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UserControl with Collection Binding always returning Null

Problem: When attempting to bind an Observable Collection to my user control, it is always showing null at runtime.
Description: I have a user control as described below. The goal is to create a button to cycles through an array of images with every click. However, when I run this, ImageCollection is always null, regardless of how I setup the binding on the implementation side. I'm at a loss for why this is. The code is as follows:
XAML:
<UserControl x:Class="kTrack.ToggleImage"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
xmlns:local="clr-namespace:kTrack"
mc:Ignorable="d"
d:DesignHeight="{Binding ImageHeight}" d:DesignWidth="{Binding ImageWidth}">
<Grid x:Name="LayoutRoot">
<Button Click="ToggleImage_Click" Height="{Binding ImageHeight}" Width="{Binding ImageWidth}">
<Image Source="{Binding ActiveImage}" HorizontalAlignment="Stretch" VerticalAlignment="Stretch" ToolTip="{Binding ToolTip}" />
</Button>
</Grid>
</UserControl>
Code-Behind (Important Bits)
public partial class ToggleImage : UserControl, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public static readonly DependencyProperty ImageCollectionProperty = DependencyProperty.Register("ImageCollection", typeof(ObservableCollection<string>), typeof(ToggleImage), new PropertyMetadata(null));
...
public ObservableCollection<String> ImageCollection
{
get => (ObservableCollection<String>)GetValue(ImageCollectionProperty);
set => SetValue(ImageCollectionProperty, value);
}
private ImageSource _activeImage;
public ImageSource ActiveImage
{
get => _activeImage;
set
{
_activeImage = value;
OnPropertyChanged();
}
}
private int _currentImageIndex;
public int CurrentImageIndex
{
get => _currentImageIndex;
set
{
_currentImageIndex = value;
OnPropertyChanged();
}
}
// Constructor
public ToggleImage()
{
ImageCollection = new ObservableCollection<String>();
InitializeComponent();
LayoutRoot.DataContext = this;
CurrentImageIndex = 0;
if (ImageCollection.Count > 0)
{
ActiveImage = SetCurrentImage(CurrentImageIndex);
}
}
...
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected virtual void OnPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
XAML Implementation:
<local:ToggleImage ImageHeight="32" ImageWidth="32"
ImageCollection="{Binding Images, UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged, Mode=TwoWay}" />
Code-Behind of Implementation:
public partial class MainWindow : kWindow
{
public ObservableCollection<String> Images = new ObservableCollection<String>()
{
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/Close.png",
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/Minimize.png",
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/WindowOne.png"
};
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
}

for one, you should set DataContext in Window.
for two, Binding work with properties, not fields: change Images field to property.
public partial class MainWindow : kWindow
{
public ObservableCollection<String> Images { get; } = new ObservableCollection<String>()
{
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/Close.png",
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/Minimize.png",
"pack://application:,,,/Resources/Icons/WindowOne.png"
};
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
DataContext = this;
}
}

Set up a binding between two properties in code behind

In my view, I have a ListBox with some templated items that contain buttons.
<ListBox x:Name="MyListBox" ItemTemplate="{DynamicResource DataTemplate1}"
ItemsSource="{Binding MyItems}">
</ListBox>
And the template for generated items:
<DataTemplate x:Key="DataTemplate1">
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
<Button Width="50" Click="Button_Click" />
</StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>
When user clicks a button on one of those ListBox items, I want to send the index of that ListBox item to my ViewModel.
So figured to use Binding as it seems to be the way in MVVM. But I'm struggling to set up a binding in code between two properties.
My View code is as follows:
public partial class ItemView : UserControl
{
ViewModel.ItemViewModel VM;
public ItemView()
{
InitializeComponent();
VM = new ViewModel.ItemViewModel();
this.DataContext = VM;
}
private int clickedItemIndex;
public int ClickedItemIndex { get => clickedItemIndex; set => clickedItemIndex = value; }
private void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
var ClickedItem = (sender as FrameworkElement).DataContext;
ClickedItemIndex = MyListBox.Items.IndexOf(ClickedItem);
}
}
I get the index and set it to ClickedItemIndex property,
I also have property in my ViewModel:
public int SomeInt { get; set; }
Now how do I set up a binding between these two properties?
I'm quite new to MVVM and still learning it. So, maybe this not the correct approach. But I need to have a way for each individual listbox item to be able to call upon an effect in more global viewmodel. For example, if I wanted to have a "Remove" button on each of the listbox items, I would somehow need to send the index to the viewmodel and call the removeItem method with index as the parameter. Or is there a better way to do similar things?

I have a sample app created just for this scenario. I know it seems a lot of code at first glance. Copy this code in your project, that will help debug and get a hang of it(MVVM, databinding, commands and so on).
usercontrol.xaml
<UserControl x:Class="WpfApplication1.UserControl1"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
xmlns:local="clr-namespace:WpfApplication1"
mc:Ignorable="d"
d:DesignHeight="300" d:DesignWidth="300">
<Grid>
<Grid.Resources>
<DataTemplate DataType="{x:Type local:Model}">
<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
<Label Content="{Binding Path=Name}"/>
<Button Command="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType=UserControl},Path=DataContext.UpdateCommand}"
CommandParameter="{Binding}"
Content="Update"/>
<Button Command="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType=UserControl},Path=DataContext.RemoveCommand}"
CommandParameter="{Binding}"
Content="Remove"/>
</StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>
</Grid.Resources>
<ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding Models}">
</ListBox>
</Grid>
usercontrol.cs
public partial class UserControl1 : UserControl
{
public UserControl1()
{
InitializeComponent();
DataContext = new ViewModel();
}
}
View model
public class ViewModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private Models _Models;
public Models Models
{
get { return _Models; }
set { _Models = value;
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(nameof(Models)));
}
}
public ViewModel()
{
Models = new Models();
UpdateCommand = new Command(o => true, UpdateItem);
RemoveCommand = new Command(o => true, RemoveItem);
}
void RemoveItem(object item)
{
Model m = (item as Model);
Models.Remove(m);
}
void UpdateItem(object item)
{
Model m = (item as Model);
m.Name = m.Name + " updated";
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged = delegate { };
public ICommand UpdateCommand { get; private set; }
public ICommand RemoveCommand { get; private set; }
}
Icommand implementation
public class Command : ICommand
{
private readonly Func<object, bool> _canExe;
private readonly Action<object> _exe;
public Command(Func<object,bool> canExecute,Action<object> execute)
{
_canExe = canExecute;
_exe = execute;
}
public event EventHandler CanExecuteChanged
{
add { CommandManager.RequerySuggested += value; }
remove { CommandManager.RequerySuggested -= value; }
}
public bool CanExecute(object parameter)
{
return _canExe(parameter);
}
public void Execute(object parameter)
{
_exe(parameter);
}
}
Model and a collection of models
public class Models : ObservableCollection<Model>
{
public Models()
{
Add(new Model ());
Add(new Model ());
Add(new Model ());
Add(new Model ());
}
}
public class Model : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
static int count = 0;
public Model()
{
Name = "Model "+ ++count;
}
private string _Name;
public string Name
{
get { return _Name; }
set { _Name = value;
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(nameof(Name)));
}
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged = delegate { };
}

You don't need to use a Button in order to select the item. When you click/tap on the item it will get automatically selected.
Then simply bind ListBox.SelectedIndex to your view model property SomeInt and it will update on every selection.
Data binding overview in WPF
You can also get the item itself by binding ListBox.SelectedItem to your view model.
You can handle new values by invoking a handler from the property's set method:
ViewModel.cs
class ViewModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private int currentItemIndex;
public int CurrentItemIndex
{
get => this.currentItemIndex;
set
{
this.currentItemIndex = value;
OnPropertyChanged();
// Handle property changes
OnCurrentItemIndexChanged();
}
}
private MyItem currentItem;
public MyItem CurrentItem
{
get => this.currentItem;
set
{
this.currentItem = value;
OnPropertyChanged();
}
}
protected virtual void OnCurrentItemIndexChanged()
{
// Handle the new this.CurrentItemIndex value
}
// Implementation of INotifyPropertyChanged
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected virtual void OnPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
this.PropertyChanged?.Invoke(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
ItemView .xaml
<UserControl>
<UserControl.DataContext>
<ViewModel />
</UserControl.DataContext>
<ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding MyItems}"
SelectedIndex="{Binding CurrentItemIndex}"
SelectedItem="{Binding CurrentItem}" />
</UserControl>

Property doesn't update when set in the Business Logic

I need to set a property in the Business Logic with a method in the Business Logic. If you run my code you can see the first String "Target Location" changes successfully, but the second one "Some Other String" doesn't change its value in the view. "PropertyChanged" in the BusinessLogic.cs is null. I have absolutely no idea WHY it's null! Can someone explain me this behaviour and how I can fix this?
I have the following files in my project:
MainWindow.xaml
<Window x:Class="TestWpf.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:TestWpf"
mc:Ignorable="d"
Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="525">
<StackPanel>
<TextBox Text="{Binding Path=TargetLocation}"></TextBox>
<TextBox Text="{Binding Path=SomeOtherString}"></TextBox>
<Button Click="ChangeTextButton_Click">Change Target Location</Button>
<Button Click="ChangeSomeOtherStringButton_Click">Change some other string</Button>
</StackPanel>
MainWindow.xaml.cs
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
MainViewModel mainViewModel = new MainViewModel();
mainViewModel.TargetLocation = #"A:\Old_Location";
mainViewModel.SomeOtherString = "Old String...";
DataContext = mainViewModel;
}
private void ChangeTextButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
MainViewModel mainViewModel = (MainViewModel)DataContext;
mainViewModel.TargetLocation = #"B:\New_Location";
}
private void ChangeSomeOtherStringButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
MainViewModel mainViewModel = (MainViewModel)DataContext;
mainViewModel.ChangeSomeOtherString();
}
MainViewModel.cs
public class MainViewModel : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private string targetLocation;
public string TargetLocation
{
get
{
return targetLocation;
}
set
{
targetLocation = value;
OnPropertyChanged("TargetLocation");
}
}
public string SomeOtherString
{
get
{
return BusinessLogicClass.GetInstance().SomeOtherString;
}
set
{
BusinessLogicClass.GetInstance().SomeOtherString = value;
OnPropertyChanged("SomeOtherString");
}
}
public void ChangeSomeOtherString()
{
BusinessLogicClass.GetInstance().ChangeSomeOtherString();
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}
BusinessLogicClass
public class BusinessLogicClass : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private static BusinessLogicClass instance;
public static BusinessLogicClass GetInstance()
{
if (instance == null)
{
instance = new BusinessLogicClass();
}
return instance;
}
private BusinessLogicClass()
{
}
private string someOtherString;
public string SomeOtherString
{
get
{
return someOtherString;
}
set
{
someOtherString = value;
OnPropertyChanged("SomeOtherString");
}
}
public void ChangeSomeOtherString()
{
SomeOtherString = "New String!";
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}

"PropertyChanged" in the BusinessLogic.cs is null. I have absolutely no idea WHY it's null!
PropertyChanged in the BusinessLogic class is null because there are no bindings that use properties in this class as their source. The source properties for both of your bindings are on your MainViewModel class.
WPF doesn't scan through all classes that happen to implement INotifyPropertyChanged. And even if it did, how would it know that a PropertyChanged event fired from your BusinessLogic class means that it needs to update the TextBox bound to the SomeOtherString property on your MainViewModel? WPF can't read your code to find this out.
The simplest fix is to fire a PropertyChanged event inside your ChangeSomeOtherString() method:
public void ChangeSomeOtherString()
{
BusinessLogicClass.GetInstance().ChangeSomeOtherString();
OnPropertyChanged("SomeOtherString"); // Add this line
}
This way WPF knows that the value of the SomeOtherString property has changed and will perform the necessary update to the TextBox.

Metro UI not update

I'm just start working on metro app and i'm facing a problem that is dispatcher not updating the UI. My code is below please let me know what was the issue ?
public class Test : DependencyObject
{
public static readonly DependencyProperty CurrentItemProperty =
DependencyProperty.Register("NameOfPerson", typeof(string), typeof(Test), null);
public String NameOfPerson
{
get
{
return (string)GetValue(CurrentItemProperty);
}
set
{
runmethod(value);
}
}
public async void runmethod(String text)
{
await Dispatcher.RunAsync(Windows.UI.Core.CoreDispatcherPriority.Normal, () =>
{
SetValue(CurrentItemProperty, text);
}
);
}
}
In main page i have an event button click which when fire update textbox.
private void Button_Click_2(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
Test t = new Test();
t.NameOfPerson = "Hello Umar";
}
MainPage.xaml look like this
<Page
x:Class="TestApplication.MainPage"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:local="using:TestApplication"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
mc:Ignorable="d">
<Grid Background="{StaticResource ApplicationPageBackgroundThemeBrush}">
<Button Content="Button" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="207,187,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Height="80" Width="255" Click="Button_Click_2"/>
<TextBox x:Name="textB" Text="{Binding NameOfPerson}" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="80" Margin="730,187,0,0" TextWrapping="Wrap" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="307"/>
</Grid>
</Page>

If you are what you are trying to do is having a button refresh your Text, you should look into the MVVM pattern and have the Binding update your UI.
To do this you'll have to create your Object, in this case, let's say a person.
public class Person
{
public string Name { get; set; }
}
Secondly you would want to have a person inside a viewmodel that you'll update using your button. The viewmodel will derive from BindableBase which is a part of Windows Store applications if you would use such thing as Basic Page. The Viewmodel looks like this:
public class MainPageViewModel : BindableBase
{
public MainPageViewModel()
{
}
private Person person;
public Person Person
{
get { return person; }
set { SetProperty(ref person, value); }
}
public void LoadData()
{
Person = new Person() { Name = "Simple name" };
}
public void UpdatePerson()
{
Person.Name = "Updated Name";
OnPropertyChanged("Person");
}
}
and in case you dont have the bindableBase, it looks like this:
[Windows.Foundation.Metadata.WebHostHidden]
public abstract class BindableBase : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
protected bool SetProperty<T>(ref T storage, T value, [CallerMemberName] String propertyName = null)
{
if (object.Equals(storage, value)) return false;
storage = value;
this.OnPropertyChanged(propertyName);
return true;
}
protected void OnPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
var eventHandler = this.PropertyChanged;
if (eventHandler != null)
{
eventHandler(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}
On your MainPage you create the ViewModel and set the DataContext on your Page. Also you would want to handle your object inside your Viewmodel, so you'll create a update method when clicking the button that will modify your Person object:
public sealed partial class MainPage : Page
{
private readonly MainPageViewModel viewModel;
public MainPage()
{
this.InitializeComponent();
viewModel = new MainPageViewModel();
viewModel.LoadData();
this.DataContext = viewModel;
}
private void Button_Tapped(object sender, TappedRoutedEventArgs e)
{
viewModel.UpdatePerson();
}
}
And finally your TextBox in the UI to point at the Person's name property inside the Viewmodel:
<TextBox
x:Name="textB"
Text="{Binding Person.Name}"
HorizontalAlignment="Left"
Height="80"
Margin="730,187,0,0"
TextWrapping="Wrap"
VerticalAlignment="Top"
Width="307" />
I hope this fulfills your question on how you can have a button updating your UI.

How do you perform Binding with a DataGridView in WPF?

I want to bind a datagrid view in a user control that is docking to a main WPF form. However everytime I try to bind the data it must pre exist and won't update. Is there a way to perform this in the XAML directly to know when an event is triggered to update the datagridview rather than do it in the code behind?
Partial code of XAML:
xmlns:c="clr-namespace:TestWPFMain"
<UserControl.Resources>
<c:GridData x:Key="dataforGrid"/>
</UserControl.Resources>
<Grid>
<DataGrid Grid.Row="2" x:Name="datagridMain" ItemsSource="{Binding Source={StaticResource dataforGrid}, Path=Results, Mode=TwoWay}" />
</Grid>
Code Behind for UserControl above:
public GridControl()
{
InitializeComponent();
GridData gd = new GridData();
gd.UpdateResults();
//datagridMain.ItemsSource = gd.Results;
-- This code above will work if I uncomment but I want it to be bound
directly and was curious as I thought the mode of 'two way' would
do this. I am not certain and most examples assume property is already
set up and not being created and updated.
}
Code Class for GridData:
class PersonName
{
public string Name { get; set; }
}
class GridData
{
public ObservableCollection<PersonName> Results { get; set; }
public void UpdateResults()
{
using (EntityDataModel be = new EntityDataModel())
{
var list = be.tePersons.Select(x => new PersonName { Name = x.FirstName });
Results = new ObservableCollection<PersonName>(list);
}
}
}

To use binding like this, you need to:
Set the DataContext correctly on the DataGrid (or on one of its parent)
Implement INotifyPropertyChanged on your model class, and raise PropertyChanged in the property setter.
1)
Set your window's DataContext to the GridData object:
public GridControl()
{
InitializeComponent();
GridData gd = new GridData();
gd.UpdateResults();
this.DataContext = gd;
}
2)
Implement INotifyPropertyChanged. This ensures that your view gets notified when the Results property gets updated:
public class GridData : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private ObservableCollection<PersonName> _results;
public ObservableCollection<PersonName> Results
{
get { return _results; }
set
{
_results = value;
RaisePropertyChanged("GridData");
}
}
// ...
#region INotifyPropertyChanged
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private void RaisePropertyChanged(string prop)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(prop));
}
}
#endregion
}
Then you can simply bind to the path relative to the data context.
<DataGrid ItemsSource="{Binding Results}" />
Note that you don't need two-way binding in this case -- that's for propagating changes from the View back to your model (ie, most useful for when there's a UI control like a text box or checkbox).

Here is an example (I used Window, but it will work the same for UserControl)
Xaml:
<Window x:Class="WpfApplication4.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" Name="UI">
<Grid>
<DataGrid Grid.Row="2" x:Name="datagridMain" ItemsSource="{Binding ElementName=UI, Path=GridData.Results, Mode=TwoWay}" />
</Grid>
</Window>
or id you want the whole DataContext:
<Window x:Class="WpfApplication4.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" Name="UI">
<Grid>
<DataGrid Grid.Row="2" x:Name="datagridMain" DataContext="{Binding ElementName=UI, Path=GridData}" ItemsSource="{Binding Results}" />
</Grid>
</Window>
Code:
You will have to implement INotifyPropertyChanged so the xaml knows GridData has changed
The ObservableCollection inside GridData as this function built-in so anytime you add remove items they will update the DataGrid control
public partial class MainWindow : Window , INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
GridData = new GridData { Results = new ObservableCollection<PersonName>() };
GridData.Results.Add(new PersonName { Name = "Test1" });
GridData.Results.Add(new PersonName { Name = "Test2" });
}
private GridData _gridData;
public GridData GridData
{
get { return _gridData; }
set { _gridData = value; NotifyPropertyChanged("GridData"); }
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
/// <summary>
/// Notifies the property changed.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="info">The info.</param>
public void NotifyPropertyChanged(String info)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(info));
}
}
}
Classes:
I made a small change to the update method, so it just clears and updates the existing ObservableCollection, otherwise you would have to Implement INotifypropertyChanged to this class if you assign a new ObservableCollection.
public class PersonName
{
public string Name { get; set; }
}
public class GridData
{
public GridData()
{
Results = new ObservableCollection<PersonName>()
}
public ObservableCollection<PersonName> Results { get; set; }
public void UpdateResults()
{
using (EntityDataModel be = new EntityDataModel())
{
// Just update existing list, instead of creating a new one.
Results.Clear();
be.tePersons.Select(x => new PersonName { Name = x.FirstName }).ToList().ForEach(item => Results.Add(item);
}
}
}