Limit size of docking panes

Hi

I am using the docking panes for an SDI application. I want to limit the way by which the user can change the layout of the panes. Simply using LockSplitters and xtpPaneNoFloatable is no good, because the user should be able to moves certain splitters, but not others.

I started off with the AppWizard, that gives me the "Options" and "Properties" pane to play with. For reference - I named my project "TestProject".

The pane manager is running in the MainFrame, the remaining space is taken up by CTestProjectView as defined by this code in TestProject.cpp :
    pDocTemplate = new CSingleDocTemplate(
        IDR_MAINFRAME,
        RUNTIME_CLASS(CProject2Doc),
        RUNTIME_CLASS(CMainFrame),  &a mp;n bsp;  &nbs p; // main SDI frame window
        RUNTIME_CLASS(CTestProjectView));

I managed to hook my own FormView dialog into the "remaining space" TestProjectView. This dialog is showing some logo that is always visible when the application runs.

I now want to achieve several things:

1. The TestProjectView with the logo (like a banner) should always have a fixed height (obviously only if there is a pane below it to take the remaining window height).

2. The splitter seperating the logo view and the view contaiing my tab manager should be locked, so the user cannot change that fixed height.

3. The panes ("Options" and "Properties") should have certain minimum widths and heights. i.e. if the options and properties are placed side-by-side I should by able to drag the splitter too far to the left to make the Options pane smaller than 100 pixel in width.

Here's sketch:

+----------------------+
| logo view            |
|                      |
+----------------------+   <- locked splitter
|          |           ; |
| options  | properties|
|          |           ; |
+----------+-----------+

           ^
           |
        splitter is movable, but widths of
options and properties windows cannot be smaller than X pixels.

Thanks to all CodeJockeys for your help!!!


Fred Wobus



Edited by fredwobus

Thanks Oleg,

I have thought of that.  We will need the ability to allow the user to change the layout in various ways. Moving the splitters is certainly one thing we need.

Using the splitterwnd would give us a rigid application layout, that can only change by expanding and collapsing certain windows depending on what the user is doing.

It would probably work for our first version, but would not be able to progress from there. We might need the functionality to be able to pick up a window by its title bar and drop it to a different place in the layout.

The docking panes can do that, but they don't seem to allow me to restrict that behaviour in any way.

Can you think of a way to implement such restrictions ?

The docking panes allow the user to tear the application apart - our users are typical beginners, they would not be able to use the aqpplication after one or two misplaced drag&drops.

Even I curse my VisualStudio every so often when it doesn't allow me to freeze a certain layout that I like and a window disappera and move around almost at will.

So I would like to take the docking panes by the reins and control what it's doing.

Thanks for your help,

Fred

Sorry, but with current version of DockingPanes it's not possible. We plan to add such restrictions in one of next versions. You only can lock all splitters (LockSplitters(TRUE)).

Is it possible with v9.50? I have a need for similar functionality.

Thanks

But as I see from the example it is notpossible to resize the coresponding panes anymore, but there is still an Mousecurser change on the borders, is this a bug?

Thanks in advance

Wolfgang

Interesting!

Currently i have only the 9.51 example and there i see and have a Resize Cursor. Especially if set to autohide, i can resize Pane 2 to quite invalid sizes!

Regards

Wolfgang