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Xamarin.Forms and Prism - How to pass data and navigate to another view?

This's my first question here, so hi everybody.
I'm working on the mobile app in Xamarin.Forms with Prism. I've created ListView where shown data from the database.
When the user clicks in the selected row app should navigate to a new view and pass the selected item from ListView.
<ListView x:Name="DefectsBase"
RowHeight="65"
ItemsSource="{Binding Defects}"
ItemSelected="ShowDetailsEvent"
IsPullToRefreshEnabled="true"
RefreshCommand="{Binding Refresh}"
IsRefreshing="{Binding IsRefreshing}">
Code backend:
async void ShowDetailsEvent(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
var myListView = (ListView)sender;
var myItem = myListView.SelectedItem;
var p = new NavigationParameters();
p.Add("selectedDefect", myItem);
await _navigationService.NavigateAsync("DefectDetailsView", p);
}
Unfortunately, the app doesn't respond to pressing the selected row in ListView.

As I can see you are already using Prism and you have a List page with Items and you want to navigate to some details page based on the selected/taped/chosen item which the user taps in the ListView.
The idea is to move as much code and logic as we can to the view model and keep our code-behind. This is pretty easy to solve using Prism and EventToCommand behaviour.
In the example and answer below, I will show you how to solve this with few lines of code, with a nice code approach.
First of all, I recommend you use EventToCommand behaviour, you can include it with prism xmlns, like this: xmlns:prism="http://prismlibrary.com", later on, you can use it with ListView.
Remove ItemSelected event from your ListView and move the markup about it to the <ListView.Behaviors> part. Here is my code sample for the ListView which binds to some ObserverableCollection of the Car models:
<ListView ItemsSource="{Binding Cars}">
<ListView.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
...
</DataTemplate>
</ListView.ItemTemplate>
<ListView.Behaviors>
<prism:EventToCommandBehavior EventName="ItemTapped"
Command="{Binding SelectedCarCommand}"
EventArgsParameterPath="Item" />
</ListView.Behaviors>
The main part here is <ListView.Behaviors>, where you can see that I am binding to the SelectedCarCommand which will be invoked when the user taps on some of the items from the list. I am using the ItemTapped event for this and passing the current "taped" item from the list as a parameter.
In order to follow this XAML part in my view model of this page, I have declared the DelegateCommand and method which will be called when the command is invoked. The view model part looks like this:
This is my CarListPageViewModel, take a look at DelegateCommand and SelectedCar method.
public class CarListPageViewModel
{
private readonly INavigationService _navigationService;
public ObservableCollection<Car> Cars { get; set; }
public DelegateCommand<Car> SelectedCarCommand { get; private set; }
public CarListPageViewModel(INavigationService navigationService, IDataProvider dataProvider)
{
_navigationService = navigationService;
// Insert test data into collection of Cars
Cars = new ObservableCollection<Car>(dataProvider.GetData());
SelectedCarCommand = new DelegateCommand<Car>(SelectedCar);
}
private async void SelectedCar(Car selectedCar)
{
NavigationParameters navigationParameters = new NavigationParameters
{
{ "selectedCar", selectedCar }
};
await _navigationService.NavigateAsync(nameof(CarDetailsPage), navigationParameters);
}
}
As you can see we have DelegateCommand defined with the type of parameter which will be passed, in my case, this is the Car class, the same class as our items in the ListView.
In the constructor, I did my initialization and defined the method which will be called, that method has a parameter of the type Car.
When the user taps on one of the items in the ListView, SelectedCar (method) will be called and we can pass the data to the next view using NavigationParameters and NavigationService.
In order to retrieve the passed data we can use INavigationAware in the details view model and with the OnNavigatedTo method, access the data which is being passed.
This is my CarDetailsPageViewModel, take a look at OnNavigatedTo method.
public class CarDetailsPageViewModel : BindableBase, INavigationAware
{
private string carTitle;
public string CarTitle
{
get { return carTitle; }
set { SetProperty(ref carTitle, value); }
}
private string photoUrl;
public string PhotoUrl
{
get { return photoUrl; }
set { SetProperty(ref photoUrl, value); }
}
public CarDetailsPageViewModel() { }
public void OnNavigatedTo(INavigationParameters parameters)
{
if (parameters.ContainsKey("selectedCar"))
{
Car car = parameters.GetValue<Car>("selectedCar");
if (car != null)
{
CarTitle = $"{car.Make} {car.Model}";
PhotoUrl = car.PhotoUrl;
}
}
}
public void OnNavigatedFrom(INavigationParameters parameters) { }
}
From this answer and example, you can see:
How to, use EventToCommand behaviour with ListView
Define and use DelegateCommand with passing parameter
How to navigate to another view and pass navigation parameter and
... finally how to access the passed data.
Code and this sample you can find on my GitHub profile here.
Hope this answer was helpful for you!
Wishing you lots of luck with coding! 👋

Instantiating multiple view and passing data to each one

I have a prism app where I am instantiating multiple views in the code-behind of a parent view based on a property in the viewmodel
public I2CNavigatorView()
{
InitializeComponent();
var viewModel = (I2CNavigatorViewModel) DataContext;
for (int i = 0; i < viewModel.NumberOfI2C; i++)
{
var i2CTabItem = new TabItem
{
Header = "I2C " + i,
Content = new I2CView(i)
};
NavigatorTabs.Items.Add(i2CTabItem);
}
}
and I need to pass the an index to the viewmodel of each child view, so my current solution is to pass the index to the view as a parameter when instantiating the view and setting a variable in the its viewmodel
public I2CView(int currentI2CIndex)
{
InitializeComponent();
var viewModel = (I2CViewModel) DataContext;
viewModel.CurrentI2CIndex = currentI2CIndex;
}
but I am not quite satisfied with the solution as the data flow path is: parent view -> child view ->
child viewmodel, while I need it to be: parent view -> child viewmodel
so I was thinking "Is there a way to pass the data directly to the view model when instantiating the view?"
Please advice,
Thanks in advance

I would start from the view model:
internal class I2CNavigatorViewModel
{
public IReadOnlyCollection<I2CViewModel> MyItems { get; }
}
<TabControl ItemsSource="{Binding MyItems}">
<TabControl.ContentTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<I2CView />
</DataTemplate>
</TabControl.ContentTemplate>
</TabControl>
Then just initialize MyItems with the child view models, created with all the parameters you need.
Rant: a class doesn't want to have its name start with I, because it doesn't like to be mistaken for an interface!

Hybrid MVVM implementation for a PropertyGrid (in DevExpress)

I need your help! Following is basically what I have in my main XAML view :
<Button x:Name="button1" Content= "{Binding Customer1, Mode=TwoWay}" Margin="271,52,103,106" Click="button1_Click" />
The code-behind of the main XAML (Code-behind, since it's not a 100% pure MVVM, and a rather hybrid one) goes like this :
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
this.DataContext = new MyViewModel();
}
private void button1_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
DXDialog d = new DXDialog("Information", DialogButtons.OkCancel,true);
d.Content = new PropertyGrid();
d.SizeToContent = System.Windows.SizeToContent.WidthAndHeight;
d.Owner = this;
d.WindowStartupLocation = System.Windows.WindowStartupLocation.CenterOwner;
var result = d.ShowDialog();
if (result == true)
{
}
}
As you can see, I have a Button whose content is bound to a String property in the ViewModel Class. Upon Clicking the button, I'm opening a DXDialog which contains a PropertyGrid with the Properties of the ViewModel class. Let me show you my ViewModel Class below :
public class MyViewModel : ViewModelBase, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
Customer currentCustomer;
protected string _customer1;
public string Customer1 {
get { return this._customer1; }
set { this.SetProperty(ref this._customer1, value, "Customer1"); }
}
public MyViewModel()
{
//Customers = new ObservableCollection<Customer>();
//Customers.Add(new Customer() { Name = "Name1" });
Customer1 = "ABC";
}
}
In the Dialog I'm being able to edit the value of the property but don't yet know how I can save it in a way that it immediately reflects even on the button of the main View {Reflects everywhere it must be bound to, I mean}. I can see the execution coming to the following line in the main code behind
if (result == true)
{
}
But I don't know how to get the edited values and plug them into the right place.
Basically, My requirement is to have multiple controls (Buttons, in this case) bound to multiple instances of a ViewModel class, and then, upon clicking the buttons, I should be able to edit those specific ViewModel instances inside the PropertyGrid of the DXDialogue, and after clicking "Ok", the changes should reflect on the relevant buttons as well.
-Ron

To display ViewModel's properties in the PropertyGrid, assign the ViewModel to its SelectedObject property,and make sure that the ShowProperties option is set to All.
Changes will be reflected in buttons bound to the ViewModel only of you use one and the same ViewModel instance in the main and the dialog windows.
var grid = new PropertyGrid();
grid.SelectedObject = this.DataContext;
grid.ShowProperties = ShowPropertiesMode.All;
d.Content = grid;

Using MVVM instead of main window for the following code

I'm using the following code which is copy pasted from the main window which was working as expected ,
I have created View which is user control and put the code of the
code from the main window XAML
In the View model I put reference for the User model
In the user control I put the code for from the the main window which
is related to the event handlers for example the
DropText_PreviewDragEnter & listbox_SelectionChanged
Currently I have 2 issues in the User Control which Im not sure how to overcome...
1. Errors in the user control for all the occurrence of the ListBox (for example from listbox_SelectionChanged ystem.Windows.Controls.ListBox.SelectedItems.Count > 0 . the Selected items are marked at red with the following error
"cannot access non-static property SelectedItems item source in static context". ,not sure what is the reason since in the main window it was the same as static.
2. Since I have copied the code from the main window there is references to user object in the user controlwhich I believe is not acceptable in MVVM ,how should I change it ? for example
var mySelectedItem = System.Windows.Controls.ListBox.SelectedItem as User;
or
bool remove = _UsersList.Remove((User) System.Windows.Controls.ListBox.SelectedItem);
Here is the code.
I will appreciate your help !
The view model
public partial class ModelView : UserControl
{
private const string DRAG_SOURCE = "DragSource";
public ModelView()
{
InitializeComponent();
DataContext = new ModelView();
}
//Drag Over from text box to List box
private void ListBox_PreviewDrop(object sender, DragEventArgs e)
{
object dragSource = e.Data.GetData(DRAG_SOURCE);
if (dragSource != null && dragSource is TextBox)
{
(dragSource as TextBox).Text = String.Empty;
}
if (!String.IsNullOrEmpty(e.Data.GetData(DataFormats.StringFormat).ToString()) && dragSource is TextBox)
{
_UsersList.Add(new User {Name = e.Data.GetData(DataFormats.StringFormat).ToString()});
}
else
{
e.Handled = true;
}
}
}
}
The Xaml is
<TextBox x:Name="name1"
AcceptsReturn="True"
AllowDrop="True"
PreviewDragEnter="DropText_PreviewDragEnter"
PreviewDrop="DropText_PreviewDrop"
PreviewMouseDown="DropText_PreviewMouseDown"
HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="20" Margin="360,70,0,0" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text=""
VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="70"/>
....
The model view
internal class ModelView
{
private ObservableCollection<User> _UsersList = new ObservableCollection<User>();
public ObservableCollection<User> UserList
{
get { return _UsersList; }
}
public void InitUsers()
{
_UsersList.Add(new User {Name = "fff"});
//Sort the User collection
ICollectionView usersView = CollectionViewSource.GetDefaultView(_UsersList);
usersView.SortDescriptions.Add(new SortDescription("Name", ListSortDirection.Ascending));
}
}

You already have two answers explaining why the first issue happend in the previous question. And follwoing points are what #Will said in comment as a mess in MVVM implementation that I can see in your codes :
UsersList in the model view is a Model as in Model-View-ViewModel.
And the model view it self is a ViewModel as in Model-View-ViewModel
Then what you call view model is actually a View in Model-View-ViewModel point of view. It inherits UserControl and UserControl is a view, no difference from Window or Page, etc. They're all View. And even if we agree to call it view model, then it violated MVVM principle everywhere, because view model shouldn't have reference to View/UI control object.
Not directly answering your question, but I hope you get a better prespective on MVVM pattern.

#phil correctly noted that you can't access the ListBox like this:
System.Windows.Controls.ListBox
What he failed to mention is that you shouldn't access a ListBox at all if you're using MVVM. Clearly you're not using MVVM now, but if you want to, then I would recommend that you read up on it so that you can get the full benefit from it. Just having a view and a view model does not mean that you're using MVVM.
In MVVM, we manipulate data, not UI controls. Therefore, you need to create a SelectedItem property in your view model and bind that to the ListBox.SelectedItem property and then you'll always have access to the item that is selected:
public User SelectedItem { get; set; } // Implement INotifyPropertyChanged here
...
<ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding YourCollection}" SelectedItem="{Binding SelectedItem}"/>
Now you can do something with the selected item like this:
string selectedItemName = SelectedItem.Name;

you have to access your listbox by
yourListBoxName.SelectedItems.Count > 0
you can't access it by
System.Windows.Controls.ListBox.SelectedItems.Count
same for
var mySelectedItem = System.Windows.Controls.ListBox.SelectedItem as User;
use the following instead
var mySelectedItem = yourListBoxName.SelectedItem as User;

Preselection in WPF-DataGrid with MVVM

I've got DataGrid bound to an ObservableCollection<> in its ViewModel:
<DataGrid ItemsSource="{Binding Path=Data}" SelectedItem="{Binding Path=CurrentItem}" />
ViewModel:
public ObservableCollection<TestModel> Data { get; set; }
private TestModel _currentItem;
public TestModel CurrentItem
{
get { return _currentItem; }
set
{
_currentItem = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("CurrentItem");
}
}
Now what I want is, that the DataGrid will preselect the first Row right on Form-startup. So I put the following in my test-code inside the constructor:
Data = new ObservableCollection<TestModel>
{
new TestModel() { Property1 = Guid.NewGuid().ToString() },
new TestModel() { Property1 = Guid.NewGuid().ToString() },
new TestModel() { Property1 = Guid.NewGuid().ToString() }
};
CurrentItem = Data[0];
The data is displayed but the first row isn't selected by the grid. Even if I set the binding to TwoWay, it won't work.
If I remove the SelectedItem-binding in XAML and add the following in Code-behind, it works well:
private void Window_Loaded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
var m = this.DataContext as MainViewModel;
grid.SelectedItem = m.CurrentItem;
}

What's happening is that your VM is being assigned to the data context before the window is initialized and therefore never receives the message that the CurrentItem has changed because it was changed before it loaded.
What I do, is pass in the view model into View's constructor and set it after the InitializeComponent() function is called. Because I am using Prism I am using inversion of control (IOC) and Prism knows to input my VM into the constructor. If you are instantiating your view and view model yourself, you can just pass in the view model. I ran into the same issue and this works.
public MyView(IMyVM viewModel)
{
InitializeComponent();
this.DataContext = viewModel;
}
By the way, in working with MVVM, I see no reason not to pass in the ViewModel into the View because the view is dependent on it anyway. I know some people feel differently but it is either this or you will have to so some type of refresh of the datacontext in the Window_Loaded event.