Databinding of DataGridViewComboBoxColumn - winforms

In the code below, the combo box named "ConnectionType" shows the selected item, but one cannot change the selected item (it seems like there is only one item in the combo box). If I comment out the line
typeCol.DataPropertyName = "ConnectionTypeName";
then the combo box is selectable, but the correct item is not selected, of course. What am I doing wrong??
Thanks.
private void LoadConnectionsGrid()
{
_dc = new EnterpriseEntities();
dataGridViewConnections.AutoGenerateColumns = false;
dataGridViewConnections.DataSource = _dc.Connection.Include("ConnectionType");
DataGridViewComboBoxColumn typeCol =
(DataGridViewComboBoxColumn)dataGridViewConnections.Columns["ConnectionType"];
typeCol.DataPropertyName = "ConnectionTypeName";
var qry = from c in _dc.ConnectionType
select c.Type;
typeCol.DataSource = qry;
DataGridViewTextBoxColumn nameCol =
(DataGridViewTextBoxColumn)dataGridViewConnections.Columns["ConnectionName"];
nameCol.DataPropertyName = "Name";
DataGridViewTextBoxColumn connStrCol =
(DataGridViewTextBoxColumn)dataGridViewConnections.Columns["ConnectionString"];
connStrCol.DataPropertyName = "ConnectionString";
}

Ultimately, I could not get data binding, the entity framework, and comboboxes to play nice and I just created the data grid brute force (code below). This means that I handle inserts, updates and deletes by hand.
private void LoadConnectionsGrid()
{
DataGridViewComboBoxColumn typeCol =
(DataGridViewComboBoxColumn)dataGridViewConnections.Columns["ConnectionType"];
var qry = from c in _dc.ConnectionType
select c.Type;
typeCol.DataSource = qry;
dataGridViewConnections.Rows.Clear();
foreach (Connection conn in _dc.Connection.Include("ConnectionType"))
{
dataGridViewConnections.Rows.Add(conn.Name,
conn.ConnectionType.Type, conn.ConnectionString);
}
}

Related

problems setting XtraGrid with in-place editor-s (using GridLookUpEdit)

I need an XtraGrid control that has GridLookupEdit to enter column values.
What I managed to do so far:
1) I have configured XtraGrid control
columns: ID, Name, Number
in-place GridLookUp Editors for Name and Number columns
2) on the form Load event I load data from database and set XtraGrid datasource and both repositoryItem(..) datasource, valuemember and displaymember
a) Data are loaded in XtraGrid, I can activate cell but can not choose values from dropdown (from repositoryItem(..)) or enter values manually (i can activate cell in "*" new row but it has the same problem - can not choose from the dropdown or enter values manually) => why?
b) If I don't set datasource for XtraGrid, then both dropdown's are active and i can select values using GridLookupEdit, but when i exit the cell, the cell gets cleared => i believe this is because in this case no xtraGrid.DataSource is set?
var model = (from TableA a in _dbE.TableA select new {ID, Name, Number}).ToList();
//if i comment this line out, then i can choose values from GridLookUpEdit
gridControl1.DataSource = model;
repositoryItemNosaukums.DataSource = model;
repositoryItemNosaukums.ValueMember = "ID";
repositoryItemNosaukums.DisplayMember = "Name";
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.DataSource = model;
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.ValueMember = "ID";
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.DisplayMember = "Number";
What am I missing?
The problem was, that my data source "model" was a List, but it should have been BindingList with properties AllowNew==True and AllowEdit==True.
After DevExpress support asked if the data source is read only, i found this post which finally opened my eyes:
A Problem in DataGridView : datagridview seems readonly to user (WinForms)
correct version of code
//no projections (select new ...) for IBindingList<T>..
//var model = (from TableA a in _dbE.TableA select new {ID, Name, Number}).ToList();
var model = (from TableA a in _dbE.TableA).ToList();
//convert to BindingList
var bindingModel= new BindingList<TableA>(model);
bindingModel.AllowNew=true;
bindingModel.AllowEdit=true;
//bind BindingList to datagrid
gridControl1.DataSource = bindingModel; //model;
//... no changes to repositoryItem(..) stuff
repositoryItemNosaukums.DataSource = model;
repositoryItemNosaukums.ValueMember = "ID";
repositoryItemNosaukums.DisplayMember = "Name";
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.DataSource = model;
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.ValueMember = "ID";
repositoryItemPieteikumaNr.DisplayMember = "Number";

GTK CellRendererCombo set value into appropriate cell

What I'm trying to do it a TreeView that have several columns. The first column is a ComboBox, which means that I use Gtk.CellRendererCombo. The thing is, when I selected a value from the ComboBox, I'd like the Text from the cell to change from "" to the value I just selected. It feasible if at the Gtk.CellRendererCombo.Edited event I set the columns Text field to the EditedArgs.NewText.
The problem is, each time I set a value, I create a new row, and I'd like the Text Field to act like it does in the Gtk.CellRendererText, but it doesn't. It's not a different value for each row at that column, but the same value as setted in the Gtk.CellRendererCombo.Text
The Gtk.CellRenderer should not contain any state, so OK, using the Text field is a really bad idea from what I'm trying to do.
But if I set some value from the Gtk.ListStore that is the Model of my TreeView (Which is different from the Model for the Gtk.CellRendererCombo). The values setted will never show at the Column of the ComboBox.
class Program
{
private static Gtk.TreeView treeview = null;
static void OnEdited(object sender, Gtk.EditedArgs args)
{
Gtk.TreeSelection selection = treeview.Selection;
Gtk.TreeIter iter;
selection.GetSelected(out iter);
treeview.Model.SetValue(iter, 0, args.NewText); // the CellRendererCombo
treeview.Model.SetValue(iter, 1, args.NewText); // the CellRendererText
//(sender as Gtk.CellRendererCombo).Text = args.NewText; // Will set all the Cells of this Column to the Selection's Text
}
static void Main(string[] args)
{
Gtk.Application.Init();
Gtk.Window window = new Window("TreeView ComboTest");
window.WidthRequest = 200;
window.HeightRequest = 150;
Gtk.ListStore treeModel = new ListStore(typeof(string), typeof(string));
treeview = new TreeView(treeModel);
// Values to be chosen in the ComboBox
Gtk.ListStore comboModel = new ListStore(typeof(string));
Gtk.ComboBox comboBox = new ComboBox(comboModel);
comboBox.AppendText("<Please select>");
comboBox.AppendText("A");
comboBox.AppendText("B");
comboBox.AppendText("C");
comboBox.Active = 0;
Gtk.TreeViewColumn comboCol = new TreeViewColumn();
Gtk.CellRendererCombo comboCell = new CellRendererCombo();
comboCol.Title = "Combo Column";
comboCol.PackStart(comboCell, true);
comboCell.Editable = true;
comboCell.Edited += OnEdited;
comboCell.TextColumn = 0;
comboCell.Text = comboBox.ActiveText;
comboCell.Model = comboModel;
comboCell.WidthChars = 20;
Gtk.TreeViewColumn valueCol = new TreeViewColumn();
Gtk.CellRendererText valueCell = new CellRendererText();
valueCol.Title = "Value";
valueCol.PackStart(valueCell, true);
valueCol.AddAttribute(valueCell, "text", 1);
treeview.AppendColumn(comboCol);
treeview.AppendColumn(valueCol);
// Append the values used for the tests
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox1", string.Empty); // the string value setted for the first column does not appear.
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox2", string.Empty);
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox3", string.Empty);
window.Add(treeview);
window.ShowAll();
Gtk.Application.Run();
}
}
I'd like the Cell of the ComboBox in which the selection has been made to show the value, but continue to be editable for later changes.
If someone has a way of doing this, I would be very grateful for you input. thanks.
Update:
What I think, because Gtk.CellRendererCombo inherits from Gtk.CellRendererText it just ignores the value setted in the cell. Now, I guess I could create a custom MyCellRendererCombo that inherits from Gtk.CellRendererCombo and use the value setted in the cell when supplied for the rendering, but the documentation on the difference between Gtk.CellRendererText and Gtk.CellRendererCombo is quite slim... I guess I should visit the implementation in C to know the details.
Ok, I've found a solution to my problem, I use a "hidden" column in which I read the "text" value. The hidden column contains the Gtk.CellRendererText, the Gtk.CellRendererCombo must have an Attribute Mapping with the new Column.
The resulting code is below:
class Program
{
private static Gtk.TreeView treeview = null;
static void OnEdited(object sender, Gtk.EditedArgs args)
{
Gtk.TreeSelection selection = treeview.Selection;
Gtk.TreeIter iter;
selection.GetSelected(out iter);
treeview.Model.SetValue(iter, 1, args.NewText); // the CellRendererText
}
static void Main(string[] args)
{
Gtk.Application.Init();
Gtk.Window window = new Window("TreeView ComboTest");
window.WidthRequest = 200;
window.HeightRequest = 150;
Gtk.ListStore treeModel = new ListStore(typeof(string), typeof(string));
treeview = new TreeView(treeModel);
// Values to be chosen in the ComboBox
Gtk.ListStore comboModel = new ListStore(typeof(string));
Gtk.ComboBox comboBox = new ComboBox(comboModel);
comboBox.AppendText("<Please select>");
comboBox.AppendText("A");
comboBox.AppendText("B");
comboBox.AppendText("C");
comboBox.Active = 0;
Gtk.TreeViewColumn comboCol = new TreeViewColumn();
Gtk.CellRendererCombo comboCell = new CellRendererCombo();
comboCol.Title = "Combo Column";
comboCol.PackStart(comboCell, true);
comboCol.AddAttribute(comboCell, "text", 1);
comboCell.Editable = true;
comboCell.Edited += OnEdited;
comboCell.TextColumn = 0;
comboCell.Text = comboBox.ActiveText;
comboCell.Model = comboModel;
comboCell.WidthChars = 20;
Gtk.TreeViewColumn valueCol = new TreeViewColumn();
Gtk.CellRendererText valueCell = new CellRendererText();
valueCol.Title = "Value";
valueCol.PackStart(valueCell, true);
valueCol.AddAttribute(valueCell, "text", 1);
valueCol.Visible = false;
treeview.AppendColumn(comboCol);
treeview.AppendColumn(valueCol);
// Append the values used for the tests
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox1", "<Please select>"); // the string value setted for the first column does not appear.
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox2", "<Please select>");
treeModel.AppendValues("comboBox3", "<Please select>");
window.Add(treeview);
window.ShowAll();
Gtk.Application.Run();
}
}

DataSet created in code not Binding to ListView

I have a WPF User Control with a ListView in it that is created based on the DataSet that is passed to it:
public void PopulateList(DataSet ds) {
listView.View = CreateGridViewColumns(ds.Tables[0]);
listData.DataContext = ds.Tables[0];
}
private GridView CreateGridViewColumns(DataTable dt) {
// Create the GridView
var gv = new GridView {AllowsColumnReorder = true};
// Create the GridView Columns
foreach (DataColumn item in dt.Columns) {
var gvc = new GridViewColumn
{
DisplayMemberBinding = new Binding(item.ColumnName),
Header = item.ColumnName,
Width = Double.NaN
};
gv.Columns.Add(gvc);
}
return gv;
}
Now I create the user control in code and call it's PopulateList with the appropriate dataset and this is where the problems are starting:
If I pass in a dataset that was created from a call to the database the list view shows all the data but if i pass in a DataSet that i created in code the ListView shows the Columns but will not show the data
//This is a function that hides the DB call return type is DataSet
var dsPatientSmokingStatusHistory = DataRepository.PatientSmokingStatusProvider.GetHistory(PatientId);
//radGridViewPatientSmokingStatus.DataSource = dsPatientSmokingStatusHistory.Tables[0];
var dt = new DataTable();
string c1 = "Date".PadLeft(23).PadRight(23);
string c2 = "Status".PadLeft(20).PadRight(50);
dt.Columns.Add(c1);
dt.Columns.Add(c2);
int i = 0;
foreach (DataRow row in dsPatientSmokingStatusHistory.Tables[0].Rows) {
var dataRow = dt.NewRow();
dataRow[c1] = ((DateTime)row["Date"]).ToString("MM/dd/yyyy");
dataRow[c2] = row["Status"].ToString();
dt.Rows.Add(dataRow);
dt.Rows[i].AcceptChanges();
i++;
}
DataSet ds = new DataSet();
dt.TableName = "Table";
ds.Tables.Add(dt);
ds.AcceptChanges();
smokingStatusGrid.GridWidth = 455;
smokingStatusGrid.GridHight = 97;
//This line does not show data
smokingStatusGrid.PopulateGrid(ds);
//This line will show data
smokingStatusGrid.PopulateGrid(dsPatientSmokingStatusHistory);
Is there a difference between these two datasets that i don't know about that is preventing me from databinding to it?
Also the user control is being used as an ElementHost in a WinForms application (not sure if this makes a difference)
Your code says:
DisplayMemberBinding = new Binding(item.ColumnName)
This binding constructor takes a string paramter which as per MSDN is "The initial Path for the binding" and is of datatype System.Windows.PropertyPath. I guess, since system tries to find a property with the same name in your class, and your string (item.ColumnName) has spaces at start, it runs into a problem (properties can't start with a space).
Would recommend you to take off the padding that you are doing in column name of your table. Apply any padding/margins in the Header of your GridView.

Add a hyperlink column for a Winforms DataGrid control

How can I add a hyperlink column for a Winforms DataGrid control?
Right now I am adding a string column like this
DataColumn dtCol = new DataColumn();
dtCol.DataType = System.Type.GetType("System.String");
dtCol.ColumnName = columnName;
dtCol.ReadOnly = true;
dtCol.Unique = false;
dataTable.Columns.Add(dtCol);
I just need it to be a hyperlink instead of a String. I am using C# with framework 3.5
Use a DataGridViewLinkColumn.
The link shows an example of setting up the column and adding it to a DGV::
DataGridViewLinkColumn links = new DataGridViewLinkColumn();
links.UseColumnTextForLinkValue = true;
links.HeaderText = ColumnName.ReportsTo.ToString();
links.DataPropertyName = ColumnName.ReportsTo.ToString();
links.ActiveLinkColor = Color.White;
links.LinkBehavior = LinkBehavior.SystemDefault;
links.LinkColor = Color.Blue;
links.TrackVisitedState = true;
links.VisitedLinkColor = Color.YellowGreen;
DataGridView1.Columns.Add(links);
You'll probably be interested in this example that shows how the snippet above fits into a more complete example of configuring DGV columns at runtime.

How to maintain ComboBox.SelectedItem reference when DataSource is resorted?

This really seems like a bug to me, but perhaps some databinding gurus can enlighten me? (My WinForms databinding knowledge is quite limited.)
I have a ComboBox bound to a sorted DataView. When the properties of the items in the DataView change such that items are resorted, the SelectedItem in my ComboBox does not keep in-sync. It seems to point to someplace completely random. Is this a bug, or am I missing something in my databinding?
Here is a sample application that reproduces the problem. All you need is a Button and a ComboBox:
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
private DataTable myData;
public Form1()
{
this.InitializeComponent();
this.myData = new DataTable();
this.myData.Columns.Add("ID", typeof(int));
this.myData.Columns.Add("Name", typeof(string));
this.myData.Columns.Add("LastModified", typeof(DateTime));
this.myData.Rows.Add(1, "first", DateTime.Now.AddMinutes(-2));
this.myData.Rows.Add(2, "second", DateTime.Now.AddMinutes(-1));
this.myData.Rows.Add(3, "third", DateTime.Now);
this.myData.DefaultView.Sort = "LastModified DESC";
this.comboBox1.DataSource = this.myData.DefaultView;
this.comboBox1.ValueMember = "ID";
this.comboBox1.DisplayMember = "Name";
}
private void saveStuffButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
DataRowView preUpdateSelectedItem = (DataRowView)this.comboBox1.SelectedItem;
// OUTPUT: SelectedIndex = 0; SelectedItem.Name = third
Debug.WriteLine(string.Format("SelectedIndex = {0:N0}; SelectedItem.Name = {1}", this.comboBox1.SelectedIndex, preUpdateSelectedItem["Name"]));
this.myData.Rows[0]["LastModified"] = DateTime.Now;
DataRowView postUpdateSelectedItem = (DataRowView)this.comboBox1.SelectedItem;
// OUTPUT: SelectedIndex = 2; SelectedItem.Name = second
Debug.WriteLine(string.Format("SelectedIndex = {0:N0}; SelectedItem.Name = {1}", this.comboBox1.SelectedIndex, postUpdateSelectedItem["Name"]));
// FAIL!
Debug.Assert(object.ReferenceEquals(preUpdateSelectedItem, postUpdateSelectedItem));
}
}
To clarify:
I understand how I would fix the simple application above--I only included that to demonstrate the problem. My concern is how to fix it when the updates to the underlying data rows could be happening anywhere (on another form, perhaps.)
I would really like to still receive updates, inserts, deletes, etc. to my data source. I have tried just binding to an array of DataRows severed from the DataTable, but this causes additional headaches.
Just add a BindingContext to the ComboBox :
this.comboBox1.DataSource = this.myData.DefaultView;
this.comboBox1.BindingContext = new BindingContext();
this.comboBox1.ValueMember = "ID";
this.comboBox1.DisplayMember = "Name";
By the way, try not keeping auto-generated names for your widgets (comboBox1, ...), it is dirty. :-P
The only promising solution I see at this time is to bind the combo box to a detached data source and then update it every time the "real" DataView changes. Here is what I have so far. Seems to be working, but (1) it's a total hack, and (2) it will not scale well at all.
In form declaration:
private DataView shadowView;
In form initialization:
this.comboBox1.DisplayMember = "Value";
this.comboBox1.ValueMember = "Key";
this.shadowView = new DataView(GlobalData.TheGlobalTable, null, "LastModified DESC", DataViewRowState.CurrentRows);
this.shadowView.ListChanged += new ListChangedEventHandler(shadowView_ListChanged);
this.ResetComboBoxDataSource(null);
And then the hack:
private void shadowView_ListChanged(object sender, ListChangedEventArgs e)
{
this.ResetComboBoxDataSource((int)this.comboBox1.SelectedValue);
}
private void ResetComboBoxDataSource(int? selectedId)
{
int selectedIndex = 0;
var detached = new KeyValuePair<int, string>[this.shadowView.Count];
for (int i = 0; i < this.shadowView.Count; i++)
{
int id = (int)this.shadowView[i]["ID"];
detached[i] = new KeyValuePair<int, string>(id, (string)this.shadowView[i]["Name"]);
if (id == selectedId)
{
selectedIndex = i;
}
}
this.comboBox1.DataSource = detached;
this.comboBox1.SelectedIndex = selectedIndex;
}
Must detach event handler in Dispose:
this.shadowView.ListChanged -= new ListChangedEventHandler(shadowView_ListChanged);
Your example sorts the data on the column it updates. When the update occurs, the order of the rows changes. The combobox is using the index to keep track of it's selected items, so when the items are sorted, the index is pointing to a different row. You'll need to capture the value of comboxBox1.SelectedItem before updating the row, and set it back once the update is complete:
DataRowView selected = (DataRowView)this.comboBox1.SelectedItem;
this.myData.Rows[0]["LastModified"] = DateTime.Now;
this.comboBox1.SelectedItem = selected;
From an architecture perspective, the SelectedItem must be cleared when rebinding the DataSource because the DataBinder don't know if your SelectedItem will persist or not.
From a functional perspective, the DataBinder may not be able to ensure that your SelectedItem from you old DataSource is the same in your new DataSource (it can be a different DataSource with the same SelectedItem ID).
Its more an application feature or a custom control feature than a generic databinding process.
IMHO, you have theses choices if you want to keep the SelectedItem on rebind :
Create a reusable custom control / custom DataBinder with a persistance option which try to set the SelectedItem with all your data validation (using a DataSource / item identification to ensure the item validity)
Persist it specifically on your Form using the Form/Application context (like ViewState for ASP.NET).
Some controls on the .NET market are helping you by rebinding (including selections) the control from their own persisted DataSource if the DataSource is not changed and DataBind not recalled. That's the best pratice.

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