Tabcontrol on an MDI form

[Ooogy]

Hey there kind folks. Maybe someone out there can tell me where I'm
going wrong here.

I have a winform MDI app with a parent form ("MDIHMI.vb" ) and a child
form ("frmEMSearch") . On frmEMSearch, is a tab control with 4 tab
pages; the first one (index 0) is called "tabEpiDef" . I have a menu
bar across the top of MDHMI where one of the options should bring
frmEMSearch up if it's not already of course, and if it is, switch
over to the tabEpiDef tab page.

In coding the click event for the menu item, no matter what I do, I
cant seem to bring the first tab page to the front. It seems like
I've tried everything. None of these seem to work (individually, or
in groups)...
frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Br ingToFront()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edIndex = 0
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedIn dex = 0

frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Se lect()

frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Br ingToFront()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edIndex = 0
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edTab.BringToFr ont()
frmEMSearch.Con trols("tabcontr ol1").Select()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).Select()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).Show()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).BringToFr ont()
newForm.tabEpiD ef.Select()
newForm.tabEpiD ef.BringToFront ()
newForm is instantiated immediately before all the above with...

Dim newForm As New frmEMSearch

Is there some sort of special way I'm not aware of to refer to a child
form in an MDI app? Can anyone give me a clue as to what direction I
should be looking to for an answer to this seemingly easy task?

Thanks VERY much in advance...Ooogy

[Armin Zingler]

"Ooogy" <oo********@yah oo.comschrieb

Hey there kind folks. Maybe someone out there can tell me where I'm
going wrong here.

I have a winform MDI app with a parent form ("MDIHMI.vb" ) and a
child form ("frmEMSearch") . On frmEMSearch, is a tab control with 4
tab pages; the first one (index 0) is called "tabEpiDef" . I have a
menu bar across the top of MDHMI where one of the options should
bring frmEMSearch up if it's not already of course, and if it is,
switch over to the tabEpiDef tab page.

In coding the click event for the menu item, no matter what I do, I
cant seem to bring the first tab page to the front. It seems like
I've tried everything. None of these seem to work (individually, or
in groups)...
frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Br ingToFront()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edIndex = 0
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedIn dex = 0

frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Se lect()

frmEMSearch.Con trols("TabContr ol1").Controls( "tabEpiDef").Br ingToFront()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edIndex = 0
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edTab.BringToFr ont()
frmEMSearch.Con trols("tabcontr ol1").Select()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).Select()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).Show()
frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.TabPag es(0).BringToFr ont()
newForm.tabEpiD ef.Select()
newForm.tabEpiD ef.BringToFront ()
newForm is instantiated immediately before all the above with...

Dim newForm As New frmEMSearch

Is there some sort of special way I'm not aware of to refer to a
child form in an MDI app? Can anyone give me a clue as to what
direction I should be looking to for an answer to this seemingly
easy task?

Thanks VERY much in advance...Ooogy

newform.tabcont rol1.selectedta b = newform.tabepid ef

I'd put it inside frmEMSearch because both (explicit) references to
newform can be omitted.
Armin

[Ooogy]

>
newform.tabcont rol1.selectedta b = newform.tabepid ef

Armin, thanks for the effort but unfortunately, still no luck.
Neither:

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef

or...

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b.BringToFront( )

or even...

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b =
newForm.Control s("TabControl1" ).Controls("tab EpiDef")

....seem to work. It just stays at the current tab and doesn't switch
over to tabEpiDef. Any other ideas for me to try?

Thanks...Ooogy

[Armin Zingler]

"Ooogy" <oo********@yah oo.comschrieb

>

newform.tabcont rol1.selectedta b = newform.tabepid ef

Armin, thanks for the effort but unfortunately, still no luck.
Neither:

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef

or...

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b.BringToFront( )

or even...

newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b =
newForm.Control s("TabControl1" ).Controls("tab EpiDef")

...seem to work. It just stays at the current tab and doesn't
switch over to tabEpiDef. Any other ideas for me to try?

You wrote "where one of the options should bring frmEMSearch up if it's
not already of course"
Therefore I assumed that you create a new Form (by executing "New
frmEMSearch") only if it has not been created yet. Is this assumption
correct? I guess, you create a new Form each time even if there is
already one visible.
Armin

[Ooogy]

Exactly...here' s what's not working...
Private Sub EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item_Click(ByVa l sender As
System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArg s) Handles
EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item.Click
Dim newForm As New frmEMSearch()
newForm.MdiPare nt = Me
If IsNothing(newFo rm) Then
newForm.ShowDia log()
Else
If gCurrentTabInde x <0 Then
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef
End If
End If
End Sub
gCurrentTabInde x is set to the new tab index on TabControl1's
selectedindexch anged event.

Is my problem perhaps creating the new frmEMSearch even if it's
already there? How else other than the "If IsNothing(newFo rm)" would
I handle testing whether frmEMSearch currently is present? There are
of course other forms available to MDHMI to be a child and showing.

Thanks...Ooogy

[Jack Jackson]

On Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:28:41 -0700 (PDT), Ooogy <oo********@yah oo.com>
wrote:

>Exactly...here 's what's not working...
Private Sub EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item_Click(ByVa l sender As
System.Objec t, ByVal e As System.EventArg s) Handles
EpisodeDefinit ionToolStripMen uItem.Click
Dim newForm As New frmEMSearch()
newForm.MdiPare nt = Me
If IsNothing(newFo rm) Then
newForm.ShowDia log()
Else

You are always creating a new form. You create a new frmEMSearch and
put its reference in newForm, and you set the new form's MdiParent
property. You then check the variable newForm for Nothing, but it
can't be Nothing because you just used it to set a property.

What I would do is create a class level property:

Private emSearch as frmEMSearch = Nothing

then change the code above to:

If emSearch Is Nothing Then
emSearch = New frmEMSearch
emSearch.MdiPar ent = Me
End If

If gCurrentTabInde x <0 Then
emSearcg.TabCon trol1.SelectedT ab = emSearch.tabEpi Def
End If

emSearch.ShowDi alog()

[Armin Zingler]

"Ooogy" <oo********@yah oo.comschrieb

Exactly...here' s what's not working...
Private Sub EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item_Click(ByVa l sender As
System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArg s) Handles
EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item.Click
Dim newForm As New frmEMSearch()
newForm.MdiPare nt = Me
If IsNothing(newFo rm) Then

- newForm can never be nothing because you've just assigned a new object
to the variable
- General hint: "... Is Nothing" is shorter than calling a function
(IsNothing). Minor issue only.

newForm.ShowDia log()

Really Showdialog? In this case you could not use the menu again while
the modal form is shown.

Else
If gCurrentTabInde x <0 Then
newForm.TabCont rol1.SelectedTa b = newForm.tabEpiD ef
End If
End If
End Sub
gCurrentTabInde x is set to the new tab index on TabControl1's
selectedindexch anged event.

Is my problem perhaps creating the new frmEMSearch even if it's
already there? How else other than the "If IsNothing(newFo rm)"
would I handle testing whether frmEMSearch currently is present?
There are of course other forms available to MDHMI to be a child and
showing.

That's how I'd do it:
All in Class hdihmi:

private frmEMSearch as frmEMSearch

Private Sub EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item_Click(ByVa l sender As
System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArg s) Handles
EpisodeDefiniti onToolStripMenu Item.Click

if frmEMSearch is nothing then
frmEMSearch = New frmEMSearch()
addhandler frmEMSearch.for mclosed,address of OnEMSearchClose d
frmEMSearch.mdi parent = me
frmEMSearch.sho w
else
frmEMSearch.Act ivate

frmEMSearch.Tab Control1.Select edTab = frmEMSearch.tab EpiDef 'see
notes below
End Sub

protected overriadable sub OnEMSearchClose d

frmEMSearch = Nothing

end sub

However, I still don't understand how 'Showdialog' fits in your code.
I'm not sure /when/ you want to activate the TabPage. Only when the Form
is shown or also if it is reactivated?
Armin

[Ooogy]

Jack / Armin -

Got things working now as they should. For a while there, I was
getting a duplicate copy of frmEMSearch showing over the original; but
only the first time I clicked the menu item. After that, the new form
would switch to the proper tab as expected. Resolved that by setting
EMSearch to the initial "New frmEMSearch" call in MDIHMI's load event.

Thanks very much for the help...Ooogy