from the view, in the Window/User Control
<Window x:Class="MyApplication.MainWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:local="clr-namespace:MyApplication"
Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="525"
DataContext="local.MyViewModel">

ComboBox Selected Item not updating

Problem
I am trying to bind a ComboBox's SelectedItem to a custom class but this does not update when the property is changed.INotifyPropertyChanged is implemented.
The DataContext
The DataContext is a custom class which contains many properties, but an extract of this is below. You can see it implements INotifyPropertyChanged and this called when the two properties are changed.
public class BctsChange : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
#region declarations
private byContact _Engineer;
public byContact Engineer
{
get { return _Engineer; }
set
{
_Engineer = value;
NotifyPropertyChanged("Engineer");
OnEngineerChanged();
}
}
private BctsSvc.DOSets _LeadingSet;
public BctsSvc.DOSets LeadingSet
{
get { return _LeadingSet; }
set { _LeadingSet = value; NotifyPropertyChanged("LeadingSet"); }
}
#endregion
#region INotify
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private void NotifyPropertyChanged(String propertyName = "")
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
#endregion
public BctsChange()
{
Engineer = new byContact(Environment.UserName);
}
private void OnEngineerChanged()
{
if (Engineer != null)
{
BctsSvc.DOSets leadSet = GetLeadingSetFromDeptCode(Engineer.DeptCode);
if (leadSet == null) return;
LeadingSet = leadSet;
}
}
private static BctsSvc.DOSets GetLeadingSetFromDeptCode(string DeptCode)
{
BctsSvc.BctsServiceSoapClient svc = new BctsSvc.BctsServiceSoapClient();
BctsSvc.DOSets setX = svc.GetSetFromDeptCode(DeptCode);
return setX;
}
}
The Window XAML
I have several controls on the window, but to keep the code simple I believe the following extract will suffice.
<Window x:Class="MyNamespace.wdSubmit"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:my="clr-namespace:MyNamespace"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
x:Name="ucReqForm"
Title="wdSubmit" >
<StackPanel Orientation="Vertical" HorizontalAlignment="Stretch">
<GroupBox Header="Engineer Details" Name="grpOwnerDetails" >
<StackPanel Orientation="Vertical">
<Grid VerticalAlignment="Top">
<Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
<ColumnDefinition Width="*"/>
<ColumnDefinition Width="35"/>
</Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
<Label Content="{Binding Engineer.FullName, FallbackValue='Please select an engineer by clicking →', Mode=OneWay}" Margin="5,0" IsEnabled="True" FontStyle="Italic" />
<Button Content="{StaticResource icoSearch}" HorizontalContentAlignment="Center" VerticalContentAlignment="Center" Grid.Column="1" Height="23" Name="btnSelectEngineer" Margin="0,0,5,0" HorizontalAlignment="Stretch" ToolTip="Search for an engineer responsible" Click="btnSelectEngineer_Click" />
</Grid>
<ComboBox Height="23" x:Name="ddSet2" Margin="5,0" ItemsSource="{Binding LeadingSets, Mode=OneWay, RelativeSource={RelativeSource Mode=FindAncestor, AncestorType=Window}}" SelectedItem="{Binding LeadingSet, Mode=TwoWay,UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged,NotifyOnTargetUpdated=True}" >
<ComboBox.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding SetName}" ToolTip="{Binding HelpInfo}"/>
</DataTemplate>
</ComboBox.ItemTemplate>
</ComboBox>
<my:LabelledDropdown Height="23" x:Name="ddSet" Margin="5,0" ItemsSource="{Binding LeadingSets, Mode=OneWay, RelativeSource={RelativeSource Mode=FindAncestor, AncestorType=Window}}" SelectedItem="{Binding LeadingSet, Mode=TwoWay,NotifyOnTargetUpdated=True,NotifyOnSourceUpdated=True}" Label="e.g. BodyHardware">
<my:LabelledDropdown.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding SetName}" ToolTip="{Binding HelpInfo}"/>
</DataTemplate>
</my:LabelledDropdown.ItemTemplate>
</my:LabelledDropdown>
</StackPanel>
</GroupBox>
</StackPanel>
</Window>
The above extract contains:
A Label that contains a contact's name, and a button to search for a contact, bound to the FullName of the Engineer
A ComboBox that contains departments within the company, bound to an ObservableCollection<DOSets>, which contains a list of departments
Two ComboBoxes, one which is a custom one and the other which is temporary to ensure the bug is not within the control. These are Databound to LeadingSet
Window Code Behind
In the code behind I set the DataContext to CurrentChange. When the user wants to select a different Engineer then this will update the selected department for the engineer in CurrentChange.
When the user changes the engineer, the data binding for the engineer is updated, but the selected department (Leading Set) isn't.
//Usings here
namespace MyNamespace
{
public partial class wdSubmit : Window, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private BctsSvc.BctsServiceSoapClient svc;
private BctsChange _CurrentChange;
public BctsChange CurrentChange
{
get { return _CurrentChange; }
set { _CurrentChange = value; OnPropertyChanged("CurrentChange"); }
}
private List<BctsSvc.DOSets> _LeadingSets;
public List<BctsSvc.DOSets> LeadingSets
{
get
{
return _LeadingSets;
}
}
public wdSubmit()
{
InitializeComponent();
svc = new BctsSvc.BctsServiceSoapClient();
_LeadingSets = svc.GetLeadSets().ToList();
OnPropertyChanged("LeadingSets");
this._CurrentChange = new BctsChange();
this.DataContext = CurrentChange;
CurrentChange.PropertyChanged += new PropertyChangedEventHandler(CurrentChange_PropertyChanged);
}
void CurrentChange_PropertyChanged(object sender, PropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
OnPropertyChanged("CurrentChange");
OnPropertyChanged(e.PropertyName);
}
private void btnSelectEngineer_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
byContact newContact = new frmSearchEngineer().ShowSearch();
if (newContact != null)
{
CurrentChange.Engineer = newContact;
PropertyChanged(CurrentChange, new PropertyChangedEventArgs("LeadingSet"));
PropertyChanged(CurrentChange.LeadingSet, new PropertyChangedEventArgs("LeadingSet"));
}
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected virtual void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
PropertyChangedEventHandler handler = PropertyChanged;
if (handler != null) handler(CurrentChange, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}

I've realised the problem may be due to the LeadingSet, returned when the engineer is changed, being a different instance to that in the ObservableCollection.

BooleanToVisibilityConverter not working, but TextBlock verifies it should be. What could be wrong?

I cannot get the following code to work. Please notice the TextBlock is verifying that the propertychanged event is triggering and updating as expected. The TextBlock updates to False as it should, but for some reason the local:AccountListControl does not go invisible. Any ideas?
Xaml:
<UserControl.Resources>
<BooleanToVisibilityConverter x:Key="BooleanToVisibilityConverter"/>
</UserControl.Resources>
<Grid>
<local:AccountListControl DataContext="{Binding AccountListVm}"
Visibility="{Binding AreAccountsVisible,
Converter={StaticResource BooleanToVisibilityConverter}}"/>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding AreAccountsVisible}"/>
</Grid>
Code behind:
public class Page : Notifiable
{
CoaWorkspace _ws;
public Page(CoaWorkspace ws)
{
_ws = ws;
ws.Model.Stash.PropertyChanged += PropertyChangedHandler;
(ws.Model.Stash.Selected as ICoaPackage)
.PropertyChanged += PropertyChangedHandler;
}
public IAccountListVm AccountListVm
{
get { return _AccountListVm; }
protected set { SetField(ref _AccountListVm, value); }
}
private IAccountListVm _AccountListVm = null;
public bool AreAccountsVisible
{
get { return _ws.Model.Stash.Selected.Id > 0; }
}
private void PropertyChangedHandler(object sender, PropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (e.PropertyName == "Selected" ||
e.PropertyName == "Id")
this.OnPropertyChanged("AreAccountsVisible");
}
}
UPDATE
I added the following xaml and confirmed the converter and the bindings are working properly.
<TextBlock Text="TEST TEXT" Visibility="{Binding AreAccountsVisible, Converter={StaticResource BooleanToVisibilityConverter}}"/>
So it must have something to do with the local:AccountsListControl UserControl. I would still be interested to know why this is causing a problem.

Your DataContext is pointed at the wrong level of your model. Here's a possible solution
<Grid>
<Border Visibility="{Binding AreAccoutsVisible,
Converter={StaticResource BooleanToVisibilityConverter}}">
<local:AccountListControl DataContext="{Binding AccountListVm}"/>
</Border>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding AreAccountsVisible}"/>
</Grid>

WPF behaviour to check/uncheck a checkbox in a list item

I have an application with several item controls (treeviews and others) which contain an item template with a checkbox inside. This checkbox checked state is bound to an IsChecked property of the item view model. This works correctly when clicking on the checkbox, but it's impossible to check/uncheck them with the keyboard (I believe this is due to the fact that the checkbox itself never gets the focus).
I like the solution proposed by DLeh in here: https://stackoverflow.com/a/24327765/352826 but I would like an improvement: Instead of having the behaviour calling a command on the base view model (the vm which contains the list of items), I would like the behaviour to directly act on the IsChecked property of the item.
My problem is that I don't know how to modify the behaviour or how to set up the binding on it, so that the behaviour can have access to the item's IsChecked property.
So, instead of the following:
<DataGrid>
<i:Interaction.Behaviors>
<shared:ToggleSelectOnSpace ToggleSelectCommand="{Binding Data.ToggleSelectParticipantCommand, Source={StaticResource BindingProxy}}" />
</i:Interaction.Behaviors>
...
</DataGrid>
I would have something like this:
<DataGrid>
<i:Interaction.Behaviors>
<shared:ToggleSelectOnSpace ItemsIsSelectedProperty="{Binding IsChecked}" />
</i:Interaction.Behaviors>
...
</DataGrid>
Update
I should add that my current implementation uses the PreviewKeyUp event in the itemscontrol and the following code behind implementation. The problem with this approach is that I have this code in many code behind files, so there is a lot of duplication. My goal is to replace this by a behaviour.
private void TreeView_OnPreviewKeyUp(object sender, KeyEventArgs e)
{
if (e.Key == Key.Space)
{
var tree = (TreeView) sender;
var item = tree.SelectedItem as IsSelectedViewModelBase;
if (item != null)
{
item.IsSelected = !item.IsSelected;
e.Handled = true;
}
}
}
Update 2
This is the item template and the checkbox is not checked when you press the space bar with the item selected.
<DataTemplate DataType="{x:Type viewModels:ItemViewModel}" >
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal" >
<CheckBox Focusable="False" IsChecked="{Binding IsSelected}" VerticalAlignment="Center" />
<StackPanel Margin="2">
<TextBlock Text="{Binding Username}" FontWeight="Bold" />
<TextBlock Text="{Binding FullName}" />
</StackPanel>
</StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>

Not an answer to the asked question per se, but the following will illustrate that it is possible for a check box within a list item to receive keyboard focus.
I created a new WPF project using the default Visual Studio template. This creates a single window called "MainWindow". Here's the contents of the XAML and code-behind of that window.
MainWindow.xaml.cs
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Windows;
namespace WpfApplication1
{
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
Thingies = new List<Thingy>
{
new Thingy { Name = "abc", IsChecked = false },
new Thingy { Name = "def", IsChecked = true },
new Thingy { Name = "ghi", IsChecked = false },
new Thingy { Name = "jkl", IsChecked = true },
new Thingy { Name = "mno", IsChecked = false },
}.ToArray();
DataContext = this;
}
public Thingy[] Thingies { get; private set; }
public class Thingy : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public string Name { get; set; }
public bool IsChecked
{
get
{
return _isChecked;
}
set
{
if (_isChecked != value)
{
_isChecked = value;
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this,
new PropertyChangedEventArgs("IsChecked"));
}
Console.WriteLine(Name + " = " + _isChecked);
}
}
}
bool _isChecked;
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
}
}
}
MainWindow.xaml
<Window x:Class="WpfApplication1.MainWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="525">
<ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding Thingies}">
<ListBox.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<UniformGrid Rows="1" Width="400">
<TextBlock Text="{Binding Name}" />
<CheckBox IsChecked="{Binding IsChecked}" />
</UniformGrid>
</DataTemplate>
</ListBox.ItemTemplate>
</ListBox>
</Window>