WinForm SplashScreen
Download SplashScreen.zip
Introduction
Most commercial WinForm applications have a SplashScreen. This article explains how you can implement one using the Microsoft .NET Framework.
Example: Visual Studio.NET SplashScreen
SplashApplicationContext
The SplashApplicationContext is used to show a splash Form before the main Form is shown. It's base class is ApplicationContext.
The constructor accepts 3 arguments
- mainForm: The main Form of the application to use for context
- splashForm: The splash Form of the application to use for context
- interval: The time (in milliseconds) the splash Form is visible. Specify 0 to disable the timeout.
Usage
The Application.Run(context) method creates a standard application message loop on the current thread, with an ApplicationContext.
The following code creates a SplashApplicationContext using a new Form1 as the MainForm and a new SplashForm as the SplashForm. The interval is set to 2000 which will show the SplashForm for 2 seconds. This is done in the static Main() method.
/// The main entry point for the application.
/// </summary>
[STAThread]
staticvoid Main()
{
SplashApplicationContext myContext=
new SplashApplicationContext(new Form1(),new SplashForm(), 2000);
Application.Run(myContext);
}
You can use the time that the SplashForm is shown usefully. You can use it to connect to databases or do some other intializations. The following code simulates some activity. The status is displayed using a Label control.
{
// Show Form
this.Show();
Application.DoEvents();// Finish Paint
Cursor.Current = Cursors.WaitCursor;
// Simulate some activity (e.g. connect to database, caching data, retrieving defaults)
this.labelStatus.Text ="Step 1";
this.labelStatus.Refresh();
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(1000);
// Simulate some activity
this.labelStatus.Text ="Step 2";
this.labelStatus.Refresh();
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(1000);
// Simulate some activity
this.labelStatus.Text ="Step 3";
this.labelStatus.Refresh();
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(1000);
// Close Form
this.Close();
}
Code: SplashForm.cs
You must set the interval to 0 to disable the timer.
staticvoid Main()
{
SplashApplicationContext myContext=
new SplashApplicationContext(new Form1(),new SplashForm(), 0);
Application.Run(myContext);
}
Code: Form1.cs
Conclusion
The SplashApplicationContext class is easy solution to show a SplashScreen. It demonstrates the power of the .NET Framework.
Any suggestions and feedback for improving this article is most welcome. Send your suggestions and feedback to Fons.Sonnemans@reflectionit.nl
C# XML Documentation and NDoc
I have found the opensource project/tool NDoc which compiles the C# Xml Documentation to MSDN like help file.
It works great!
VB.NET Bug?
I think I have found a Bug in VB.NET (Final)! I can't compile the following program (Build Error: 'Private Function Foo() As Integer' and 'Public Function Foo() As String' cannot overload each other because they differ only by return types. ). It worked in Beta2 of VB.NET.
Public Interface ITestInterface
Function Foo() As Integer
End Interface
Public Class TestClass
Implements ITestInterface
Private Function Foo() As Integer Implements VBBug.ITestInterface.Foo
Return 1
End Function
Public Function Foo() As String
Return "2"
End Function
End Class
Free OutlookBar WinForm control
I have found a great OutlookBar control on C# Corner.
Distributed Transactions without COM+ (EnterpriceServices)
I don't like COM+. I have never liked it but I had to use it when I needed Distributed Transactions. At the Teched 2002 in Barcelona I learned how you can use Distributed Transactions without COM+.
My problem with COM+ is the fact that you only can choose one transactiontype for a class. You can not differentiate it per method.
Download the following Zip file and have a look at Ron Jacobs example project and slides.
Be carefull, this only works on Windows XP. It uses some lowlevel COM+ 1.5 features.
This is the start of my .NET WebLog
I have recently updated my WebSite from 'Classic' ASP to ASP.NET. This allowed me to create this WebLog easily using an Xml file and a DataGrid.
I will use this WebLog as a podium to communicate my personal opinion about Microsoft .NET. The 'product' which allows me to create great software.
Simple .NET ReportLibrary
Download ReportLibrary.zip
Introduction
Printing in .NET is greatly improved when compared with Visual Basic 6.0. In my projects I almost never use external reporting tools like Crystal Reports. They are too large and complex for my needs. In this article I demonstrate the use of the ReportLibrary which I developed. It can be used to create simple reports which can be printed and previewed.
ReportLibrary
The ReportingLibrary assembly contains a Report class. A report has a collection of items of the type IReportItem. You buildup your report by adding Items to the report. An item can be a ReportGroup, ReportText, ReportHorizontalLine or ReportPageBreak.
A report has a Title and SubTitle which are printed in the default pageheader.
ReportGroup class
A ReportGroup is used to group items together. All items within the group are normally printed on the same line (Y coordinate), you can change this behavior by setting the FixedTop property to 'false'.
ReportText class
A ReportText is used to print a string on a specific X (Left) coordinate. You can use the 'Center' or 'Right' alignment when the Width property is set to a non-zero value.
A ReportGroup and ReportText can have a BackColor and a BorderPen which only have meaning when the Height property is set to a non-zero value.
Usage
The following code creates the report which preview is shown in the top of this article.
/// Preview Clicked
/// </summary>
/// <param name="sender"></param>
/// <param name="e"></param>
private void buttonPreview_Click ( object sender , System.EventArgs e)
{
using (Report r = CreateReport())
{
r.Preview();
}
}
/// <summary>
/// Print Clicked
/// </summary>
/// <param name="sender"></param>
/// <param name="e"></param>
privatevoidbuttonPrint_Click(objectsender, System.EventArgs e)
{
using (Report r = CreateReport())
{
r.Print(new PrintDialog());
}
}
/// <summary>
/// Create Report
/// </summary>
/// <returns>Initialized Report object</returns>
private Report CreateReport()
{
// Initialize Report
Report r =new Report();
r.DefaultPageSettings.Landscape = (checkBoxLandscape.Checked);
r.Title =textBoxTitle.Text;
r.SubTitle =textBoxSubTitle.Text;
r.NewPage +=new NewPageHandler(ReportNewPage);
// Add Rows (Groups)
int rows= Convert.ToInt32(numericUpDownRows.Value);
for(int t = 1; t <=rows; t++)
{
// Create Group and add it to the Report
ReportGroup g =new ReportGroup();
r.Items.Add(g);
// Column1
ReportText s =new ReportText(t.ToString(),10,70);
s.Alignment = HorizontalAlignment.Right;
g.Items.Add(s);
// Column2
s =new ReportText("Some Text", 100);
g.Items.Add(s);
}
// Close report with a HorizontalLine
r.Items.Add(new ReportHorizontalLine(0, r.Width,2));
return r;
}
Custom Page Headers
You can use the default page header or create your own. The NewPage event is triggered each time a page is printed.
/// Report NewPage event handler
/// </summary>
/// <param name="sender">Report object</param>
/// <param name="items">items collection</param>
/// <param name="page">pagenumber</param>
private void ReportNewPage(object sender, ReportItemCollection items,intpage)
{
// Use Default PageHeader?
if (!checkBoxPageHeader.Checked)
items.Clear();
// Create Group and add it to the Report
ReportGroup g =new ReportGroup(0, ((Report)sender).Width,20);
g.BorderPen =new Pen(Brushes.Gray, 2);
g.BackColor = Brushes.LightGray;
g.Margin.Top =2;
items.Add(g);
// Column1
ReportText s =new ReportText("Column1",10,70);
s.Alignment = HorizontalAlignment.Right;
g.Items.Add(s);
// Column1
s = new ReportText("Column2",100);
g.Items.Add(s);
// Add some empty space
items.Add(new ReportGroup(5));
}
All ReportItems added to the items collection are used in the pageheader.
Conclusion
The ReportLibrary is an easy solution when you want to reports buildup from code in .NET. You can off course extend it by creating your own classes which implement the IReportItem interface. This makes it a very powerful solution.
Any suggestions and feedback for improving this article is most welcome. Send your suggestions and feedback to Fons.Sonnemans@reflectionit.nl
Pocket PC TimeBox Control
Download TimeBox.zip
Introduction
I own a Pocket PC since a few months. It's a nice peace of hardware although I didn't use it much. There wasn't much practical use for it. Now I have decided to write my own Time Registration and maybe my own Car Mileage Administration application. In both Smart Device Applications I have to enter a Time regullary. Microsoft didn't supply me with a good control for this so I decided to write one.
Writing a Smart Device Applications is made easy with the introduction of Visual Studio.NET 2003 and the .NET Compact Framework. In this article I describe how I have written a TimeBox control for the Pocket PC. It's not much different from a normal Windows Forms control.
TimeBox Sample running in the Pocket PC Emulator
I plan to use this TimeBox in my application so I have placed it in an separate project. Due to the low memory footprint you also have to create a designer able version of it. This version will have extra design-time only code (methods and attributes).
Controls Project
 |
The ReflectionIT.Windows.Forms project consists of 3 controls: UpDownButton, SpinButton and TimeBox. The UpDownButton is used by the SpinButton control to draw a Up and a Down button. The SpinButton is used by the TimeBox to spin the hours and minutes. Once you have compiled your control you need to copy it to specific locations so that Microsoft Visual Studio.NET and the .NET Compact Framework can find it. The runtime version of your control should be copied to the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio .NET\CompactFrameworkSDK\v1.0.5000\Windows CE\ directory if you have done the default install. I have created a special batch file (copytowince 2003.cmd) which compiles the controls project and the designer project and copies the DLL's to the correct folders. |
Time class
The Time class is used to store the Hours and Minutes in. It supports arithmetic, comparison and conversion operator overloading.
Time t2=new Time(0,15);
Time t3=t1+ t2; // 11:00
if(t3 < (12 *60)){
Console.WriteLine(String.Format("Good morning, it is {0}", t3));
}
The Time class has a TypeConverter which is used to support designer serialization.
if(destinationType==typeof(InstanceDescriptor)) {
// This will make a Time a serialiable property in the IntializeComponent method
ConstructorInfo ci=typeof(Time).GetConstructor(new Type[]{typeof(int),typeof(int)});
Time t =(Time)value;
returnnew InstanceDescriptor(ci,newobject[]{t.Hours, t.Minutes});
}
if(destinationType.Equals(typeof(String))){
returnvalue.ToString();
}else{
returnbase.ConvertTo (context,culture, value,destinationType);
}
}
Designer Project
The designer version of the control project has a special Conditional Compilation Constant named 'NETCFDESIGNTIME'. This constant is used to add extra code for design-time support. Attributes are added to methods. Extra classes and methods are included for resizing, serialization and type conversion. The output of this project should be copied to the C:\program files\microsoft visual studio .net 2003\compactframeworksdk\v1.0.5000\Windows CE\Designer folder.
[
Category("Appearance"),
Description("The current time of the timebox."),
]
#endif
public ReflectionIT.Time Time {
get {
return(this._time);
}
set {
boolchanged=(_time !=value);
this._time =value;
if(changed){
Invalidate();
OnTimeChanged();
}
}
}
#if NETCFDESIGNTIME
publicvoid ResetTime() {
this.Time =new Time(0);
}
publicbool ShouldSerializeTime() {
returnthis.Time !=new Time(0);
}
#endif
Sample Client Project
The TimeBox Sample client project has two TimeBox controls and a disabled TextBox control. The difference between the two times is displayed in the TextBox using the TimeChanged event of the TimeBoxes.
if(timeBoxStop.Time >=timeBoxStart.Time) {
textBoxDuration.Text = (timeBoxStop.Time -timeBoxStart.Time).ToString();
}else{
textBoxDuration.Text = new ReflectionIT.Time().ToString();
}
}
Links:
I have used the following articles to create this control and to write this article:
- IntelliProg - Design-time functionality for custom controls in Compact Framework and SDE.
- MSDN - Creating Custom Controls for the .NET Compact Framework
Conclusion
Writing this TimeBox control was realy a challenge. The documentation of the .NetCF is very limited. I hope that this article and sample code will help you write your own controls for the Pocket PC.
I hope I can port these applications to a Smartphone solution as soon as Microsoft will produce a .NET Compact Framework for it. A Pocket PC is just to big to carry around the whole day. Hopefully it works!
Any suggestions and feedback for improving this article is most welcome. Send your suggestions and feedback to Fons.Sonnemans@reflectionit.nl
WinForm WizardHeader Control
By Fons Sonnemans (May 2002)
Download Wizard.zip
Introduction
In Windows XP all wizard dialogs have a nice looking header. This WizardHeader control can be used to add these headers to your wizard forms.
Usage
The following steps explain how you can use the WizardHeader control in your WinForm projects.
Step1 - Download the Zip file and extract it.
Download Wizard.zip and extract it to you local harddrive. This version was compiled using the final version of Microsoft .NET Framework SDK. The C# source of the WizardHeader control is included.
Step2 - Design the Form
Create a Windows Application project.
Step3 - Add the WizardHeader control to the Toolbox
Right-click the Toolbox and select 'Customize Toolbox...'Select the '.NET Framework Components' Tab and click the 'Browse' button.
Open the 'WizardControlLibary.dll' in the Wizard\WizardControlLibrary\Bin\Release folder. The 'WizardHeader' control is checked and will be visible in the Toolbox. Click OK.
Step4 - Add a WizardHeader to the form and set its properties
Set the properties:
- Text
- Description
- Image
Step5 - Run the application
Conclusion
The WizardHeader control is an small control. Use it in your wizard forms or study it to learn more about creating .NET controls.
Any suggestions and feedback for improving this article is most welcome. Send your suggestions and feedback to Fons.Sonnemans@reflectionit.nl
Add a Splitter to a WinForm
Download SplitterDemo.zip
Introduction
I used to program in Visual Basic 6.0. It is a great tool but not perfect. It was lacking some crucial controls. A Splitter control was one of them. Microsoft has added it to the .NET framework (thanks) but forgot to make it easy to use. You must place it on a Form, set some properties for it and then also some (Dock) properties of the other two controls. Then you have to set the order of the controls correctly by using 'Bring to Front' or 'Send to Back'.
This article demonstrates the use of a simple AddSplitter() method which simplifies the use of splitters.
AddSplitter() method
/// Add a splitter between the two given controls
/// </summary>
/// <param name="control1">Control 1</param>
/// <param name="control2">Control 2</param>
/// <param name="vertical">Vertical orientation</param>
/// <returns>The created Splitter</returns>
public static Splitter AddSplitter(Control control1, Control control2,bool vertical)
{
Control parent =control1.Parent;
// Validate
if (parent!=control2.Parent)
thrownew ArgumentException(
"Both controls must be placed on the same Containter");
if(parent.Controls.Count > 2)
thrownew ArgumentException(
"There may only be 2 controls on the Container");
parent.SuspendLayout();
// Move control2 before control1
if (parent.Controls.IndexOf(control2) > parent.Controls.IndexOf(control1))
parent.Controls.SetChildIndex(control2,0);
// Create splitter
Splitter splitter=new Splitter();
splitter.Dock = System.Windows.Forms.DockStyle.Left;
// Set controls properties
control2.Dock = DockStyle.Fill;
if(vertical)
{
control1.Dock = DockStyle.Left;
splitter.Dock = DockStyle.Left;
splitter.Width = 6;
}
else
{
control1.Dock = DockStyle.Top;
splitter.Dock = DockStyle.Top;
splitter.Height = 6;
splitter.Cursor = Cursors.HSplit;
}
// Add splitter to the parent in the middle
parent.Controls.Add(splitter);
parent.Controls.SetChildIndex(splitter,1);
parent.ResumeLayout();
return splitter;
}
Usage
I will explain how you can create a Form with two Spitters as shown above. Create a Windows Form and a a ListBox and a Panel to it. Add another ListBox and TextBox and place them in the Panel.
Do not place any Spliters on the Form, they will be added using the AddSplitter() method. Modify the constructor of the Form.
{
//
// Required for Windows Form Designer support
//
InitializeComponent();
//
// Add Splitter
//
ControlUtil.AddSplitter(listBox1,panel1, true);
ControlUtil.AddSplitter(listBox2,textBox1,false);
}
The vertical splitter is added between Listbox1 and the panel. The horizontal splitter is added between ListBox2 and TextBox1.
Conclusion
Splitters are great but not easy to use, the AddSplitter() method solves this.
Any suggestions and feedback for improving this article is most welcome. Send your suggestions and feedback to Fons.Sonnemans@reflectionit.nl
All postings/content on this blog are provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confer no rights. All entries in this blog are my opinion and don't necessarily reflect the opinion of my employer or sponsors. The content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution By license.