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Trying to Filter a bound ObservableCollection to a combobox based on another ComboBox Value not working

I see several other posts about this but I cannot seem to understand exactly how to get this working properly for my usage.
Here is what I have in a nutshell.
I have two Comboboxes--Role and Position.
I have both of these bound to an ObservableCollection which has Enum Values Converted to strings loaded into it on instantiation.
<ComboBox x:Name="empRoleCB" ItemsSource="{Binding Role}" SelectedItem="{Binding RoleStr}"/>
<ComboBox x:Name="empPositionCB" ItemsSource="{Binding Pos}" SelectedItem="{Binding PosStr}"/>
In my ViewModel:
public abstract class EmployeeMenuVMBase : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected bool SetProperty<T>(ref T field, T newValue, [CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
if(!EqualityComparer<T>.Default.Equals(field, newValue))
{
field = newValue;
PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
return true;
}
return false;
}
}
class EmployeeMenuVM : EmployeeMenuVMBase
{
private ObservableCollection<string> _pos = new ObservableCollection<string>(Enum.GetNames(typeof(Global.Positions)));
private ObservableCollection<string> _role = new ObservableCollection<string>(Enum.GetNames(typeof(Global.Roles)));
public ObservableCollection<string> Pos { get => _pos; }
public ObservableCollection<string> Role { get => _role; }
public string RoleStr
{
get => _roleStr;
set => SetProperty(ref _roleStr, value);
}
public string PosStr
{
get => _posStr;
set => SetProperty(ref _posStr, value);
}
}
What I want to happen is when a Role is selected, based on that selection, only certain Positions should be shown. For instance if I select "Customer Service" as a Role, then Position should only contain "Manager", "CSS" and "None". If Role is "Admin" then Position should only contain "None", and so on and so forth.
The struggle I have is how to filter this properly. I see something with using CollectionViewSource but I am unsure how to get this to work with my example.
I have 5 roles and each role will have a different list of positions that need to be shown.
What is the best way to make this work with MINIMAL extra code or XAML?
One of the things I really dislike about WPF is seemingly simple things need huge amounts of code to make them work properly many times.

First, if you think that WPF is complicated. So, you are using it wrongly.
I suggest you to use the Filter of CollectionViewSource as flow:
<ComboBox x:Name="empPositionCB" ItemsSource="{Binding MyPositionFilter}" SelectionChanged="RoleComboBox_SelectionChanged" ....../>
public ICollectionView MyPositionFilter { get; set; }
//ctor
public MyUserControlOrWindow()
{
//Before InitComponent()
this.MyPositionFilter = new CollectionViewSource { Source = MyPosObservableCollection }.View;
InitComponent();
}
public void RoleComboBox_SelectionChanged(object sender,EventArgs e)
{
//Get the selected Role (the ? is to prevent NullException (VS 2015 >))
Role r = empRoleCB.SelectedItem as Role;
//Apply the filter
this.MyPositionFilter.Filter = item =>
{
//Make you sure to convert correcteley your Enumeration, I used it here like a class
Position p = item as Position;
//Put your condition here. For example:
return r.ToLowers().Contains(p.ToLower());
//Or
return (r != null && r.Length >= p.Length);
};
}
The filter does not change your Collection, All hidden item stay in your ObservableCollection.

This can all be done in your ViewModel by changing the value of the Positions (Pos) observable collection when the role changes.
class EmployeeMenuVM : EmployeeMenuVMBase
{
public EmployeeMenuVM()
{
var emptyPositions = new List<Global.Positions>()
{ Global.Positions.None };
_rolePositions.Add(Global.Roles.None, emptyPositions);
var customerServicePositions = new List<Global.Positions>()
{ Global.Positions.None, Global.Positions.CSS, Global.Positions.Manager };
_rolePositions.Add(Global.Roles.CustomerService, customerServicePositions);
}
private Dictionary<Global.Roles, List<Global.Positions>> _rolePositions = new Dictionary<Global.Roles, List<Global.Positions>>();
private string _roleStr;
private string _posStr;
private ObservableCollection<string> _pos = new ObservableCollection<string>(Enum.GetNames(typeof(Global.Positions)));
private ObservableCollection<string> _role = new ObservableCollection<string>(Enum.GetNames(typeof(Global.Roles)));
public ObservableCollection<string> Pos
{
get => _pos;
set
{
SetProperty(ref _pos, value);
}
}
public ObservableCollection<string> Role
{
get => _role;
}
public string RoleStr
{
get => _roleStr;
set
{
if (SetProperty(ref _roleStr, value))
{
Global.Roles role = (Global.Roles)Enum.Parse(typeof(Global.Roles), value);
var positions = _rolePositions[role].Select(p => p.ToString());
Pos = new ObservableCollection<string>(positions);
}
}
}
public string PosStr
{
get => _posStr;
set => SetProperty(ref _posStr, value);
}
}

Here is a working tester code just to see the main idea of how to do the filtering:
MainWindow.xaml
<Window x:Class="WpfApplication3.MainWindow"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
xmlns:local="clr-namespace:WpfApplication3"
x:Name="ThisView"
mc:Ignorable="d"
Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="600">
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
<ComboBox ItemsSource="{Binding Path=Roles, ElementName=ThisView}"
SelectedItem="{Binding Path=SelectedRole, ElementName=ThisView}"
Width="300" Height="60"/>
<ComboBox ItemsSource="{Binding Path=PositionCollectionView, ElementName=ThisView}" Width="300" Height="60"/>
</StackPanel>
</Window>
MainWindow.xaml.cs
public partial class MainWindow : Window, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public ICollectionView PositionCollectionView { get; set; }
public ObservableCollection<string> Roles { get; set; } = new ObservableCollection<string>();
public ObservableCollection<string> Positions { get; set; } = new ObservableCollection<string>();
private string _selectedRole = String.Empty;
public string SelectedRole
{
get { return _selectedRole; }
set
{
_selectedRole = value;
OnPropertyChanged();
//This Refresh activates the Filter again, so that every time you select a role, this property will call it.
PositionCollectionView.Refresh();
}
}
public MainWindow()
{
PositionCollectionView = CollectionViewSource.GetDefaultView(Positions);
PositionCollectionView.Filter = PositionsFilter;
//use you enums here
Roles.Add("Role1");
Roles.Add("Role2");
Roles.Add("Role3");
Roles.Add("Role4");
Positions.Add("Position1");
Positions.Add("Position2");
Positions.Add("Position3");
Positions.Add("Position4");
InitializeComponent();
}
private bool PositionsFilter(object position)
{
bool result = true;
//place your code according to the Role selected to decide wheather "position" should be in the position list or not
return result;
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
[NotifyPropertyChangedInvocator]
protected virtual void OnPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
Hope it helps..

WPF combobox doesn't change SelectedIndex

So I have a custom class for my object like this:
class ClassA
{
public ClassA(string name)
{
this.AName = name;
}
public string AName { get; set; }
}
Then, I have a list of these in my ViewModel:
public List<ClassA> ObjectList
{
get { return _myobjects; }
set
{
_myobjects = value;
NotifyPropertyChanged("ObjectList");
}
}
Now, I have a combobox in my window with this list as its Itemssource:
<ComboBox Width="150" x:Name="cboObjectList"
ItemsSource="{Binding Path=ObjectList}" DisplayMemberPath="AName"/>
The problem is that when I select any item in the combobox, The SelectedIndex property is always = -1 and also the SelectedItem is null.
What am I doing wrong?

Found out the cause of the cause of the problem. There was an old line of code where I programmatically set the SelectedIndex to -1 :)

What could cause a binding to no update the source

I have a ComboBox defined like this:
<ComboBox
ItemsSource="{Binding Choices}"
SelectedItem="{Binding Value}"
Text="{Binding Text}"
IsEditable="True"
TextSearch.TextPath="Label"
DisplayMemberPath="Label" />
Here is my view Model:
public class ComboBoxViewModel : ViewModelBase
{
private string _selectedCode;
public ReadOnlyObservableCollection<ComboBoxItem> Choices { get; }
public ComboBoxItem Value
{
get { return this.Choices.FirstOrDefault(choice => choice.Code == _selectedCode); }
set
{
this.SetCode(value?.Code)
}
}
public string Text
{
get { return this.Value?.Label ?? _selectedCode; }
set
{
// Only set the code if no pre-defined code can be selected
if (this.Value == null)
{
this.SetCode(value)
}
}
}
public ComboBoxViewModel()
{
this.Choices = [..];
}
public bool SetCode(string code)
{
if (_selectedCode != code)
{
_selectedCode = code;
// Tried all the combination with/without/different order with no change
this.RaisePropertyChanged(nameof(this.Value));
this.RaisePropertyChanged(nameof(this.Text));
}
}
}
public class ComboBoxItem
{
public string Code { get; }
public string Label { get; }
public ComboBoxItem(string code, string label)
{
this.Code = code;
this.Label = label;
}
}
The Choices collection is initialized with some pair: Code,Label. I want to display the Label to the user and use the Code in my business layer. I also want my user to input its own code in the ComboBox (this is why the IsEditable dependency property is set to True and why I also bind Text on my ViewModel).
Everythings works fine when directly bind my ViewModel on the Control. The _selectedCode is updated prioritary with the selected Choices element or with the manual input if necessary.
My problem occurs when I pre-set the _selectedCode using the SetCode method. The Value property is no longer updated when I chose a new existing Choice in the ComboBox...
Is it possible to bind both SelectedItem and Text of a ComboBox? Do you have an idea why the bound properties are not updated after a programmatic initialization? It is like the event is not fired anymore...

Why is this ListView not changing with changes to the bound property?

Basic question from a novice. I've been stuck on this and have read through a lot of material and several similar questions on SO; hopefully not a completely duplicate question. I simplified the code as much as I know how to.
I'm trying to make the ListView show a filtered ObservableCollection) property (as the ItemsSource?), based on the selection in the ComboBox.
Specifically, which "meetings" have this "coordinator" related to it.
I'm not seeing any data errors in the output while it's running and debugging shows the properties updating correctly, but the ListView stays blank. I'm trying to avoid any code-behind on the View, there is none currently.
Thanks!
public class ViewModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private ObservableCollection<Meeting> meetings;
public ObservableCollection<Meeting> Meetings
{
get
{
return meetings;
}
set
{
meetings = value;
OnPropertyChanged("ListProperty");
OnPropertyChanged("Meetings");
}
}
private string coordinatorSelected;
public string CoordinatorSelected
{
get
{
return coordinatorSelected;
}
set
{
coordinatorSelected = value;
Meetings = fakeDB.Where(v => v.CoordinatorName == CoordinatorSelected) as ObservableCollection<Meeting>;
}
}
private ObservableCollection<string> comboProperty = new ObservableCollection<string> { "Joe", "Helen", "Sven" };
public ObservableCollection<string> ComboProperty
{
get
{
return comboProperty;
}
}
private ObservableCollection<Meeting> fakeDB = new ObservableCollection<Meeting>() { new Meeting("Joe", "Atlas"), new Meeting("Sven", "Contoso"), new Meeting("Helen", "Acme") };
public ObservableCollection<Meeting> ListProperty
{
get
{
return Meetings;
}
}
public class Meeting
{
public string CoordinatorName { get; set; }
public string ClientName { get; set; }
public Meeting(string coordinatorName, string clientName)
{
CoordinatorName = coordinatorName;
ClientName = clientName;
}
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
XAML:
<Window.Resources>
<local:ViewModel x:Key="VM"></local:ViewModel>
</Window.Resources>
<DockPanel DataContext="{StaticResource ResourceKey=VM}">
<ComboBox Margin="10" ItemsSource="{Binding ComboProperty}" SelectedItem="{Binding CoordinatorSelected}" DockPanel.Dock="Top"/>
<ListView Margin="10" ItemsSource="{Binding ListProperty, UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" DisplayMemberPath="ClientName"/>
</DockPanel>
Update:
This seems to show that the lambda is returning a Meeting object but the assignment to Meetings is failing. Is this an error in casting maybe?
Thanks again.

You always have to change a property's backing field before you fire a PropertyChanged event. Otherwise a consumer of the event would still get the old value when it reads the property.
Change the Meetings property setter like this:
public ObservableCollection<Meeting> Meetings
{
get
{
return meetings;
}
set
{
meetings = value;
OnPropertyChanged("ListProperty");
OnPropertyChanged("Meetings");
}
}

I believe I've found two solutions to the same problem. The error pointed out #Clemens was also part of the solution. The Meetings property problem is solved if I change ListProperty and Meetings to IEnumerable. Alternatively this approach without changing the type, which I believe invokes the collection's constructor with the filtered sequence as an argument.
set
{
coordinatorSelected = value;
var filteredList = fakeDB.Where(v => v.CoordinatorName == coordinatorSelected);
Meetings = new ObservableCollection<Meeting>(filteredList);
OnPropertyChanged("ListProperty");
}

SelectedItem only updates first row in database in WPF

I am developing an application to allow a user to enter their employee details of their company into a database. So far I am experimenting with WPF and trying to implement MVVM within my application while using Entity Framework.
I'm creating a Master-Detail application, and have been researching into how to achieve this using MVVM, as I'm very much new to it all.
One of the ways in which I have tried is by creating a property within my View-Model called SelectedEmployee and then binding it to a List View in my xaml, like so;
public Employee _SelectedEmployee;
public Employee SelectedEmployee
{
get
{
return _SelectedEmployee;
}
set
{
if (_SelectedEmployee == value)
return;
_SelectedEmployee = value;
OnPropertyChanged("SelectedEmployee");
}
}
<ListView HorizontalAlignment="Left" Name="listview" VerticalAlignment="Bottom" ScrollViewer.HorizontalScrollBarVisibility="Visible"
IsSynchronizedWithCurrentItem="True"
ItemsSource="{Binding LoadEmployee}" SelectionMode="Single" SelectedItem="{Binding SelectedEmployee, Mode=TwoWay, UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" Height="150" Grid.Row="1">
I then have a method that allows the user to update a SelectedItem within the List View. But this is where the problem occurs. When I select an item from the List View, it only updates the first row from the database and not the row I wanted to select.
Here's the method;
public void UpdateEmployee(Employee emp)
{
using (DBEntities context = new DBEntities())
{
emp = context.Employees.Where(e => e.EmployeeID == SelectedEmployee.EmployeeID).FirstOrDefault();
emp.Title = Title;
emp.FirstName = FirstName;
emp.Surname = Surname;
emp.Position = Position;
emp.DateOfBirth = DateOfBirth;
emp.Address = Address;
emp.Country = Country;
emp.Postcode = Postcode;
emp.PhoneNumber = PhoneNumber;
emp.MobileNumber = MobileNumber;
emp.FaxNumber = FaxNumber;
emp.Email = Email;
emp.NINumber = NINumber;
emp.ChargableResource = ChargableResource;
emp.ChargeOutRate = ChargeOutRate;
emp.TimeSheetRequired = TimeSheetRequired;
emp.WorkShift = WorkShift;
emp.BenefitsProvided = BenefitsProvided;
context.Employees.ApplyCurrentValues(emp);
context.SaveChanges();
}
}
I have bound my properties within my view model to the text-boxes within my xaml and then implementing OnPropertyChanged.
I am also using Commands to limit the amount of code-behind as its important for testability and maintainability.
Here is the command method to update;
private ICommand showUpdateCommand;
public ICommand ShowUpdateCommand
{
get
{
if (showUpdateCommand == null)
{
showUpdateCommand = new RelayCommand(this.UpdateFormExecute, this.UpdateFormCanExecute);
}
return showUpdateCommand;
}
}
private bool UpdateFormCanExecute()
{
return !string.IsNullOrEmpty(FirstName) ...
}
private void UpdateFormExecute()
{
UpdateOrganisationTypeDetail();
}
As I am new to MVVM, I'm not quite sure what I am doing wrong so would appreciate some input please :).

Then perhaps the problem is with your updating. I don't really understand what your trying to do with listview, but since it's not working in a simple datagrid this might help. it's not so much an answer as something that I wrote to find your error that happens not to contain your error. please do comment if anything is awry.
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
private static MainViewModel _mainViewModel = new MainViewModel();
public static ObservableCollection<Employee> staff = new ObservableCollection<Employee>();
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
this.DataContext = _mainViewModel;
dataGrid1.DataContext = staff;
listview.DataContext = staff;
Employee Employee1 = new Employee();
Employee1.name = "Jeff";
staff.Add(Employee1);
Employee Employee2 = new Employee();
Employee2.name = "Jefferson";
staff.Add(Employee2);
Employee2.name = "Tim";
}
}
public class Employee
{
public string name { get; set; }
}
public class MainViewModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private string _SelectedEmployee;
public string SelectedEmployee
{
get { return _SelectedEmployee; }
set
{
_SelectedEmployee = value;
NotifyPropertyChanged("SelectedEmployee");
}
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
public void NotifyPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}