Splitters and Docking

[Dennis]

Has anyone really gotten the Docking and Splitter Bars to work for anyting
but the simplest application for two controls and one splitter bar filling
the whole form? If so, can you enlighten my on HOW! I even tried creating
background panels and docking them with the controls on the panels but the
docking order seems to be random! Another useless control from Microsoft I
think!
--
Dennis in Houston

[Herfried K. Wagner [MVP]]

"Dennis" <De****@discuss ions.microsoft. com> schrieb:

Has anyone really gotten the Docking and Splitter Bars to work for anyting
but the simplest application for two controls and one splitter bar filling
the whole form? If so, can you enlighten my on HOW! I even tried
creating
background panels and docking them with the controls on the panels but the
docking order seems to be random!

Use the "Bring to foreground" and "Send into background" context menu items
of the controls in the Windows Forms designer to control the docking order.

--
M S Herfried K. Wagner
M V P <URL:http://dotnet.mvps.org/>
V B <URL:http://dotnet.mvps.org/dotnet/faqs/>

[Herfried K. Wagner [MVP]]

"Dennis" <De****@discuss ions.microsoft. com> schrieb:

Has anyone really gotten the Docking and Splitter Bars to work for anyting
but the simplest application for two controls and one splitter bar filling
the whole form? If so, can you enlighten my on HOW! I even tried
creating
background panels and docking them with the controls on the panels but the
docking order seems to be random!

Use the "Bring to foreground" and "Send into background" context menu items
of the controls in the Windows Forms designer to control the docking order.

--
M S Herfried K. Wagner
M V P <URL:http://dotnet.mvps.org/>
V B <URL:http://dotnet.mvps.org/dotnet/faqs/>

[Cor Ligthert]

Dennis,

The splitter works fine when you know how, just some trying.

Your problem with the docking has nothing to do with the splitter, however
with the designer. When you use that it adds it in the way you drags it on
the form (Zorder).

It is easy to change in the designer generated code. Not efficient however
not really very expensive for performanse in my opinion is as well removing
those controls and adding them once in the load event (When you do it using
the designer you can do it everytime again when you change something)

What I find also very usefull to do is hidding and showing them. I have
forms where I have panels over panels as well splitting horizontal as
vertical. For that is however as well that Z order needed. (Z order is from
bottom to top.)

I hope this helps?

Cor

[Cor Ligthert]

Dennis,

The splitter works fine when you know how, just some trying.

Your problem with the docking has nothing to do with the splitter, however
with the designer. When you use that it adds it in the way you drags it on
the form (Zorder).

It is easy to change in the designer generated code. Not efficient however
not really very expensive for performanse in my opinion is as well removing
those controls and adding them once in the load event (When you do it using
the designer you can do it everytime again when you change something)

What I find also very usefull to do is hidding and showing them. I have
forms where I have panels over panels as well splitting horizontal as
vertical. For that is however as well that Z order needed. (Z order is from
bottom to top.)

I hope this helps?

Cor

[Atara]

splitter control allows the user to resize THE DOCKED CONTROL that is
IMMEDIATELY BEFORE IT.
Therefore, to enable the user to resize a docked control at run
time:
1. Dock the control to be resized to an edge of a container.
2. Dock a splitter control to the same side of that container.

e.g: 1 splitter.
control1.Dock = DockStyle.Left
splitter1.Dock = DockStyle.Left
splitter1.MinEx tra = 100
' Set the minimum size control2 can be sized to.
splitter1.MinSi ze = 75
' Set the minimum size control1 can be sized to.
control2.Dock = DockStyle.Fill
' Set control2 to fill the remaining space on the form.
Me.Controls.Add Range(New Control() {control2, splitter1,
control1}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper location.

e.g: 2 Splitters.
control1.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Left
control1.Width = Me.ClientSize.W idth \ 3
control2.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Top
control2.Height = Me.ClientSize.H eight * 2 \ 3
control3.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Fill

splitter1.Locat ion = New System.Drawing. Point(121, 0)
splitter1.Width = 3
splitter2.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Top
splitter2.Heigh t = 3

panel1.Controls .AddRange(New System.Windows. Forms.Control()
{control3, splitter2, control2}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper
location
panel1.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Fill

Me.Controls.Add Range(New System.Windows. Forms.Control() {panel1,
splitter1, control1}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper location

Good Luck.
Atara

*** Sent via Developersdex http://www.developersdex.com ***
Don't just participate in USENET...get rewarded for it!

[Atara]

splitter control allows the user to resize THE DOCKED CONTROL that is
IMMEDIATELY BEFORE IT.
Therefore, to enable the user to resize a docked control at run
time:
1. Dock the control to be resized to an edge of a container.
2. Dock a splitter control to the same side of that container.

e.g: 1 splitter.
control1.Dock = DockStyle.Left
splitter1.Dock = DockStyle.Left
splitter1.MinEx tra = 100
' Set the minimum size control2 can be sized to.
splitter1.MinSi ze = 75
' Set the minimum size control1 can be sized to.
control2.Dock = DockStyle.Fill
' Set control2 to fill the remaining space on the form.
Me.Controls.Add Range(New Control() {control2, splitter1,
control1}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper location.

e.g: 2 Splitters.
control1.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Left
control1.Width = Me.ClientSize.W idth \ 3
control2.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Top
control2.Height = Me.ClientSize.H eight * 2 \ 3
control3.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Fill

splitter1.Locat ion = New System.Drawing. Point(121, 0)
splitter1.Width = 3
splitter2.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Top
splitter2.Heigh t = 3

panel1.Controls .AddRange(New System.Windows. Forms.Control()
{control3, splitter2, control2}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper
location
panel1.Dock = System.Windows. Forms.DockStyle .Fill

Me.Controls.Add Range(New System.Windows. Forms.Control() {panel1,
splitter1, control1}) ' Add in reverse order to ensure proper location

Good Luck.
Atara

*** Sent via Developersdex http://www.developersdex.com ***
Don't just participate in USENET...get rewarded for it!

[Dennis]

Thank you for your replies. I didn't know that that the Zorder affected the
way the controls were docked. It's still difficult to get the controls and
splitters where you want them.

"Dennis" wrote:

Has anyone really gotten the Docking and Splitter Bars to work for anyting
but the simplest application for two controls and one splitter bar filling
the whole form? If so, can you enlighten my on HOW! I even tried creating
background panels and docking them with the controls on the panels but the
docking order seems to be random! Another useless control from Microsoft I
think!
--
Dennis in Houston

[Dennis]

Thank you for your replies. I didn't know that that the Zorder affected the
way the controls were docked. It's still difficult to get the controls and
splitters where you want them.

"Dennis" wrote:

Has anyone really gotten the Docking and Splitter Bars to work for anyting
but the simplest application for two controls and one splitter bar filling
the whole form? If so, can you enlighten my on HOW! I even tried creating
background panels and docking them with the controls on the panels but the
docking order seems to be random! Another useless control from Microsoft I
think!
--
Dennis in Houston

[Dennis]

Ok, I got the splitter to working and the panels where I want them. However,
when I add two controls and a splitter between them to a panel as chldren of
the panel, they show up ok but I can't resize the widths of the controls
using the splitter between them. It works fine if the two controls and
splitter are directly on a form but when they are children of a panel, it
doesn't work.

"Cor Ligthert" wrote:

Dennis,

The splitter works fine when you know how, just some trying.

Your problem with the docking has nothing to do with the splitter, however
with the designer. When you use that it adds it in the way you drags it on
the form (Zorder).

It is easy to change in the designer generated code. Not efficient however
not really very expensive for performanse in my opinion is as well removing
those controls and adding them once in the load event (When you do it using
the designer you can do it everytime again when you change something)

What I find also very usefull to do is hidding and showing them. I have
forms where I have panels over panels as well splitting horizontal as
vertical. For that is however as well that Z order needed. (Z order is from
bottom to top.)

I hope this helps?

Cor