When should I be building Inlines in a TextBlock? I have a TextBlock-derived class that, when given text in a certain field, call it MyText, converts the text into a set of inlines when MyText has changed.
Whenever MyText changes, I clear the Inlines and build them, colorizing each word as needed. For this example, consider:
private void MyTextBlock_MyTextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Inlines.Clear();
if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(this.MyText))
{
var run = new Run();
run.Foreground = Brushes.DarkRed;
run.Text = this.MyText;
Inlines.Add(run);
}
}
This has worked very well. However, recently we placed the Control into a DataGrid, and some strange things have started happening. Apparently the DataGrid swaps out the context and for the most part this works. However, when we add or delete data from the DataGrid ItemsSource, something goes awry, and TextChanged doesn't seem like it is called (or at least not called at the same time). MyText can be one value, and the Inlines either blank or a different value.
I think that the place to build the Inlines is NOT during MyTextChanged, but maybe when the rendering of the Control starts. I've also tried when the DataContextChanged, but this does not help.
In my constructor, I have
this.myTextDescriptor = DependencyPropertyDescriptor.FromProperty(
MyTextProperty, typeof(MyTextBlock));
if (this.myTextDescriptor != null)
{
this.myTextDescriptor.AddValueChanged(this, this.MyTextBlock_MyTextChanged);
}
corresponding to a dependency property I have in the class
public string MyText
{
get { return (string)GetValue(MyTextProperty); }
set { SetValue(MyTextProperty, value); }
}
public static readonly DependencyProperty MyTextProperty =
DependencyProperty.Register("MyText", typeof(string), typeof(MyTextBlock));
private readonly DependencyPropertyDescriptor myTextDescriptor;
Update: If it is any kind of clue, the problem DataGrid cells seem to be the ones that are off-screen when the addition or removal happens. I also tried OnApplyTemplate, but that didn't help.
Update2: Perhaps a better solution might be to create bindable inlines?
DataGrids virtualize their content, so if a row is not visible it will not be loaded. That being the case, have you tried also rebuilding the inlines when the Loaded event fires?
Related
I've got a listview that has, as a datatemplate, a relatively complex UserControl, with a couple properties that are being binded to it.
The ItemsPanel is the following:
<ListView.ItemsPanel>
<ItemsPanelTemplate>
<ItemsStackPanel VerticalAlignment="Bottom" ItemsUpdatingScrollMode="KeepLastItemInView"/>
</ItemsPanelTemplate>
</ListView.ItemsPanel>
My listview generally contains about 70 items, however I'm running into quite a major issue:
Every time I scroll up about 30 items and then go back down, the properties seem to have gotten messed up, and some of them seem to have switched with the properties of items higher up.
For example, if before I had the following:
property A = 1
property A = 2
property A = 3
After scrolling up and back down I would have:
property A = 1
property A = 2
property A = 1
How can I ensure that the items either keep their properties or reload them correctly?
I finally figured out how to fix this: If anyone else is running into a similar issue, it's potentially because you're handling the PropertyChanged event without resetting properties that are missing or are null. For example, if this is the usercontrol inside the datatemplate of a listview:
<local:CustomControl CustomText={Binding text}/>
And it is being handled like this:
public string CustomText
{
get { return (string)GetValue(CustomTextProperty); }
set { SetValue(CustomTextProperty, value); }
}
public static readonly DependencyProperty CustomTextProperty = DependencyProperty.Register(
nameof(CustomText),
typeof(string),
typeof(CustomControl),
new PropertyMetadata(string.Empty, OnPropertyChanged));
private static void OnPropertyChanged(DependencyObject d, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
var instance = d as CustomControl;
if(instance.CustomText != "")
myTextBlock.Text = instance.CustomText;
}
Every time that virtualization recycles a CustomControl, if ever it is being binded to an empty string, because of the if(instance.CustomText != "") the textblock will not get updated, and old properties will show up again. The same will happen if OnPropertyChanged never gets called for some reason.
It seems kind of stupid in this particular situation, but it can get quite confusing on large usercontrols with a lot of properties and subproperties
I am working on a WPF application and i have a textbox bound (bidirectionally) to a property in my view model.
I am trying to prevent a user from typing more than 100 characters into this textbox (this is the max the database will store) so i have written this.
public abstract class AppBaseViewModel : ViewModelBase
{
private String _text;
public String Text
{
get { return _text; }
set
{
_text = CheckTextLength(value, _text);
OnPropertyChanged("Text");
}
}
private string CheckTextLength(string value, string text)
{
if (value.Length < 100)
{
return value;
}
else
{
return text;
}
}
}
All this code seems to do is save the first 100 characters to the field but it still allows the user to carry on typing past 100 characters... i would guess it is because the field value isn't being passed back to the textbox.
I don't understand why this doesn't work as i did something similar using MVVM Light's RaisePropertyChange() in a different application.
It is worth noting that i am unable to access the designer for the textbox so cannot set the .Net textbox property for max length.
Edit: Just for clarification i cannot view or edit the xaml as some are suggesting as i do not have access to the XAML file (i know, it's stupid). All the bindings we use are two way by default
Have you tried with TextBox.MaxLength ?
<TextBox MaxLength="100"/>
Gets or sets the maximum number of characters that can be manually entered into the text box.
If no access to the XAML, eventually get access to the XAML instead of parsing and verifying lengths of arrays and use substrings here and there. At least that's what i would do for this simple issue or talk to the designer to add that small piece of code.
Update 1
public static T GetChildOfType<T>(DependencyObject depObj) where T : DependencyObject
{
if (depObj == null) return null;
for (int i = 0; i < VisualTreeHelper.GetChildrenCount(depObj); i++)
{
var child = VisualTreeHelper.GetChild(depObj, i);
var result = (child as T) ?? GetChildOfType<T>(child);
if (result != null) return result;
}
return null;
}
Go and get that child and set its MaxLength. This is just a slight modification on the View so it will not affect the MVVM pattern.
OK. I'm not at all sure that I'm proud of this, but am presenting it as an alternative.
You can change the UpdateSourceTrigger of the TextBox's Text property by applying a universal Style to all of the TextBoxes. This is only going to be practical in pretty weird arrangements, but the question is a little unusual in itself.
XAML codebehind:
//I'm using MVVM Light here - you need to be able to find an instance
//of your AppBaseViewModel somehow.
private ViewModelLocator _locator;
//View codebehind constructor, may need to change names as appropriate
public AppBaseView()
{
InitializeComponent();
//MVVM Light again
_locator = new ViewModelLocator();
//Create the binding
Binding binding = new Binding();
//Source = The instance of your ViewModel
binding.Source = _locator.AppBaseViewModel ;
binding.Path = new PropertyPath("Text");
binding.Mode = BindingMode.TwoWay;
binding.UpdateSourceTrigger = UpdateSourceTrigger.PropertyChanged;
//Create a Style with no Key - this will apply to *all* TextBoxes
//without their own explicit Style set.
Style style = new Style(typeof(TextBox));
style.Setters.Add(new Setter(TextBox.TextProperty, binding));
//Add the Style to the XAML's Resources:
Resources.Add(typeof(TextBox), style);
}
The view won't listen to the PropertyChanged notification if it's currently trying to change the property itself.
The only thing that comes to mind is launching an extra delayed PropertyChanged notification when you detect the constraint is not met...
private string CheckTextLength(string value, string text)
{
if (value.Length < 100)
{
return value;
}
else
{
MyDispatcher.BeginInvoke(new Action(() =>
OnPropertyChanged("Text")),
DispatcherPriority.Loaded);
return text;
}
}
Can't try the code, so sorry if it doesn't build righ away. MyDispatcher could be your Application.Current.Dispatcher, for instance.
The xaml view /the binding is only updated when the textbox has lost focus. if the text entered is <100 then the value is set otherwise _text is set. this means that initially _text has no value so null will be set upon the if statement being false. i also suggest yo use RaisePropertyChanged(); and when used within the property itself no parameter is needed.
I have a control in an assembly that I can't change that is very similar to the .NET DateTimePicker. I want to hide the time picker portion of that control when a certain condition is met (Property value on my ViewModel). The control looks like this:
[TemplatePart(Name = "PART_DatePicker", Type = typeof (DatePicker))]
[TemplatePart(Name = "PART_TimePicker", Type = typeof (TimePicker))]
public class MyDateTimePicker : Control {/*...*/}
This answer shows a nice way to always hide a PART of a control, but I want to do it dynamically:
How to hide a part of a WPF control
I imagine there are a few ways to do this. What I want is something minimal (like in the linked question's answer) as well as something that doesn't violate MVVM. System.Interactivity behaviors and triggers are fair game.
Create a new control extending the previous one
public sealed class MySuperiorDateTimePicker : MyDateTimePicker
{
//....
Add a DependencyProperty that you can bind to your ViewModel's state
public static readonly DependencyProperty HideItProperty =
DependencyProperty.Register(
"HideIt",
typeof(bool),
typeof(MySuperiorDateTimePicker ),
new UIPropertyMetadata(false, HideItPropertyChanged));
//snip property impl
Wait for the property to change, then hide your UI
private static void HideItPropertyChanged(DependencyObject d,
DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
(d as MySuperiorDateTimePicker).OnHideItChanged((bool)e.OldValue,
(bool)e.NewValue);
}
private void OnHideItChanged(bool oldValue, bool newValue)
{
if(BusyTemplate == null)
return;
FindTimePicker().Visibility = newValue ? Visibility.Visible :
Visibility.Collapsed;
}
private UIElement FindTimePicker()
{
//snip null checks
return GetTemplateChild("PART_TimePicker") as UIElement;
}
Be careful with FindTimePicker as your DP might change before the control is loaded, and GetTemplateChild will return null. The usual thing to do is, in OnHideItChanged, if GetTemplateChild returns null use Dispatcher.BeginInvoke to re-run the event handler later on (ApplicationIdle or earlier).
When you find yourself saying "How can I do UI work using MVVM" stop and rethink your true goals. MVVM != no codebehind, no custom controls, etc.
One solution would be to hide it with the help of a DataTrigger defined in the datatemplate, so that when a certain value in the datacontext of the control is set to true/false then you will hide/show the part.
A quick search and i found some links that you might find useful:
http://zamjad.wordpress.com/2010/06/22/conditionally-hide-controls-from-data-template/
http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/wpf/thread/ae2dbfb7-5dd6-4352-bfa1-53634289329d/
The solution that worked for me was to edit the style of the control. Using Blend, I edited a copy of the style of the DateTimePicker, and added a binding to Visibility of the TimePicker that looks at my VM and converts the value of the enumeration.
I'm trying to achieve an effect where more items are appended to the list when the user scrolls down to the last item. I haven't found a way to determine if the user has scrolled to the end of the list. I don't see a event on ListBox that is fired when the user reaches the bottom of the list. Something that tells me when an item has been scrolled into view would be great, but as far as I can tell, there is nothing like that.
Is this even possible in WP7?
Edit: Another way of saying this is, can we detect when a list has "bounced"?
Daniel Vaughan has posted an example of how to detect for this at http://danielvaughan.orpius.com/post/Scroll-Based-Data-Loading-in-Windows-Phone-7.aspx
It isn't super easy to get going since there are a lot of moving parts, but here is what you can do, assuming you want a short list that loads more from your data as you get scrolling down, similar to a lot of twitter apps, etc.
Write your own subclass of ObservableCollection that only offers up a few items (like 20), keeping the rest held back until requested
Hook up to the scroll viewer (inside the listbox or container) and its visual state changed events, you can get the NotScrolling and Scrolling changes; for an example see this code by ptorr
When scrolling stops, use viewer scroll extensions code to see where things are extended (at the bottom or not) or just the raw scroll viewer properties to see if it is extended to the bottom
If so, trigger your observable collection to release another set of items.
Sorry I don't have a complete sample ready to blog yet. Good luck!
I've just implemented this for Overflow7.
The approach I took was similar to http://blog.slimcode.com/2010/09/11/detect-when-a-listbox-scrolls-to-its-end-wp7/
However, instead of using a Style I did the hook up in code.
Basically derived my parent UserControl from:
public class BaseExtendedListUserControl : UserControl
{
DependencyProperty ListVerticalOffsetProperty = DependencyProperty.Register(
"ListVerticalOffset",
typeof(double),
typeof(BaseExtendedListUserControl),
new PropertyMetadata(new PropertyChangedCallback(OnListVerticalOffsetChanged)));
private ScrollViewer _listScrollViewer;
protected void EnsureBoundToScrollViewer()
{
if (_listScrollViewer != null)
return;
var elements = VisualTreeHelper.FindElementsInHostCoordinates(new Rect(0,0,this.Width, this.Height), this);
_listScrollViewer = elements.Where(x => x is ScrollViewer).FirstOrDefault() as ScrollViewer;
if (_listScrollViewer == null)
return;
Binding binding = new Binding();
binding.Source = _listScrollViewer;
binding.Path = new PropertyPath("VerticalOffset");
binding.Mode = BindingMode.OneWay;
this.SetBinding(ListVerticalOffsetProperty, binding);
}
public double ListVerticalOffset
{
get { return (double)this.GetValue(ListVerticalOffsetProperty); }
set { this.SetValue(ListVerticalOffsetProperty, value); }
}
private static void OnListVerticalOffsetChanged(DependencyObject obj, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
BaseExtendedListUserControl control = obj as BaseExtendedListUserControl;
control.OnListVerticalOffsetChanged();
}
private void OnListVerticalOffsetChanged()
{
OnListVerticalOffsetChanged(_listScrollViewer);
}
protected virtual void OnListVerticalOffsetChanged(ScrollViewer s)
{
// do nothing
}
}
this then meant that in the user control itself I could just use:
protected override void OnListVerticalOffsetChanged(ScrollViewer viewer)
{
// Trigger when at the end of the viewport
if (viewer.VerticalOffset >= viewer.ScrollableHeight)
{
if (MoreClick != null)
{
MoreClick(this, new RoutedEventArgs());
}
}
}
private void ListBox1_ManipulationCompleted(object sender, ManipulationCompletedEventArgs e)
{
EnsureBoundToScrollViewer();
}
The "hacky" thing here was that I had to use ListBox1_ManipulationCompleted and VisualTreeHelper to find my ScrollViewer - I'm sure there are better ways...
Have a look at this detect Listbox compression state from msdn blog
Use the DeferredLoadListBox.
enter code hereI have a ScrollViewer in Silverlight that is not scrolling vertically whenever I call the ScrollToVerticalOffset method from the code behind.
Basically, I have my View (UserControl) that contains the ScrollViewer. I invoke an action from my ViewModel that triggers an event in the View's code-behind that sets the VerticalOffset to a specific value.
First of all, I know this is very ugly. Ideally I wish that I could have an attachable property that I could bind to a property in my ViewModel, that, when set, would cause the VerticalOffset property (which I know is read-only) to be updated, and the ScrollViewer to scroll.
The ScrollViewer contains dynamic content. So, if the user is viewing content in the ScrollViewer, and scrolls half-way down, and then clicks on a button, new content is loaded into the ScrollViewer. The problem is that the ScrollViewer's vertical offset doesn't get reset, so the user has to scroll up to read the content. So, my solution was to be able to control the vertical offset from the ViewModel, and I have racked my brain and can't come up with a viable solution, so I am looking for someone to help, please.
By the way - I have included code from a class I put together for an attachable property. This property binds to a property in my ViewModel. When I set the property in the ViewModel, it correctly triggers the PropertyChanged callback method in this class, which then calls the ScrollToVerticalOffset method for the ScrollViewer, but the ScrollViewer still doesn't scroll.
public class ScrollViewerHelper
{
public static readonly DependencyProperty BindableOffsetProperty =
DependencyProperty.RegisterAttached("BindableOffset", typeof(double), typeof(ScrollViewerHelper),
new PropertyMetadata(OnBindableOffsetChanged));
public static double GetBindableOffset(DependencyObject d)
{
return (double)d.GetValue(BindableOffsetProperty);
}
public static void SetBindableOffset(DependencyObject d, double value)
{
d.SetValue(BindableOffsetProperty, value);
}
private static void OnBindableOffsetChanged(DependencyObject d, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
ScrollViewer scrollViewer = d as ScrollViewer;
if (scrollViewer != null)
{
scrollViewer.ScrollToVerticalOffset((double)e.NewValue);
}
}
}
This approach is a little bit funky in my opinion, as I think of both a ScrollViewer and a VerticalScrollOffset as "View" entities that should have very little (or nothing) to do with a ViewModel. It seems like this might be forcing MVVM a little too much, and creating a lot of extra work in creating an attached dependency property and basically trying to keep a bound Offset ViewModel property in sync with the readonly VerticalScrollOffset of the ScrollViewer.
I am not exactly sure of what you are trying to achieve, but it sounds like you are trying to scroll to a specified offset when some dynamic element is added to the underlying panel of your ScrollViewer. Personally, I would just want to handle this behavior with a little bit of code in my View and forget about tying it to the ViewModel.
One really nice way to do this type of thing in Silverlight 3 is with Blend behaviors. You write a little bit of behavior code in C# and then can attach it declaratively to an element in XAML. This keeps it reusable and out of your code-behind. Your project will have to reference the System.Windows.Interactivity DLL which is part of the Blend SKD.
Here's a simple example of a simple Blend behavior you could add to a ScrollViewer which scrolls to a specified offset whenever the size of the underlying content of the ScrollViewer changes:
public class ScrollToOffsetBehavior : Behavior<ScrollViewer>
{
private FrameworkElement contentElement = null;
public static readonly DependencyProperty OffsetProperty = DependencyProperty.Register(
"Offset",
typeof(double),
typeof(ScrollToOffsetBehavior),
new PropertyMetadata(0.0));
public double Offset
{
get { return (double)GetValue(OffsetProperty); }
set { SetValue(OffsetProperty, value); }
}
protected override void OnAttached()
{
base.OnAttached();
if (this.AssociatedObject != null)
{
this.AssociatedObject.Loaded += new RoutedEventHandler(AssociatedObject_Loaded);
}
}
protected override void OnDetaching()
{
base.OnDetaching();
if (this.contentElement != null)
{
this.contentElement.SizeChanged -= contentElement_SizeChanged;
}
if (this.AssociatedObject != null)
{
this.AssociatedObject.Loaded -= AssociatedObject_Loaded;
}
}
void AssociatedObject_Loaded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
this.contentElement = this.AssociatedObject.Content as FrameworkElement;
if (this.contentElement != null)
{
this.contentElement.SizeChanged += new SizeChangedEventHandler(contentElement_SizeChanged);
}
}
void contentElement_SizeChanged(object sender, SizeChangedEventArgs e)
{
this.AssociatedObject.ScrollToVerticalOffset(this.Offset);
}
}
You could then apply this behavior to the ScrollViewer in XAML (and specify an offset of 0 to scroll back to the top):
<ScrollViewer>
<i:Interaction.Behaviors>
<local:ScrollToOffsetBehavior Offset="0"/>
</i:Interaction.Behaviors>
...Scroll Viewer Content...
</ScrollViewer>
This would be assuming that you always want to scroll to the offset whenever the content size changes. This may not be exactly what you are looking for, but it is one example of how something like this can be done in the view using a behavior.