Writing It by Hand

While wizards and property windows make creating toolbars easy, they do limit you in some interesting, if subtle ways. In the previous code, you set the Button's Tag property to a string (e.g., "New"), and in the event handler, you switched on that string:

private void toolBar1_ButtonClick(
 object sender, 
 System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs e)
{
 switch ( e.Button.Tag.ToString( ) )
 {
 case "New":
 mnuNew.PerformClick( );
 break;
 case "Open":
 mnuFileOpen.PerformClick( );
 break;
 case "Save":
 mnuFileSave.PerformClick( );
 break;
 }
 
}

A tag, however, can be any type of object. It would be nice to put a reference to the MenuItem itself into the tag; this would greatly simplify the event handler:

private void toolBar1_ButtonClick(
 object sender, 
 System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs e)
{
 ToolBarButton btn = e.Button;
 MenuItem mi = (MenuItem) btn.Tag;
 mi.PerformClick( );
}

Creating the toolbar by hand is not much more difficult than creating it with Visual Studio .NET, as illustrated in Example 18-7 in C# and in Example 18-8 in VB.NET. In these examples, the modified code from the previous examples is highlighted. An analysis follows the code listings.

Example 18-7. Creating toolbars by hand in C# (ToolBarsByHandCS)

using System;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Collections;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.Data;
 
namespace MenusVSCS05
{
 public class Form1 : System.Windows.Forms.Form
 {
 private System.Windows.Forms.MainMenu mainMenu1;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuNew;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuFile;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuFileOpen;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuFileClose;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuFileSave;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuFileSaveAs;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuEdit;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuEditCopy;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuEditPaste;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuOption1;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuOption2;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuOption3;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuROption1;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuROption2;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuROption3;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuWindow;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuOptions;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuRadioOptions;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu1;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu11;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu12;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu13;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu14;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu2;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu21;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu22;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu23;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMenu24;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuMerge;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuODShazam;
 
 private string[ ] files ={@"c:	empvote.bmp", 
 @"c:	empshazam.bmp"};
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuODVote;
 private System.Windows.Forms.MenuItem mnuSpecial;
 
 private System.Windows.Forms.ToolBar toolBar1;
 private System.Windows.Forms.ImageList imgListFileButtons;
 
 private System.ComponentModel.Container components = null;
 
 public Form1( )
 {
 InitializeComponent( );
 CreateImageList( );
 InitializeToolbar( );
 }
 
 private void InitializeToolbar( )
 {
 toolBar1 = new ToolBar( );
 toolBar1.ImageList = imgListFileButtons;
 
 ToolBarButton btnNew = new ToolBarButton( );
 btnNew.Tag = mnuNew;
 btnNew.Enabled = true;
 btnNew.ImageIndex = 0; // new file
 btnNew.Pushed = false;
 btnNew.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
 btnNew.Text= "New";
 btnNew.ToolTipText = "New document";
 btnNew.Visible = true;
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnNew);
 
 ToolBarButton btnOpen = new ToolBarButton( );
 btnOpen.Tag = mnuFileOpen;
 btnOpen.Enabled = true;
 btnOpen.ImageIndex = 1; // open file
 btnOpen.Pushed = false;
 btnOpen.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
 btnOpen.Text = "Open";
 btnOpen.ToolTipText = "Open a document";
 btnOpen.Visible = true;
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnOpen);
 
 
 ToolBarButton btnSave = new ToolBarButton( );
 btnSave.Tag = mnuFileSave;
 btnSave.Enabled = true;
 btnSave.ImageIndex = 3; // save file
 btnSave.Pushed = false;
 btnSave.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
 btnSave.Text = "Save";
 btnSave.ToolTipText = "Save document";
 btnSave.Visible = true;
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnSave);
 
 ComboBox cb = new ComboBox( );
 cb.Left = 150;
 cb.Top = 5;
 cb.Items.Add("Alabama");
 cb.Items.Add("Alaska");
 cb.Items.Add("Arizona");
 cb.Items.Add("Arkansas");
 ToolTip tip = new ToolTip( );
 tip.AutomaticDelay = 500; // sets the next three automatically
 // tip.AutoPopDelay = 10 times AutomaticDelay
 // tip.InitialDelay = AutomaticDelay
 //tip.ReshowDelay = 1/5 AutomaticDelay
 tip.ShowAlways = true; // display even if control is disabled
 tip.SetToolTip(cb,"Pick a state");
 toolBar1.Controls.Add(cb);
 
 toolBar1.Parent = this;
 toolBar1.BorderStyle = System.Windows.Forms.BorderStyle.Fixed3D;
 toolBar1.DropDownArrows = true;
 toolBar1.Name = "toolBar1";
 toolBar1.ShowToolTips = true;
 toolBar1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(440, 41);
 toolBar1.TabIndex = 1;
 toolBar1.ButtonClick += new System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventHandler(toolBar1_ButtonClick);
 
 }
 
 private void CreateImageList( )
 {
 imgListFileButtons = new ImageList( );
 Image img;
 
 // Use an array to add filenames to the ImageList
 String[ ] arFiles = { @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET
 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorNew.bmp",
 @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 
2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorOpen.bmp",
 @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 
2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorCut.bmp", 
 @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 
2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorSave.bmp" };
 
 for (int i = 0; i < arFiles.Length; i++)
 {
 img = Image.FromFile(arFiles[i]);
 imgListFileButtons.Images.Add(img);
 }
 }
 
 
 
 protected override void Dispose( bool disposing )
 {
 if( disposing )
 {
 if (components != null) 
 {
 components.Dispose( );
 }
 }
 base.Dispose( disposing );
 }
 
 #region Windows Form Designer generated code
 #endregion
 
 [STAThread]
 static void Main( ) 
 {
 Application.Run(new Form1( ));
 }
 
 
 private void mnuNew_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MDIChild newMDIChild = new MDIChild( );
 newMDIChild.MdiParent = this;
 newMDIChild.Show( );
 }
 
 private void mnuFileOpen_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked File Open", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void mnuFileClose_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked File Close", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void Option_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MenuItem item = sender as MenuItem;
 
 if ( item != null )
 {
 item.Checked = ! item.Checked;
 }
 }
 
 private void RadioOption_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MenuItem item = sender as MenuItem;
 
 if ( item != null )
 {
 Menu parent = item.Parent;
 foreach ( MenuItem mi in parent.MenuItems )
 mi.Checked = false;
 item.Checked = true;
 }
 }
 
 private void mnuEditCopy_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked Edit Copy", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void mnuEditPaste_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked Edit Paste", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void mnuFileSave_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked Save", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void mnuFileSaveAs_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked SaveAs", "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 
 private void mnuMerge_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MenuItem item = sender as MenuItem; 
 if ( item != null )
 {
 item.Parent.MergeMenu(mnuMenu2);
 }
 }
 
 private void OnDrawItem(object sender, System.Windows.Forms.DrawItemEventArgs e)
 {
 Image img = Image.FromFile(files[e.Index]);
 Rectangle r = e.Bounds;
 Pen pen = new Pen(e.BackColor,2);
 r.Inflate(-6,-6);
 e.Graphics.DrawRectangle(pen,r);
 e.Graphics.DrawImage(img,r);
 }
 
 private void OnMeasureItem(
 object sender, System.Windows.Forms.MeasureItemEventArgs e)
 {
 Image img = Image.FromFile(files[e.Index]);
 e.ItemHeight = img.Height;
 e.ItemWidth = img.Width;
 }
 
 private void mnuODDraw_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
 {
 MenuItem item = sender as MenuItem;
 if ( item != null )
 {
 string choice = item.Text;
 
 MessageBox.Show ("You clicked " + choice, "Menu Event Tester", 
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk);
 }
 }
 
 private void toolBar1_ButtonClick(
 object sender, 
 System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs e)
 {
 ToolBarButton btn = e.Button;
 MenuItem mi = (MenuItem) btn.Tag;
 mi.PerformClick( );
 }
 }
}

Example 18-8. Creating toolbars by hand in VB.NET (ToolBarsByHandVB)

Public Class Form1
 Inherits System.Windows.Forms.Form
 
 Private files( ) As String = {"c:	empvote.bmp", "c:	empshazam.bmp"}
 Friend WithEvents toolBar1 As ToolBar
 Private imgListFileButtons As ImageList
 
#Region " Windows Form Designer generated code "
 
 Public Sub New( )
 MyBase.New( )
 
 'This call is required by the Windows Form Designer.
 InitializeComponent( )
 CreateImageList( )
 InitializeToolbar( )
 End Sub
 
#End Region
 
 Private Sub InitializeToolbar( )
 toolBar1 = New ToolBar( )
 toolBar1.ImageList = imgListFileButtons
 
 Dim btnNew As New ToolBarButton( )
 btnNew.Tag = mnuNew
 btnNew.Enabled = True
 btnNew.ImageIndex = 0 ' new file
 btnNew.Pushed = False
 btnNew.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton
 btnNew.Text = "New"
 btnNew.ToolTipText = "New document"
 btnNew.Visible = True
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnNew)
 
 Dim btnOpen As New ToolBarButton( )
 btnOpen.Tag = mnuFileOpen
 btnOpen.Enabled = True
 btnOpen.ImageIndex = 1 ' open file
 btnOpen.Pushed = False
 btnOpen.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton
 btnOpen.Text = "Open"
 btnOpen.ToolTipText = "Open a document"
 btnOpen.Visible = True
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnOpen)
 
 
 Dim btnSave As New ToolBarButton( )
 btnSave.Tag = mnuFileSave
 btnSave.Enabled = True
 btnSave.ImageIndex = 3 ' save file
 btnSave.Pushed = False
 btnSave.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton
 btnSave.Text = "Save"
 btnSave.ToolTipText = "Save document"
 btnSave.Visible = True
 toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnSave)
 
 Dim cb As New ComboBox( )
 cb.Left = 150
 cb.Top = 5
 cb.Items.Add("Alabama")
 cb.Items.Add("Alaska")
 cb.Items.Add("Arizona")
 cb.Items.Add("Arkansas")
 Dim tip As New ToolTip( )
 tip.AutomaticDelay = 500 ' sets the next three automatically
 ' tip.AutoPopDelay = 10 times AutomaticDelay
 ' tip.InitialDelay = AutomaticDelay
 'tip.ReshowDelay = 1/5 AutomaticDelay
 tip.ShowAlways = True ' display even if control is disabled
 tip.SetToolTip(cb, "Pick a state")
 toolBar1.Controls.Add(cb)
 
 toolBar1.Parent = Me
 toolBar1.BorderStyle = System.Windows.Forms.BorderStyle.Fixed3D
 toolBar1.DropDownArrows = True
 toolBar1.Name = "toolBar1"
 toolBar1.ShowToolTips = True
 toolBar1.Size = New System.Drawing.Size(440, 41)
 toolBar1.TabIndex = 1
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub CreateImageList( )
 imgListFileButtons = New ImageList( )
 Dim img As Image
 Dim arFiles( ) As String = {"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7Graphicsitmaps
OffCtlBrLargeColorNew.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7Graphicsitmaps
OffCtlBrLargeColorOpen.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7Graphicsitmaps
OffCtlBrLargeColorCut.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET
 2003Common7Graphicsitmaps
OffCtlBrLargeColorSave.bmp"}
 
 Dim i As Integer
 For i = 0 To arFiles.Length - 1
 img = Image.FromFile(arFiles(i))
 imgListFileButtons.Images.Add(img)
 Next
 End Sub
 
 
 
 Private Sub mnuNew_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuNew.Click
 Dim newMDIChild As New MDIChild( )
 newMDIChild.MdiParent = Me
 newMDIChild.Show( )
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuFileOpen_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuFileOpen.Click
 MessageBox.Show("You clicked file open!", _
 "Menu event tester", _
 MessageBoxButtons.OK, _
 MessageBoxIcon.Information)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuFileClose_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuFileClose.Click
 MessageBox.Show("You clicked file close!", "Menu event tester", MessageBoxButtons.OK, 
MessageBoxIcon.Information)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuEditCopy_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuEditCopy.Click
 MessageBox.Show("You clicked Edit copy!", "Menu event tester", MessageBoxButtons.OK, 
MessageBoxIcon.1-fm2xml)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuEditPaste_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuEditPaste.Click
 MessageBox.Show("You clicked Edit paste!", "Menu event tester", MessageBoxButtons.OK, 
MessageBoxIcon.Information)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub Option_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuOption1.Click, mnuOption2.Click, mnuOption3.Click
 Dim item As MenuItem = CType(sender, MenuItem)
 item.Checked = Not item.Checked
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub RadioOption_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuRadioOption1.Click, mnuRadioOption2.Click, mnuRadioOption3.Click
 Dim item As MenuItem = CType(sender, MenuItem)
 Dim parent As Menu = item.Parent
 Dim tempMi As MenuItem
 For Each tempMi In parent.MenuItems
 tempMi.Checked = False
 Next
 item.Checked = True
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuMerge_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, 
ByVal e As System.EventArgs)
 Dim item As MenuItem = CType(sender, MenuItem)
 item.Parent.MergeMenu(mnuMenu2)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuODVote_DrawItem(ByVal sender As Object, 
ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.DrawItemEventArgs) _
 Handles mnuODVote.DrawItem, mnuODShazam.DrawItem
 
 Dim img As Image
 img = Image.FromFile(files(e.Index))
 Dim r As Rectangle
 r = e.Bounds
 Dim p As Pen = New Pen(e.BackColor, 2)
 r.Inflate(-6, -6)
 e.Graphics.DrawRectangle(p, r)
 e.Graphics.DrawImage(img, r)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuODVote_MeasureItem( _
 ByVal sender As Object, _
 ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.MeasureItemEventArgs) _
 Handles mnuODVote.MeasureItem, mnuODShazam.MeasureItem
 
 Dim img As Image
 img = Image.FromFile(files(e.Index))
 e.ItemHeight = img.Height
 e.ItemWidth = img.Width
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub mnuODDraw_Click( _
 ByVal sender As System.Object, _
 ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _
 Handles mnuODVote.Click, mnuODShazam.Click
 Dim item As MenuItem = CType(sender, MenuItem)
 Dim choice As String = item.Text
 MessageBox.Show("You clicked " & choice, _
 "Menu Event Tester", MessageBoxButtons.OK, _
 MessageBoxIcon.Asterisk)
 End Sub
 
 Private Sub toolBar1_ButtonClick( _
 ByVal sender As Object, _
 ByVal e As ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs) _
 Handles toolBar1.ButtonClick
 
 Dim btn As ToolBarButton = e.Button
 Dim mi As MenuItem = CType(btn.Tag, MenuItem)
 mi.PerformClick( )
 End Sub
End Class

To save space, the region of code generated by Visual Studio .NET was elided from these listings (with the exception of the constructor in the VB.NET code).

 

18.4.1 Creating the Toolbar by Hand: Analysis

You begin by creating two private member variables of the Form class: a toolbar, and an ImageList to attach to that toolbar:

private System.Windows.Forms.ToolBar toolBar1;
private System.Windows.Forms.ImageList imgListFileButtons;

(Hidden inside the Windows Form Designer generated code, along with other member variables):

Friend WithEvents imgListFileButtons As System.Windows.Forms.ImageList
Friend WithEvents ToolBar1 As System.Windows.Forms.ToolBar

You add two method calls to the constructor: one to create the ImageList and the other to initialize the ToolBar:

public Form1( )
{
 InitializeComponent( );
 CreateImageList( );
 InitializeToolbar( );
}

Public Sub New( )
 MyBase.New( )
 InitializeComponent( )
 CreateImageList( )
 InitializeToolbar( )
End Sub

Creating the ImageList is straightforward. Initialize a new empty image list and create a local variable to hold an Image object.

imgListFileButtons = new ImageList( );
Image img;

Then create an array to hold the four filenames for the bitmaps supplied by Microsoft:

 String[ ] arFiles = { @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7
GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorNew.bmp", @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual 
Studio .NET 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorOpen.bmp", @"C:Program 
FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColor
Cut.bmp", @"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7Graphicsitmaps
OffCtlBrLargeColorSave.bmp" };

Dim arFiles( ) As String = {"C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7
GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBrLargeColorNew.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBr
LargeColorOpen.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBr
LargeColorCut.bmp", _
 "C:Program FilesMicrosoft Visual Studio .NET 2003Common7GraphicsitmapsOffCtlBr
LargeColorSave.bmp"}

Finally, create a reference to an image from each of the filenames, and add that image to the ImageList's collection of images:

for (int i = 0; i < arFiles.Length; i++)
{
 img = Image.FromFile(arFiles[i]);
 imgListFileButtons.Images.Add(img);
}

Initializing the toolbar is more tedious, but not terribly difficult. Begin by instantiating the toolbar and setting its ImageList property to the ImageList you just created:

toolBar1 = new ToolBar( );
toolBar1.ImageList = imgListFileButtons;

Next, create a button and set its properties:

ToolBarButton btnNew = new ToolBarButton( );
btnNew.Tag = mnuNew;
btnNew.Enabled = true;
btnNew.ImageIndex = 0; // new file
btnNew.Pushed = false;
btnNew.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
btnNew.Text= "New";
btnNew.ToolTipText = "New document";
btnNew.Visible = true;

Notice that the ImageIndex property is set to the appropriate index into the ImageList that you assigned to the ToolBar'sImageList property. Also notice that in this example you are not setting the Tag property to a string, but you are setting the Tag property to a reference to a MenuItem.

Once all properties are set, you can add the button to the ToolBar's Buttons collection:

toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnNew);

Repeat these steps for the next two buttons, changing only which MenuItem and ImageIndex you must use, along with the appropriate changes to the Text and the ToolTip text.

ToolBarButton btnOpen = new ToolBarButton( );
btnOpen.Tag = mnuFileOpen;
btnOpen.Enabled = true;
btnOpen.ImageIndex = 1; // open file
btnOpen.Pushed = false;
btnOpen.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
btnOpen.Text = "Open";
btnOpen.ToolTipText = "Open a document";
btnOpen.Visible = true;
toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnOpen);
 
ToolBarButton btnSave = new ToolBarButton( );
btnSave.Tag = mnuFileSave;
btnSave.Enabled = true;
btnSave.ImageIndex = 3; // save file
btnSave.Pushed = false;
btnSave.Style = ToolBarButtonStyle.PushButton;
btnSave.Text = "Save";
btnSave.ToolTipText = "Save document";
btnSave.Visible = true;
toolBar1.Buttons.Add(btnSave);

18.4.1.1 Adding ToolTips and setting their properties

You are now ready to add the Combo box. This is unchanged from the previous examples, except this time you'll add a ToolTip to the Combo box as well:

ComboBox cb = new ComboBox( );
cb.Left = 150;
cb.Top = 5;
cb.Items.Add("Alabama");
cb.Items.Add("Alaska");
cb.Items.Add("Arizona");
cb.Items.Add("Arkansas");
ToolTip tip = new ToolTip( );

The ToolTip object itself has many useful properties. You can set the InitialDelay (how long the system waits before displaying the tip 500 milliseconds by default), the AutoPopDelay (how long the tip is displayed), and the ReshowDelay (how long before the tip is redisplayed when you return to the button). Alternatively, you can just set the AutomaticDelay, and the other delays are set for you. The AutoPopDelay is set to 10 times the AutomaticDelay, while the ReshowDelay is set to 1/5 of the AutomaticDelay, and the InitialDelay is set to the same value as the AutomaticDelay.

tip.AutomaticDelay = 500; // sets the next three automatically (milliseconds)
// tip.AutoPopDelay = 10 times AutomaticDelay (5 seconds)
// tip.InitialDelay = AutomaticDelay (1/2 second)
//tip.ReshowDelay = 1/5 AutomaticDelay (1/10 second)

Setting the ShowAlways property to true instructs the tip to be displayed whether or not the control is disabled.

tip.ShowAlways = true; // display even if control is disabled

Finally, you are ready to attach the ToolTip to the Combo box. Surprisingly, you do so by calling the SetToolTip method on the ToolTip itself, passing in two argumentsthe control to set the ToolTip on and the text to display:

tip.SetToolTip(cb,"Pick a state");

You are now ready to add the Combo box to the ToolBar:

toolBar1.Controls.Add(cb);

18.4.1.2 Setting properties of the Toolbar

Once the controls have been added to the ToolBar, you can set properties of the Toolbar itself. Begin by setting the Parent control of the Toolbar to the form:

toolBar1.Parent = this;

toolBar1.Parent = Me

You are now ready to set the border style, how DropDownArrows will be handled, and so forth:

toolBar1.Parent = this;
toolBar1.BorderStyle = System.Windows.Forms.BorderStyle.Fixed3D;
toolBar1.DropDownArrows = true;
toolBar1.Name = "toolBar1";
toolBar1.ShowToolTips = true;
toolBar1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(440, 41);
toolBar1.TabIndex = 1;

Finally, if you are doing this in C#, you must set up the event handler:

toolBar1.ButtonClick +=
 new System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventHandler(
 toolBar1_ButtonClick);

18.4.1.3 Handling ToolBar button clicks

Now that you've stashed the appropriate MenuItem into the Button's Tag property, your event handler is much simpler. First extract the Button itself from the ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs argument:

private void toolBar1_ButtonClick(
 object sender, 
 System.Windows.Forms.ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs e)
{
 ToolBarButton btn = e.Button;

Private Sub toolBar1_ButtonClick( _
 ByVal sender As Object, _
 ByVal e As ToolBarButtonClickEventArgs) _
 Handles toolBar1.ButtonClick
 Dim btn As ToolBarButton = e.Button

With the Button in hand, extract the Tag, which you are free to cast to a MenuItem:

MenuItem mi = (MenuItem) btn.Tag;

Dim mi As MenuItem = CType(btn.Tag, MenuItem)

You can now tell that MenuItem to act as if it were clicked:

mi.PerformClick( );