databinding multiple fields in UI not updating - winforms

I have a winform that contains a bindingsource the data source of which is a typed dataset. I have bound in the designer two text boxes to the same column. When I update either textbox the DataRow column in the DatSet is correctly updated however the other textbox value on the form is not updated.
What am I missing? How do I get the databindings to update the second textbox?
NOTE: this is a simplified example I need to do this because in the real application because one control is editable by the user the other is the input into a composite control for calculations.
// Taken from InitializeComponent()
this.productsBindingSource.DataMember = "Products";
this.productsBindingSource.DataSource = this.dataSet1;
this.textBox1.DataBindings.Add(new Binding("Text", this.productsBindingSource, "UnitsInStock", true, DataSourceUpdateMode.OnPropertyChanged));
this.textBox2.DataBindings.Add(new Binding("Text", this.productsBindingSource, "UnitsInStock", true, DataSourceUpdateMode.OnPropertyChanged));
// Taken from Form Load Event
DataSet1TableAdapters.ProductsTableAdapter adapter = new DataSet1TableAdapters.ProductsTableAdapter();
adapter.Fill(dataSet1.Products);

There's an article on MSDN which might help - see How to: Ensure Multiple Controls Bound to the Same Data Source Remain Synchronized
Essentially you need to set up an event handler for the BindingSource's BindingComplete event (as you have done, you need to have FormattingEnabled set to True for this to work)
Then, in the BindingComplete event handler, you have this code:
private void productsBindingSource_BindingComplete(object sender, BindingCompleteEventArgs e)
{
// Check if the data source has been updated,
// and that no error has occured.
if (e.BindingCompleteContext == BindingCompleteContext.DataSourceUpdate && e.Exception == null)
{
// End the current edit.
e.Binding.BindingManagerBase.EndCurrentEdit();
}
}

So my solution was to Implement INotifyPropertyChanged on the Typed Data Row class as it is exposed as a partial class by the designer this was fairly straight forward and then set the data source of the bindingsource to be the data row itself.
public partial class MyDataRow : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public void AddEventHandler()
{
this.Table.ColumnChanged += new System.Data.DataColumnChangeEventHandler(Table_ColumnChanged);
}
void Table_ColumnChanged(object sender, System.Data.DataColumnChangeEventArgs e)
{
OnPropertyChanged(e.Column.ColumnName);
}
#region INotifyPropertyChanged Members
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
#endregion
}
Code to data bind
MyDataRow row = <Get Current Row>;
row.AddEventHandler();
bindingSource1.DataSource = row;

Related

How can I get bindings to update when the value is changed?

I'm trying to understand WPF binding. As simple as it gets:
I have a ClassWithProperty that has a public uint Prop1.
The main window has a public ClassWithProp object and uses it for data context. This is set in the main Windows's constructor:
this.ClassWithProp = new ClassWithProp();
this.DataContext = this.ClassWithProp;
ClassWithProp's default constructor sets Porp1 value to 1.
The main windows contains a label:
<Label Content="{Binding Prop1}" ... />
It also contains a button that, when click, sets the ClassWithProp.Prop1 to 2.
When the window first appears, the label correctly shows 1. When the button is clicked the property's value is changed to 2, but the lable does not refresh.
Sorry - probably obvious but I'm a novice in WPF:
Why doesn't the bound label update when the undelying property changes?
Your ClassWithProperty needs to implement the INotifyPropertyChanged interface (which has just the one event on it, PropertyChanged), this way the WPF binding subsystem can listen for property changes and update the value. When you have changed the value of a property, you raise the event.
Here is an example:
pulic class ClassWithProperty : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public uint Prop1
{
get { return _prop1; }
set
{
_prop1 = value;
OnPropertyChanged("Prop1");
}
}
protected void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
if (this.PropertyChanged != null)
this.PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private uint _prop1;
}
Implement INPC.
Also read the overview, it probably answers more than 90% of questions people have about data binding.

How to databind two dependency properties belonging to two different controls?

Alternatively: How to subscribe to the PropertyChanged event defined by INotifyPropertyChanged thru the databinding of two dependency properties?
I have two separate user controls inside my main window. One control contains the parameters that affect the other control, let’s call it the display control. I want the parameter control to act as the datasource of the display control so that when I change a parameter in the parameter control, the display control be listening and reacts accordingly.
For this I created a class that implements INotifyPropertyChanged that stores these parameters and created dependencies properties of this class type in both controls. I was expecting that if I binded one control property to the other I would get the desired behaviour, but unfortunately I am missing something important because the display control is not reacting.
On a closer inspection with the debugger, I notice that my event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged was always null when a property had changed, and everything I have read indicates, that no one is listening.
Because the display control is created in real time, I have to create the binding programmatically like this:
var DispayControlValuesBinding = new Binding();
DispayControlValuesBinding.Source = DisplayControlsControl;
DispayControlValuesBinding.Path = new PropertyPath("DisplayControlValues");
DispayControlValuesBinding.Mode = BindingMode.OneWay;
DispayControlValuesBinding.UpdateSourceTrigger = UpdateSourceTrigger.PropertyChanged;
DispayControlValuesBinding.NotifyOnSourceUpdated = true;
//
graph.SetBinding(Graph.DisplayControlValuesProperty, DisplayControlValuesBinding);
Both controls have a dependency property called DispayControlValues. I try to bind the DisplayControlControl's DisplayControlValues property to the graph control's DisplayControlValues property.
When the application runs, it initializes the parameter control, then with a user request a display control is created programmatically and the binding is made. Then I change a value in the parameter control, this is catch by the parameters class that implements the INotifyPropertyChanged interface but because no one is listening, the event handler is null and here is where I am stuck.
Your help is greatly appreciated!
Here are more details as requested:
I have one user control that exposes the parameters that changes the behaviour of another control. This control has a dependency property that contains parameter details and implements the INotifyPropertyChanged interface.
Here is the class:
public class ZoomGraphControlValues : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private bool _displayRaw;
public bool DisplayRaw
{
get { return _displayRaw; }
set
{
_displayRaw = value;
OnPropertyChanged(new PropertyChangedEventArgs("DisplayRaw"));
}
}
private bool _enableFit;
public bool EnableFit
{
get { return _enableFit; }
set
{
_enableFit = value;
OnPropertyChanged(new PropertyChangedEventArgs("EnableFit"));
}
}
public ZoomGraphControlValues()
{}
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
public void OnPropertyChanged(PropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
PropertyChanged(this, e);
}
}
Here is the dependency property:
public ZoomGraphControlValues ControlValues
{
get { return (ZoomGraphControlValues)GetValue(ControlValuesProperty); }
set { SetValue(ControlValuesProperty, value); }
}
public static readonly DependencyProperty ControlValuesProperty =
DependencyProperty.Register("ControlValues", typeof(ZoomGraphControlValues), typeof(ZoomGraphControls), new PropertyMetadata(null, OnControlValuesPropertyChanged));
private static void OnControlValuesPropertyChanged(DependencyObject d, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
var myObj = d as ZoomGraphControls;
myObj.OnControlValuesPropertyChanged(e);
}
private void OnControlValuesPropertyChanged(DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (ControlValues != null)
{
IniValues();
}
}
Then I have the display user control. This control also implements a dependency property of the same type as the other control and I want this control to be the target of the binding, so that when I change values in the parameter control, this control reflect the changes.
Here is the dependency property of this control:
public ZoomGraphControlValues ZoomGraphControlValues
{
get { return (ZoomGraphControlValues)GetValue(ZoomGraphControlValuesProperty); }
set { SetValue(ZoomGraphControlValuesProperty, value); }
}
public static readonly DependencyProperty ZoomGraphControlValuesProperty =
DependencyProperty.Register("ZoomGraphControlValues", typeof(ZoomGraphControlValues), typeof(zoomGraph), new PropertyMetadata(null, OnZoomGraphControlValuesPropertyChanged));
private static void OnZoomGraphControlValuesPropertyChanged(DependencyObject d, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
var myObj = d as zoomGraph;
myObj.OnZoomGraphControlValuesPropertyChanged(e);
}
private void OnZoomGraphControlValuesPropertyChanged(DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (ZoomGraphControlValues != null)
{
// update the control with the new parameters
ShowRawData(ZoomGraphControlValues.DisplayRaw);
SetChartBehabiour();
}
}
The Parameters control is initialized since the beginning of the application cycle. The display control gets created as per user request into a tab, so I have to create the control programmatically and thereby the binding as well:
//create the tab and wire tab events
//…
//create a display control
var graph = new zoomGraph();
// initialize the parameters class
var zgcv = new ZoomGraphControlValues
{
DisplayRaw = true,
ChartBehaviour = ChartBehaviour.Zoom
};
//assign the parameters class to the parameters user control dependency property
ZoomGraphControlsControl.ControlValues = zgcv;
//create the binding of the parameter control to the display control by linking their respective dependency properties
var zoomGraphControlValuesBinding = new Binding();
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.Source = ZoomGraphControlsControl;
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.Path = new PropertyPath("ControlValues");
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.Mode = BindingMode.TwoWay;
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.UpdateSourceTrigger = UpdateSourceTrigger.PropertyChanged;
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.NotifyOnSourceUpdated = true;
zoomGraphControlValuesBinding.NotifyOnTargetUpdated = true;
graph.SetBinding(zoomGraph.ZoomGraphControlValuesProperty, zoomGraphControlValuesBinding);
//…
// add the user control to a tab
When I change a parameter in the parameter control I can see that it tries to fire the OnPropertyChanged event but it is always null. Because of this I think I am lacking something.
You are setting the binding mode to "OneWay" which means the view model will never get updated when the value changes in the view. Change the Binding mode to "TwoWay" and try again.
Also, check if you are changing the complete instance of "DisplayControlValues" or just properties on that class, because your binding is only set to fire when the entire instance changes, not its properties.
In addition to that, keep in mind that you can bind properties of two different controls using the Binding.ElementName property, which would make it unnecessary for you to create a view model, unless there is anything in the code behind you need to do when these values change.
If you post more code and XAML it will be easier to find the most appropriate way to solve your issue.

WinForms - how to set property value in code and get bound control to update?

I have a WinForms app that contains several comboboxes, numericupdown controls and checkboxes. I also have a data class that exposes several properties and these controls are bound to those properties. Now I need the ability to restore the default values for each of these properties and have all of the bound controls update to reflect the change. For example, one of my comboBox controls is bound to an enum that contains (Red, Blue, Yellow and Green). The default value for this property is set to Blue in my data class constructor. When my app starts up, the combobox that's bound to this property correctly displays Blue as the default selected item. If a user were to select a different color and then decide that they want to revert back to the default color, I need a way to change the property value back to Blue and get the bound control to show that. I can set the property value in code but the problem is that my comboBox doesn't update to reflect the change. I'm guessing there's some kind of change notification mechanism that I need to implement in my data class but I'm not sure what that would be. Any ideas would be much appreciated. Thanks very much!
You'll need to implement INotifyProperyChanged in your data class like:
public class Coloring : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private string _name;
public string Name
{
get { return _name; }
set
{
if (_name != value) {
_name = value;
OnPropertyChanged("Name");
}
}
}
// Do this for all your properties
#region INotifyPropertyChanged Members
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private void OnPropertyChanged(string propertyName)
{
var handler = PropertyChanged;
if (handler != null) {
handler(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
#endregion
}
If you are using a BindingSource you can call its ResetBindings method.
myBindingSource.ResetBindings(false);

What's the concept behind INotifyPropertyChanged?

All the examples of Silverlight using MVVM use interface named IPropertyChanged. What is the concept behind it and why do we need to raise an event whenever we set some value?
Eg:-
public class UserNPC:INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private string name;
public string Name {
get { return name; }
set { name = value; onPropertyChanged(this, "Name"); }
}
public int grade;
public int Grade {
get { return grade; }
set { grade = value; onPropertyChanged(this, "Grade"); }
}
// Declare the PropertyChanged event
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
// OnPropertyChanged will raise the PropertyChanged event passing the
// source property that is being updated.
private void onPropertyChanged(object sender, string propertyName)
{
if (this.PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(sender, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName));
}
}
}
What is the exact purpose of INotifyPropertyChanged?
You have the following dependencies:
View → Binding → Model
Now, the concept is as following:
If some data in your Model object changes, you are required to raise the PropertyChanged event. Why? Because the Binding object has registered a method with the data object's PropertyChanged event.
So all you have to do when something changes within your Model object is to raise the event and you are done.
When you do that, the Binding object gets notified about the change through your event. The Binding object in turn lets the View object know that something happened. The View object then can update the UI if necessary.
Code example
Here you have a compilable example. Set a few breakpoints, step through the code with F11 and see what happens behind the scenes. Note that this example has the following dependency: View → Model. I left out the Binding object.
using System;
using System.ComponentModel;
namespace INotifyPropertyChangedDemo
{
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
// Create 2 listeners.
View1 view1 = new View1();
View2 view2 = new View2();
// Create 1 data object.
Model model = new Model();
// Connect listener with data object.
model.PropertyChanged += new PropertyChangedEventHandler(view1.MyPropertyChangedEventHandler);
model.PropertyChanged += new PropertyChangedEventHandler(view2.MyPropertyChangedEventHandler);
// Let data object publish change notification.
model.FirstName = "new name";
// Check whether all listeners got notified.
// ... via console.
}
public class Model : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
private string firstName;
public string FirstName
{
get { return firstName; }
set
{
if (firstName != value)
{
firstName = value;
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs("FirstName"));
}
}
}
}
}
public class View1
{
public void MyPropertyChangedEventHandler(object source, PropertyChangedEventArgs arg)
{
Console.WriteLine("Listener 1: Changed Property: {0}", arg.PropertyName);
string newValue = ((Model) source).FirstName;
Console.WriteLine("Listener 1: Changed Property Value: {0}", newValue);
}
}
public class View2
{
public void MyPropertyChangedEventHandler(object source, PropertyChangedEventArgs arg)
{
Console.WriteLine("Listener 2: Changed Property: {0}", arg.PropertyName);
string newValue = ((Model)source).FirstName;
Console.WriteLine("Listener 2: Changed Property Value: {0}", newValue);
}
}
}
}
MVVM in WPF & Silverlight is implemented by binding UI elements to the view model. When the view model changes, though, how will the UI know to update itself?
INotifyPropertyChanged simply exposes an event to which the UI can "listen," so when a control "hears" that the property to which it is bound has changed, it can "update itself."
For example, say you have a TextBlock that shows a stock price, and it is bound to the string Price property of a view model. The view model, in turn, uses a service to update stock prices every 30 seconds. So, every 30 seconds the Price property changes: 30 seconds ago it was "$29.20" now it is "$29.12" and 30 seconds from now it will be "$28.10". The TextBlock binding is applied when the TextBlock is loaded, but not every time the Price changes. If, however, you implement INotifyPropertyChanged and raise the event for property "Price" in the Price setter, then the TextBlock can wire into the event and thereby "know" when to go back and "re-read" the Price property and update the displayed text.
Most Silverlight controls listen out for changes to the data they display by simply subscribing to the PropertyChanged events.
e.g. the control does something like this behind the scenes:
public void Loaded()
{
if (myDataObject is INotifyPropertyChanged)
{
(myDataObject as INotifyPropertyChanged).PropertyChanged +=new PropertyChangedEventHandler(onPropertyChanged);
}
}
That is also why ObservableCollection is used instead of simpler Lists in Silverlight Apps. They implement INotifyPropertyChanged so controls that display collections are able to see changes occurring to the list as well as to individual items in a list.
I had created a 3-tiered program recently for fun, and wanted to make sure all the parts where as separated as possible.
In my GUI, the user could type in a name however they wanted, however, my business class had logic in there to change all names to Title Case. This worked, however, the GUI is never told about this update that the business class did.
So my work around at that time was simple...but did not look right. Something like the following
var _person = new Person();
// In some form event handler like button click
_person.Name = txtName.Text;
txt.Name.Text = _person.Name;
This did the job of updating the GUI while keeping it separate from the business logic. What I wanted was to create an event that would fire when the business logic changed the value from what was typed in the GUI, and the GUI would listen in on that event.
So now I would have something like...
var _person = new Person();
// In some form event handler like button click
_person.Name = txtName.Text;
// In the GUI class
public void OnInternalPropertyChanged(object sender, PropertyChangedEventArgs propertyChangedEventArgs)
{
txtName.Text = _person.Name;
}
NOTE: I am not doing this on all of the property changes...just the ones that deviate from what the user expects it to be...changing all lowercase name to Title Case, and showing that to the user.

New records added to DataGridView aren't displayed

I have a custom Order class, groups of which are stored in List<Order> and a DataGridView. I think the problem is in my implementation so here's how I'm using it:
In the form enclosing DataGridView (as OrdersDataGrid):
public partial class MainForm : Form
{
public static List<Order> Orders;
public MainForm()
{
// code to populate Orders with values, otherwise sets Orders to new List<Order>();
OrdersDataGrid.DataSource = Orders;
}
Then in another form that adds an Order:
// Save event
public void Save(object sender, EventArgs e) {
Order order = BuildOrder(); // method that constructs an order object from form data
MainForm.Orders.Add(order);
}
From what I can tell from the console this is added successfully. I thought the DataGrid would be updated automatically after this since Orders has changed - is there something I'm missing?
The DataGrid accepts the class since it generates columns from the members.
Since you can't use DataBind on a DataGridView that's uses an object list as it's DataSource here's the solution I found to this:
First replace your List<T> with BindingList<T> - essentially the same thing, except the BindingList acts like DataBind().
Change your T to implement System.ComponentModel.INotifyPropertyChanged:
This involves adding a property:
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
Adding to each variable's set block:
public string Name
{
get { return this.CustomerName; }
set {
this.CustomerName = value;
this.NotifyPropertyChanged("Name");
}
}
And adding another method:
private void NotifyPropertyChanged(string name)
{
if (PropertyChanged != null)
{
PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(name));
}
}
Sources: Binding a DataGridView to a Collection, Info on converting List to BindingList
You need to rebind the data on your DataGrid.
Shouldn't you rebind the DataGrid after the underlying data source is updated?
Use the code:
OrdersDataGrid.DataSource = Orders;
OrdersDataGrid.DataBind();
You have to Bind new data to your datagrid using
Gridview1.DataBind();
note that whenever you update some list, which is binded to a gridview or any other presenter list control, it just update the list not gridview.
if you really do not like to rebind your Item use IronPython which provided in .net 3.5

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