Progress OPENEDGE GUI User Manual
OpenEdge GUI for .NET Task Map
The following tables list selected tasks that you might need to complete when working with
the OpenEdge GUI for .NET and where you can find more information about them.
Visual Designer
The Visual Designer is the tool provided by OpenEdge Architect for building a GUI for .NET
application. It opens whenever you create or edit an ABL Form, ABL Dialog, ABL MDI
Form, ABL User Control, or ABL Inherited Control object in OpenEdge Architect. Each
of these objects is an ABL class that inherits and extends a .NET form or control class.
Depending on the object type, Visual Designer allows you to build the class by dragging and
dropping components, setting properties, and using wizards, which generates code for the
class, and you can switch to code view to add code manually using the OpenEdge Editor.
For an introduction to the Visual Designer see, Introducing the OpenEdge Architect Visual
Designer. For a series of video tutorials on working with the GUI for .NET in OpenEdge
Architect, see OpenEdge Architect Videos: Using Visual Designer and GUI for .NET in
OpenEdge Architect.
Task Summary Information Source
Understanding the
code generated for an
inherited .NET form
Visual Designer
automatically generates code
when you create a new ABL
Form (ABL-derived .NET
Manuals:
GUI for .NET
Programming
•
form). The following
information describes some
of this generated code.
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
Code associated with
•
a Visual Designer
component
Creating
custom .NET
forms and controls
Generated by Clearspace on 2010-12-17-05:00
Video Tutorials:
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OpenEdge GUI for .NET Task Map
Creating a Form and a
•
ProBinding Source
Adding a ProBindingSource to a
form
Using the assemblies.xml
file in development and
deployment
For .NET controls that
support data binding using a
System.Windows.Forms.BindingSource
class, you can bind supported ABL
data to these controls by adding
a Progress.Data.BindingSource
(ProBindingSource) instance to
any form that contains instances of
the controls. The Visual Designer
provides several ways to add a
ProBindingSource to a form.
Any ABL application
that implements a GUI
for .NET, or that only
references a .NET object
type, must have access
to an assemblies.xml file
that identifies the .NET
assemblies defining all .NET
objects referenced by
the session. OpenEdge
Architect automatically
creates an assemblies.xml
file, which you can update,
for any project that
references a .NET object.
Manuals:
Introducing the OpenEdge
Architect Visual Designer
Data binding
•
Video Tutorials:
Creating a Form and a
•
ProBinding Source
Building a
•
ProBindingSource from a
ProDataSet Definition
Manuals:
Managing ABL
Applications
.NET assemblies
•
Deploying
•
application source
code
GUI for .NET
Programming
Compile-time
•
access to .NET
objects
Identifying .NET
•
assemblies to ABL
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
Understanding inherited controls
and user controls
Generated by Clearspace on 2010-12-17-05:00
Visual Designer allows you to create
custom controls for use in designing
forms, including ABL-derived .NET
controls (ABL Inherited Control) and
ABL-derived .NET user controls
(ABL User Control). In short, an ABL
Inherited Control is an ABL class that
inherits and extends a .NET control
class; an ABL User Control is an
.NET assemblies and the
•
Visual Designer
Manuals:
GUI for .NET
Programming
Creating
•
custom .NET
forms and controls
2
OpenEdge GUI for .NET Task Map
ABL class that inherits and extends
the OpenEdge-extended .NET class,
Progress.Windows.UserControl.,
which is a container for other
controls. After creating it, you can
add each custom control to the
Toolbox, from which you can visually
add the control or user control to any
ABL-derived form that you create.
Sample ABL-
•
derived .NET user
control
Introducing the OpenEdge
Architect Visual Designer
Adding LeftBar.cls
•
to the project
(example ABL
User Control)
Adding
•
HelpButton.cls
to the Toolbox
(example ABL
Inherited Control)
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
Custom user-defined
•
controls
Creating a user control
•
Creating an inherited
•
control
Reloading the Design
•
Canvas while using
custom controls
Building localized forms
Visual Designer automatically
creates a resource (.resx) file to
store resources used by a .NET form
in a GUI for .NET application. To
localize the form, you must translate
the labels for the form stored in the
resource file using third-party tools.
Video Tutorials:
Creating a Databound
•
TreeView as an Inherited
Control, Part 1
Creating a Databound
•
TreeView as an Inherited
Control, Part 2
Building a Navigation
•
Panel as an ABL User
Control
Manuals:
GUI for .NET
Programming
Accessing
•
resource files
for .NET forms
ABL Reference
Generated by Clearspace on 2010-12-17-05:00
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OpenEdge GUI for .NET Task Map
Progress.Util.ResourceHelper
•
class
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
OpenEdge Architect
•
project and resource data
files
Using form and control classes
across two or more projects
Setting up company standard
templates using form inheritance
To use form and control classes
across two or more projects, you
must make the class files available
to each project. To share control
classes across projects, you can set
a sharing option that allows you to
use a global Toolbox for all projects
accessed with the Visual Designer.
You can also copy the same
toolbox.xml file among different
projects or users to share a common
Toolbox definition among specific
projects of one or more installations
of OpenEdge Architect.
You can set up company standard
form templates by creating ABLderived forms (ABL Form objects in
Visual Designer) that include ABLderived user controls (ABL User
Control objects in Visual Designer).
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
Shared AVM preference
•
page
Customizing the Visual
•
Designer Toolbox
Sharing Toolbox settings
•
Manuals:
GUI for .NET
Programming
Creating
•
custom .NET
forms and controls
Generated by Clearspace on 2010-12-17-05:00
OpenEdge Architect Online
Help:
Template customization
•
Customization Editor
•
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