GUI development

GUI frameworks

The default framework used by OpenPetra.org at the moment is Windows.Forms. This is due to quite a lot of existing code that has already been written for Petra using Winforms.

For a discussion and comparison of several GUI frameworks, see GUI Frameworks Comparison

GUI internationalisation

see Comparison I18N

Customizing OpenPetra

see Customizing OpenPetra

Code Generation

• Code Generation for GUI vs WYSIWYG design of GUI
• Documentation GUI generation with YAML

GUI Style and Design

For both the website and the OpenPetra client we need people with an eye for design, colors, etc. Please join us! We desperately need you!

Some links that might be useful:

• Style guide: see eg. http://library.gnome.org/devel/hig-book/stable/ GNOME Human Interface Guidelines 2.2
• free icons under creative common license: http://www.icon-king.com/projects/nuvola/
• also creative common license icons: http://www.userinterfaceicons.com/preview.php
• see also KDE Look.org, Artwork Icons etc: http://www.kde-look.org/index.php?xcontentmode=22x27
• free country flags icons and others: http://www.famfamfam.com/lab/icons/
• free icons from Javier Odriozola: http://www.jodriozola.com/blog/?p=10

General screen types and layouts

• Special screens (unique): Login screen, Intranet Export, etc
• main screens: provide the menus that the user needs to get to all the appropriate screens
• CRUD operations for single table (Create, Read, Update, Delete: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Create,_read,_update_and_delete)
• Find screens
• Export screens
• Complex Edit screens, with many tabs etc
• Assistants: guide the user through complex operations
• report parameter screens: the user selects the options for a report to run

• Architecture Edit screens

• Navigation and Dashboard

Controls / Widgets

These controls have been quite useful or will become more important:

• Grid
  • icons, checkboxes in columns
  • load from datatable
  • refresh data
  • select row or column
  • delayed data loading
  • at the moment only used readonly
  • sort by column
  • tooltips for row
  • for Windows.forms, we are using DevAge SourceGrid (MIT license, compatible to GPL)
  • see also Thoughts about TreeViewGrid or Collapsable DataGrid

• Edit Field for Partner Key with Search button

• Toolbar
  • show tooltips for the toolbar buttons

• Balloon special non modal message boxes http://www.codeproject.com/KB/miscctrl/balloonnet.aspx (CPOL license, problem with GPL)

• Statusbar/Tooltips
  • TODO explanation is taken from the Shared Datastore, the help text from petra.xml
  • Edit fields: if you tab into a field, or click with the mouse into it, the explanation should be displayed in the statusbar
  • Edit fields: if you hover with the mouse over an edit field, the tooltip should display the explanation
  • buttons work the same as the edit fields
  • menu items: no tooltip, no statusbar info
  • toolbar buttons: show tooltips
  • using 3rd party control: EWSoftware.StatusBarText@CodeProject (Problem: CodeProject license not compatible to GPL? Wikipedia CPOL)

• Groupbox that can be collapsed
  • save space
  • tooltip on the +/-
  • shortcut key to collapse/open
  • yellow background for part of the groupbox text when it is collapsed (subcaption, partner class)

• Restore the window state and position

• XP Style Task Panel

Printing & Preview controls

• there is one screen for the preview of reports
• we need TPrintPreviewWithToolbar for printing to paper
  • scroll the pages, jump to page; with event that can be caught outside, to select other rows in a grid
• TPrintPreviewList: a grid and TPrintPreviewWithToolbar and splitter
• TEmailPreviewWithToolbar: similar to TPrintPreviewWithToolbar, but for sending emails; has send button etc
• TEmailPreviewList: a grid and TEmailPreviewWithToolbar and splitter

Overview Comboboxes

TCmbAutoPopulated:

• defined in Ict.Petra.Client.CommonControls
• derived from System.Windows.Forms.UserControl
• contains a TCmbLabelled control
• can load data from the server or cache, using TListTableEnum values;
  • also works with TListTableEnum.UserDefinedList, then you have to set the property Table before you call TCmbAutoPopulated::InitialiseUserControl()

TCmbLabelled:

• defined in Ict.Common.Controls
• derived from System.Windows.Forms.UserControl
• contains a TCmbVersatile and Label control

TCmbVersatile:

• defined in Ict.Common.Controls
• derived from TCmbAutoComplete
• allows to display several columns in the dropdown list

TCmbAutoComplete:

• defined in Ict.Common.Controls
• derived from System.Windows.Forms.ComboBox