Windows Control Project

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 01:42 PM

Hello,

About a year ago I was wroking with the TaskVision XPander control and got it rewritten an functioning in C#. Revisited it, and pretty much forget how I built it.

I can't remember how to debug a Windows Control Library project. I created a new project which creates a default UserControl1. The UserControl1 appears in My User Controls toolox tab (custom tab I must of created). I added a windows project to the solution to test the control.

When I change the name of the control from the default UserControl1, it vanishes from the toolbax tab. How can I get my renamed control to reappear iin the Toolbox so I can drop it on the WIndows form test project?

Thanks for any help.

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 01:53 PM

Looks like I got it. I had just changed the name in the GUI. When I changed it in the code module, all was well.

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 02:31 PM

Still can't debug it though. I need to be able to have the user control run at design time when I drop the control on a windows form. Any idea hoe to do that??

Bob

Imar · February 5th, 2006, 02:40 PM

Hi Bob,

Maybe this helps?? http://imar.spaanjaars.com/QuickDocId.aspx?QUICKDOC=306

The idea is that you start another instance of the development environment, so you can debug your custom controls...

Cheers,

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 03:45 PM

Hi Imar,

Wonderful. Works well.

The XPanderControl.dll really contains 2 controls: an XPanderListControl and instances of XPanderControl that are dropped onto the XPanderListControl. The individual XPanderControls then collapse and expand.

My XPanderControl code is breaking when I attempt to add the Expand and Collapse images to a Bitmap array:

Code:

private Bitmap[] _images = new Bitmap[4];

The code breaks at:

Code:

private void XpanderControl_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e) {
            // Load images from the .dll.
            _images[1] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse.jpg"); //<=== Breaks here when attempt to add first image.
            _images[2] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse_h.jpg");
            _images[3] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand.jpg");
            _images[4] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand_h.jpg");

            this.DockPadding.Top = _captionHeight;
        }

I just imported the .jpgs into the XPanderControl project. Any idea if the images need to be treated differently somehow?

Thanks again,

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 03:46 PM

The excption thrown reads:

Key cannot be null.
Parameter name: key

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 04:01 PM

The Bitmap constructor overload the code is using is prototyped as:

public Bitmap(Type type, string resource);

Don't know if that means its looking for a resource file, or if the code can see the .jpgs I just imported into the project.

Kinda' new terrain here for me.

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 04:34 PM

Made some progress by setting the Build Action property of all the .jpgs to "Embedded Resource", now the first three Bitmap objects get created OK but the code breaks here:

Code:

private void XpanderControl_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e) {
            // Load images from the .dll.
            _images[1] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse.jpg");             
            _images[2] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse_h.jpg");
            _images[3] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand.jpg");
            _images[4] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand_h.jpg"); //<=== Breaks here when attempt to add last image.


            this.DockPadding.Top = _captionHeight;
        }

Hmm...feel like I'm alomost there though.

Bob

Bob Bedell · February 5th, 2006, 04:50 PM

Of course...C# arrays are 0-based.

This gets it:

1) Set Build Action of images to Embedded Resource.
2) Load a 4 element array with:

Code:

private void XpanderControl_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e) {
            // Load images from the .dll.
            _images[0] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse.jpg"); 
            _images[1] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Collapse_h.jpg");
            _images[2] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand.jpg");
            _images[3] = new Bitmap(this.GetType(), "Expand_h.jpg");

            this.DockPadding.Top = _captionHeight;
}

Thanks for the invaluable debugging tip Imar, and for letting me think out loud.

Till next time,

Bob

Imar · February 5th, 2006, 05:56 PM

You're welcome. I was just about to suggest the "embedded resource" option, but it turns out you have already fixed it.

You may also want to take a look at this: http://imar.spaanjaars.com/QuickDocId.aspx?QUICKDOC=168

This article, although written for a Compact Framework application, talks a bit about embedding resources and getting them at run-time. In C#, you have to be aware of namespace issues when you store your images at locations other than the root....

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.