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Q197127: HOWTO: Add a Custom Font Property to a User Control

Article: Q197127
Product(s): Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows
Version(s): WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbAPI kbCtrlCreate kbPropSheet kbGrpDSUser kbVBp500 kbVBp600
Last Modified: 11-JAN-2001

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual Basic Learning Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

When you create a user control, you can add a custom property page that allows
the user to set some or all of the properties you have created. This article
describes a sample that demonstrates how to create a custom font property so
that you can filter which fonts the user can select. It uses a custom property
page from which you call the Font common dialog box so that it allows your users
to select only from fixed pitch fonts.

MORE INFORMATION
================

You can create the properties you want and then you can either set them directly
from the Property Page dialog box, or you can load a form or call the
CommonDialog from the property page to set them. In steps 1 through 12 of the
following example, you can create a version that requires going through one
additional screen, the property page, but otherwise works substantially like the
built-in Font property of the intrinsic controls. The instructions beginning
with step 13 add code that hides the property page so that the effect is more
like the built-in Font property.

Step-by-Step Procedures
-----------------------

1. Create a new Standard EXE project. Form1 is created by default.

2. From the Project menu, add a new UserControl Project. UserControl1 is created
  by default.

3. Add a TextBox and a Label to UserControl1.

4. Paste the following code into the UserControl code window:

        Option Explicit
        Private UseFont As String
        Private UseFontSize As Long

        Public Property Let MyFont(NewFont As String)
           Dim Ctrl As Control
           UseFont = NewFont
           PropertyChanged "MyFont"
           On Error Resume Next   ' For Controls without a Font property
           For Each Ctrl In Controls
              Ctrl.Font.Name = NewFont
           Next
        End Property

        Public Property Get MyFont() As String
           MyFont = UseFont
        End Property

        Public Property Get MyFontSize() As Long
           MyFontSize = UseFontSize
        End Property

        Private Property Let MyFontSize(NewValue As Long)
           Dim Ctrl As Control
           UseFontSize = NewValue
           PropertyChanged "MyFontSize"
           On Error Resume Next   ' For Controls without a Font property
           For Each Ctrl In Controls
              Ctrl.Font.Size = NewValue
           Next
        End Property

5. From the Project menu, add a new Property Page.

6. From the Project menu, click Components, click Microsoft Common Dialog
  Control, and click OK.

7. Add a CommonDialog, a CommandButton, and two TextBoxes (named txtMyFont and
  txtMyFontSize) to the Property Page.

8. Add the following code to the PropertyPage1 code window:

        Option Explicit

        Private Sub Command1_Click()
           CommonDialog1.Flags = cdlCFBoth Or cdlCFFixedPitchOnly
           CommonDialog1.FontName = SelectedControls(0).MyFont
           CommonDialog1.FontSize = SelectedControls(0).MyFontSize
           CommonDialog1.ShowFont
           txtMyFont.Text = CommonDialog1.FontName
           txtMyFontSize.Text = CommonDialog1.FontSize
        End Sub

        Private Sub txtMyFont_Change()
           Changed = True
        End Sub

        Private Sub txtMyFontSize_Change()
           Changed = True
        End Sub

        Private Sub PropertyPage_ApplyChanges()
           SelectedControls(0).MyFont = txtMyFont.Text
           SelectedControls(0).MyFontSize = txtMyFontSize.Text
        End Sub

        Private Sub PropertyPage_SelectionChanged()
           If SelectedControls(0).MyFont = "" Then
               txtMyFont.Text = "Courier"     ' Default
           Else
               txtMyFont.Text = SelectedControls(0).MyFont
           End If
           If SelectedControls(0).MyFontSize > 0 Then
               txtMyFontSize.Text = SelectedControls(0).MyFontSize
           Else
               txtMyFontSize.Text = 8     ' Default
           End If
        End Sub

9. Select the UserControl and click the PropertyPages property. Click the
  ellipsis button ("..."), select PropertyPage1, and click OK. This associates
  the Property Page you created with UserControl1.

10. Click the UserControl to make sure it is selected. From the Tools menu,
  click Procedure Attributes and select MyFont from the Name drop-down list.
  Click Advanced and select PropertyPage1 from the list under Use this Page in
  Property Browser:. This makes an ellipsis button ("...") appear when the
  user selects the MyFont property.

11. Close all design windows except for Form1. Add the UserControl to Form1.

12. When the UserControl has the focus, you will see a MyFont property in the
  Properties Window. Click MyFont to get the ellipsis button. Click the
  ellipsis button to go to the property page. From here the CommandButton
  brings up the filtered Font common dialog where you can choose your font. If
  you click OK or Apply, you set these properties. To demonstrate that this
  works, it also applies these settings to the TextBox and Label. You can also
  get to this dialog box by right-clicking on the UserControl and clicking
  Properties, or through the (Custom) property in the Properties Window.

Follow the instructions below to skip the intermediate property page and go
straight to the Font dialog from the ellipsis button. Note that you would only
want to consider this feature if this were the only property you were setting
through the property page.

1. Using the previous example, add a timer to the property page and add the
  following code to the top of the timer code window, just under Option
  Explicit:

        Private Declare Function GetParent Lib "user32" _
          (ByVal hwnd As Long) As Long

        Private Declare Function SetWindowPos Lib "user32" _
          (ByVal hwnd As Long, ByVal hWndInsertAfter As Long, _
          ByVal x As Long, ByVal y As Long, ByVal cx As Long, _
          ByVal cy As Long, ByVal wFlags As Long) As Long

        Private Declare Function PostMessage Lib "user32" Alias _
          "PostMessageA" (ByVal hwnd As Long, ByVal wMsg As Long, _
          ByVal wParam As Long, ByVal lParam As Long) As Long

        Private Const HWND_TOP = 0
        Private Const SWP_NOSIZE = &H1
        Private Const SWP_HIDEWINDOW = &H80
        Private Const WM_CLOSE = &H10

        Dim hwndPP As Long

        Private Sub PropertyPage_Paint()
           Dim lresult As Long
           lresult = GetParent(PropertyPage.hwnd)   ' Work back to the
           hwndPP = GetParent(lresult)              ' dialog window.
           lresult = SetWindowPos(hwndPP, HWND_TOP, 200&, 200&, &O0, &O0, _
              SWP_HIDEWINDOW Or SWP_NOSIZE)
        End Sub

        Private Sub Timer1_Timer()
           Dim lRet As Long
           Timer1.Enabled = False     ' You will not need the Timer again.
           Command1.Value = True      ' Click the CommandButton.
           PropertyPage_ApplyChanges  ' Apply the new settings.
           lRet = PostMessage(hwndPP, WM_CLOSE, 0, 0) ' Close the dialog box.
        End Sub

2. Select the timer and set the Interval property to 1, then close all design
  windows.

3. Open the design window for Form1 and click the UserControl to give it focus.
  A MyFont property appears in the Properties window. Click on the MyFont
  property. An ellipsis button appears. If you click it, a filtered Font common
  dialog box appears (you never see the actual property page). This is fairly
  smooth, but there is a brief flicker as the dialog box opens and closes.

REFERENCES
==========

Visual Basic Help, version 6.0; search on: ProperyPage Object

(c) Microsoft Corporation 1999, All Rights Reserved.
Contributions by Chris E. Jolley, Microsoft Corporation


Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbAPI kbCtrlCreate kbPropSheet kbGrpDSUser kbVBp500 kbVBp600 
Technology        : kbVBSearch kbAudDeveloper kbZNotKeyword6 kbZNotKeyword2 kbVB500Search kbVB600Search kbVBA500 kbVBA600 kbVB500 kbVB600
Version           : WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

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