Layout Designer Suggestions

[Guest]

I have written an application. It that has a background image on the main form. There are also about 25 label controls (maybe text boxes depending on your recommendations). The location of the label controls needs to be repositionable by the user. He also needs to be able to choose a font, font size and a few other properties. Also, I want to allow him to add or remove labels (he can pick Add from a menu option, then a dropdown can present him with the predefined labels that he can add). After adding them to the form he will need to be able to resize and reposition them and save the output to some sort of layout file for the application to read when it is launched. I think I'm going to try and store all the parameters in an XML file. So basically what I want to do is create some sort of Layout Designer. What suggestions do you all have or links that may be helpful. I read the MSDN article about "Not Your Father's Data Binding". Thats where I got the idea for using XML

Lets hear it
John

 

[Herfried K. Wagner [MVP]]

I have written an application. It that has a background image on the
main form. There are also about 25 label controls (maybe text boxes
depending on your recommendations). The location of the label controls
needs to be repositionable by the user. He also needs to be able to
choose a font, font size and a few other properties. Also, I want to
allow him to add or remove labels (he can pick Add from a menu option,
then a dropdown can present him with the predefined labels that he can
add). After adding them to the form he will need to be able to resize
and reposition them and save the output to some sort of layout file for
the application to read when it is launched. I think I'm going to try
and store all the parameters in an XML file. So basically what I want to
do is create some sort of Layout Designer. What suggestions do you all
have or links that may be helpful. I read the MSDN article about "Not
Your Father's Data Binding". Thats where I got the idea for using XML.

Have a look at SharpDevelop's IDE to see how to implement a form
designer.

<URL:http://www.icsharpcode.com/OpenSource/SD/Default.aspx>

 

[Cor Ligthert]

Hi Jcrouse,

You can use for that an XML file however for this screen part I prefer the
registry.

When you use the Anchor properties and the Dock properties well, you have
not to set so much as in past, the upper left point on screen and the size
and height will when well done in my opinion be enough.

With a slider you can think of setting that postition as well in the
registry

The registry is very easy to handle in your program.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/d...tml/frlrfmicrosoftwin32registryclasstopic.asp

This does not mean that I do not use config files and for that I use the
ordinary dataset which I read with ds.ReadXML and ds.WriteXML. However not
for screensetting, for those I do not like diskaccess (maybe something
personal).

I hope this helps?

Cor