=for comment $Id: Part3.pod,v 1.3 2006/01/11 21:26:16 robertemay Exp $
=head1 NAME
Win32::GUI::Tutorial::Part3 - Dialog Boxes and Main Windows
=head1 Win32::GUI Tutorial - Part 3
=head2 What is a Dialog Box?
So far, in this tutorial, we have been creating our main window using the
Win32::GUI::Window->new() constructor. While this works fine, Win32::GUI
actually offers I<two> classes of main window.
The first of these is the Win32::GUI::Window we have been using all along, and
the second is Win32::GUI::DialogBox.
"Why two classes?", you may ask. Basically, the reason is that a DialogBox
adds extra functionality to the window which is not available with a simple
Window. But the extra functionality has a cost, which means that we still make
WIndow available for people who don't want the extra functionality of a
DialogBox, or who don't want to pay the extra cost. (Actually, there's a
further reason, which is that a Win32::GUI::DialogBox loses some of the
flexibility which a Win32::GUI::Window has - this is a limitation of
Win32::GUI, not of Windows itself, and may go away in a future version - there
may even be workarounds available already.) See below for a more complete
picture.
=head2 Keyboard handling
The main advantage that a DialogBox has over a basic Window, is that
Win32::GUI automatically performs certain types of keyboard handling for you
if you use a DialogBox. (The handling in question is the standard Windows
actions - Tab moves between controls, Shift-Tab moves backwards, Escape
cancels the dialog, and Return does the "default" action).
To make the keyboard handling work properly, you need to add a number of
options to your controls.
=over 4
=item Tab and Shift-Tab
To make the tab keys work as expected, you need to add the
C<< -tabstop => 1 >> option to your controls. The tab keys move the focus
between the controls with the C<-tabstop> option set. Other controls will
be ignored when tabbing.
=item Escape
To make the escape key work as expected, you need to define a button with the
C<< -cancel => 1 >> option. When the user presses the escape key, Windows will
translate that action into a C<Click> event on the cancel button. It is normal
to give this button a caption of C<"Cancel"> and to make its click event
handler close the window without applying any changes - but this is up to you
to implement. Windows just fires the relevant event.
=item Return
To make the return key work as expected, you need to give one of your dialog's
buttons the C<< -ok => 1 >> option. When the return key is pressed, it is
translated into a click event on the default button. The default button is
also usually highlighted differently from the other buttons
(it has a dark border), this is achieved by the C<< -default => 1 >> option,
It is normal to give this button a caption C<"OK"> and make its click
handler close the window, setting any changes made, but again, this is up to
you.
=back
There are other default keyboard actions which occur, but you either don't
need to, or can't, write code to handle them.
=head2 Other Differences
As well as the keyboard handling, the main difference between a DialogBox and
a basic Window is that a DialogBox has a much more limited set of options
available for controlling its appearance. Specifically
=over 4
=item * A DialogBox has no Minimize or Maximize icons.
=item * A DialogBox has a "?" (help) icon.
=item * A DialogBox has a slightly different look.
=item * A DialogBox cannot be resized.
=back
In most cases, the key issues will be whether you need the keyboard handling,
and whether you need the user to be able to resize your windows. Otherwise,
the choice is arbitrary. To switch types, the only change you need to make is
the name of the constructor you use to create your application's main window.
Recent versions of Win32::GUI have a C<-dialogui> option that controls the
special keyboard handling. Setting this option to C<1> on a basic Window adds the
special key handling to the window; setting it to C<0> on a DialogBox removes
the special key handling.
In the L<next part|Win32::GUI::Tutorial::Part4>, we will cover some further ways in which you can increase
your application's functionality.
__W32G_POSTAMBLE__