docs/latex/wx/ttab.tex

   1 \section{Tab classes overview}\label{wxtaboverview}
   2
   3 Classes: \helpref{wxTabView}{wxtabview}, \helpref{wxPanelTabView}{wxpaneltabview},
   4  \helpref{wxTabbedPanel}{wxtabbedpanel}, \helpref{wxTabbedDialog}{wxtabbeddialog},
   5  \helpref{wxTabControl}{wxtabcontrol}
   6
   7 The tab classes provides a way to display rows of tabs (like file divider tabs), which can be
   8 used to switch between panels or other information. Tabs are most
   9 commonly used in dialog boxes where the number of options is too great
  10 to fit on one dialog.
  11
  12 {\bf Please note} that the preferred class for programming tabbed windows is \helpref{wxNotebook}{wxnotebook}.
  13 The old tab classes are retained for backward compatibility and also to implement
  14 wxNotebook on platforms that don't have native tab controls.
  15
  16 \wxheading{The appearance and behaviour of a wxTabbedDialog}
  17
  18 The following screenshot shows the appearance of the sample tabbed dialog application.
  19
  20 $$\image{8cm;0cm}{wxtab1.eps}$$
  21
  22 By clicking on the tabs, the user can display a different set of controls. In the example,
  23 the Close and Help buttons remain constant. These two buttons are children of the main dialog box,
  24 whereas the other controls are children of panels which are shown and hidden according to
  25 which tab is active.
  26
  27 A tabbed dialog may have several layers (rows) of tabs, each being
  28 offset vertically and horizontally from the previous. Tabs work in
  29 columns, in that when a tab is pressed, it swaps place with the tab on
  30 the first row of the same column, in order to give the effect of
  31 displaying that tab. All tabs must be of the same width.
  32 This is a constraint of the implementation, but it also
  33 means that the user will find it easier to find tabs since there are
  34 distinct tab columns. On some tabbed dialog implementations, tabs jump around
  35 seemingly randomly because tabs have different widths.
  36 In this implementation, a tab can always be found on the same column.
  37
  38 Tabs are always drawn along the top of the view area; the implementation does
  39 not allow for vertical tabs or any other configuration.
  40
  41 \wxheading{Using tabs}
  42
  43 The tab classes provide facilities for switching between contexts by
  44 means of `tabs', which look like file divider tabs.
  45
  46 You must create both a {\it view} to handle the tabs, and a {\it window} to display the tabs
  47 and related information. The wxTabbedDialog and wxTabbedPanel classes are provided for
  48 convenience, but you could equally well construct your own window class and derived
  49 tab view.
  50
  51 If you wish to display a tabbed dialog - the most common use - you should follow these steps.
  52
  53 \begin{enumerate}\itemsep=0pt
  54 \item Create a new wxTabbedDialog class, and any buttons you wish always to be displayed
  55 (regardless of which tab is active).
  56 \item Create a new wxPanelTabView, passing the dialog as the first argument.
  57 \item Set the view rectangle with \helpref{wxTabView::SetViewRect}{wxtabviewsetviewrect},
  58 to specify the area in which child panels will be
  59 shown. The tabs will sit on top of this view rectangle.
  60 \item Call \helpref{wxTabView::CalculateTabWidth}{wxtabviewcalculatetabwidth} to calculate
  61 the width of the tabs based on the view area. This is optional if, for example, you have one row
  62 of tabs which does not extend the full width of the view area.
  63 \item Call \helpref{wxTabView::AddTab}{wxtabviewaddtab} for each of the tabs you wish to create, passing
  64 a unique identifier and a tab label.
  65 \item Construct a number of windows, one for each tab, and call \helpref{wxPanelTabView::AddTabWindow}{wxpaneltabviewaddtabwindow} for
  66 each of these, passing a tab identifier and the window.
  67 \item Set the tab selection.
  68 \item Show the dialog.
  69 \end{enumerate}
  70
  71 Under Motif, you may also need to size the dialog just before setting the tab selection, for unknown reasons.
  72
  73 Some constraints you need to be aware of:
  74
  75 \begin{itemize}\itemsep=0pt
  76 \item All tabs must be of the same width.
  77 \item Omit the wxTAB\_STYLE\_COLOUR\_INTERIOR flag to ensure that the dialog background
  78 and tab backgrounds match.
  79 \end{itemize}
  80
  81 \subsection{Example}
  82
  83 The following fragment is taken from the file test.cpp.
  84
  85 {\small
  86 \begin{verbatim}
  87 void MyDialog::Init(void)
  88 {
  89   int dialogWidth = 365;
  90   int dialogHeight = 390;
  91
  92   wxButton *okButton = new wxButton(this, wxID_OK, "Close", wxPoint(100, 330), wxSize(80, 25));
  93   wxButton *cancelButton = new wxButton(this, wxID_CANCEL, "Cancel", wxPoint(185, 330), wxSize(80, 25));
  94   wxButton *HelpButton = new wxButton(this, wxID_HELP, "Help", wxPoint(270, 330), wxSize(80, 25));
  95   okButton->SetDefault();
  96
  97   // Note, omit the wxTAB_STYLE_COLOUR_INTERIOR, so we will guarantee a match
  98   // with the panel background, and save a bit of time.
  99   wxPanelTabView *view = new wxPanelTabView(this, wxTAB_STYLE_DRAW_BOX);
 100
 101   wxRectangle rect;
 102   rect.x = 5;
 103   rect.y = 70;
 104   // Could calculate the view width from the tab width and spacing,
 105   // as below, but let's assume we have a fixed view width.
 106 //  rect.width = view->GetTabWidth()*4 + 3*view->GetHorizontalTabSpacing();
 107   rect.width = 326;
 108   rect.height = 250;
 109
 110   view->SetViewRect(rect);
 111
 112   // Calculate the tab width for 4 tabs, based on a view width of 326 and
 113   // the current horizontal spacing. Adjust the view width to exactly fit
 114   // the tabs.
 115   view->CalculateTabWidth(4, TRUE);
 116
 117   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_CAT,        wxString("Cat")))
 118     return;
 119
 120   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_DOG,        wxString("Dog")))
 121     return;
 122   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_GUINEAPIG,  wxString("Guinea Pig")))
 123     return;
 124   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_GOAT,       wxString("Goat")))
 125     return;
 126   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_ANTEATER,   wxString("Ant-eater")))
 127     return;
 128   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_SHEEP,      wxString("Sheep")))
 129     return;
 130   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_COW,        wxString("Cow")))
 131     return;
 132   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_HORSE,      wxString("Horse")))
 133     return;
 134   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_PIG,        wxString("Pig")))
 135     return;
 136   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_OSTRICH,    wxString("Ostrich")))
 137     return;
 138   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_AARDVARK,   wxString("Aardvark")))
 139     return;
 140   if (!view->AddTab(TEST_TAB_HUMMINGBIRD,wxString("Hummingbird")))
 141     return;
 142
 143   // Add some panels
 144   wxPanel *panel1 = new wxPanel(this, -1, wxPoint(rect.x + 20, rect.y + 10), wxSize(290, 220), wxTAB_TRAVERSAL);
 145   (void)new wxButton(panel1, -1, "Press me", wxPoint(10, 10));
 146   (void)new wxTextCtrl(panel1, -1, "1234", wxPoint(10, 40), wxSize(120, 150));
 147
 148   view->AddTabWindow(TEST_TAB_CAT, panel1);
 149
 150   wxPanel *panel2 = new wxPanel(this, -1, wxPoint(rect.x + 20, rect.y + 10), wxSize(290, 220));
 151
 152   wxString animals[] = { "Fox", "Hare", "Rabbit", "Sabre-toothed tiger", "T Rex" };
 153   (void)new wxListBox(panel2, -1, wxPoint(5, 5), wxSize(170, 80), 5, animals);
 154
 155   (void)new wxTextCtrl(panel2, -1, "Some notes about the animals in this house", wxPoint(5, 100), wxSize(170, 100)),
 156     wxTE_MULTILINE;
 157
 158   view->AddTabWindow(TEST_TAB_DOG, panel2);
 159
 160   // Don't know why this is necessary under Motif...
 161 #ifdef wx_motif
 162   this->SetSize(dialogWidth, dialogHeight-20);
 163 #endif
 164
 165   view->SetTabSelection(TEST_TAB_CAT);
 166
 167   this->Centre(wxBOTH);
 168 }
 169 \end{verbatim}
 170 }
 171
 172 \section{wxTabView overview}\label{wxtabviewoverview}
 173
 174 Classes: \helpref{wxTabView}{wxtabview}, \helpref{wxPanelTabView}{wxpaneltabview}
 175
 176 A wxTabView manages and draws a number of tabs. Because it is separate
 177 from the tabbed window implementation, it can be reused in a number of contexts.
 178 This library provides tabbed dialog and panel classes to use with the
 179 wxPanelTabView class, but an application could derive other kinds of
 180 view from wxTabView.
 181
 182 For example, a help application might draw a representation of a book on
 183 a window, with a row of tabs along the top. The new tab view class might
 184 be called wxCanvasTabView, for example, with the wxBookCanvas posting
 185 the OnEvent function to the wxCanvasTabView before processing further,
 186 application-specific event processing.
 187
 188 A window class designed to work with a view class must call the view's
 189 OnEvent and Draw functions at appropriate times.
 190