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wxPython Application Development Cookbook
wxPython Application Development Cookbook

wxPython Application Development Cookbook: Over 80 step-by-step recipes to get you up to speed with building your own wxPython applications

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wxPython Application Development Cookbook

Chapter 2. Common User Controls

In this chapter, we will cover:

  • Starting with the easy button
  • Pushing all the buttons
  • Offering options with CheckBoxes
  • Using TextCtrl
  • Processing key events
  • Picking dates with DatePickerCtrl
  • Exploring menus and shortcuts
  • Displaying a context menu
  • Working with ToolBars
  • Managing UI states

Introduction

There are many common elements that can be found in nearly any software application that has a user interface. These elements include many well-known controls such as buttons, menus, and toolbars. In this chapter, we will take a look at how to start using and integrating these common user controls into your applications. We will do this by showing you how to create and add the controls to the user interface as well as how to make use of many of the common events. The events that are emitted by these controls are used to allow your application to interact and respond to actions initiated by the users of the interface.

Starting with the easy button

The button is probably one of the most commonly used UI controls in any application's user interface. The button control in wxPython has received some attention in recent versions and has had some useful new features added to it to make it an even more powerful control than it was in the past. In this recipe, we will explore some of the functionalities that the default button can provide, including the new features to support bitmaps that were added in wxPython 2.9.1.

How to do it…

Perform the following steps:

  1. First, let's define a Panel class and start adding some buttons to it. It will act as the container to hold and organize the buttons we make. Using the following code:
    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Sizer to control button layout
            sizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.HORIZONTAL)
  2. Next, we will create a simple stock button using a common ID with no label specified and...

Pushing all the buttons

Even though the standard button can get the job done most of the time, there are other cases where you may want to provide a different look and feel for certain situations. So, in addition to the standard button, wxPython also has several other types of buttons that provide additional features to customize their look and feel.

How to do it…

You need to perform the following steps:

  1. Let's start simply by stubbing out our panel that will hold the buttons in this example through this code:
    import wx
    import wx.lib.platebtn as platebtn
    
    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Layout sizers
            vsizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.VERTICAL)
            sizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.HORIZONTAL)
            vsizer.Add(sizer)
  2. Now, let's create a couple of ToggleButton controls, as follows:
            # Toggle Button
            toggle = wx.ToggleButton(self, label="Toggle Me")
            sizer.Add(toggle)
          ...

Offering options with CheckBoxes

The CheckBox control in its usual configuration is similar to a type of binary input; it is either checked or not checked. So, as such, it is often used to offer selection options to "yes/no" questions in a user interface, such as an option to enable or disable a feature in an application's configuration screen. In this recipe, we will take a look at the ways of using a CheckBox control.

How to do it…

To offer options with checkboxes, you need to do the following:

  1. First, we will start by making a panel that has three CheckBox controls on it through the following code:
    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Layout sizers
            vsizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.VERTICAL)
    
            # Toggle Button
            self.allCB = wx.CheckBox(self, label="All Selected",
                                     style=wx.CHK_3STATE)
            vsizer.Add(self.allCB)
            self.option1 = wx...

Using TextCtrl

The TextCtrl control is versatile; it allows the display and entry of textual data in an application. In its default form, TextCtrl is a single-line entry field that is often used on forms to allow users to input information such as names, places, and descriptions. From wxPython 2.9 onward, TextCtrl added some features to support auto-completion of input. This feature lets some input help be shown in a pop-up list that filters as the typing narrows down the available options. In this recipe, we will explore how to activate and use some of these features by making a custom the TextCtrl control that remembers previous entries that were made in it and offers them as input tips the next time data is typed into the field.

How to do it…

Perform the following steps:

  1. First, let's create the class' definition and its constructor to set up the extensions and events that we need to handle in order to add the memory feature:
    class MemoryTextCtrl(wx.TextCtrl):
        "...

Processing key events

The KeyEvent events are generated in any control that accepts keyboard input when a user presses keys on a keyboard. There are three distinct events that occur for a single key press. In this recipe, we will use KeyEvents to create a custom TextCtrl control that can generate a dynamic input suggestion list similar to the suggestions that Google shows when one types into the search box.

How to do it…

You need to do the following:

  1. Firstly, for this recipe, we need to include a couple of other modules from the Python standard library, as follows:
    from urllib import urlopen
    import re
    
    from abc import ABCMeta, abstractmethod
    import wx
  2. To make the control's suggestion provider extensible, we will first define a simple interface class that will be responsible for providing suggestion options. This is defined as an abstract base class:
    class CompleterDataSource:
        __metaclass__ = ABCMeta
        
        @abstractmethod
        def getSuggestions(self, phrase):
            "...

Introduction


There are many common elements that can be found in nearly any software application that has a user interface. These elements include many well-known controls such as buttons, menus, and toolbars. In this chapter, we will take a look at how to start using and integrating these common user controls into your applications. We will do this by showing you how to create and add the controls to the user interface as well as how to make use of many of the common events. The events that are emitted by these controls are used to allow your application to interact and respond to actions initiated by the users of the interface.

Starting with the easy button


The button is probably one of the most commonly used UI controls in any application's user interface. The button control in wxPython has received some attention in recent versions and has had some useful new features added to it to make it an even more powerful control than it was in the past. In this recipe, we will explore some of the functionalities that the default button can provide, including the new features to support bitmaps that were added in wxPython 2.9.1.

How to do it…

Perform the following steps:

  1. First, let's define a Panel class and start adding some buttons to it. It will act as the container to hold and organize the buttons we make. Using the following code:

    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Sizer to control button layout
            sizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.HORIZONTAL)
  2. Next, we will create a simple stock button using a common ID with no label specified and add it with the...

Pushing all the buttons


Even though the standard button can get the job done most of the time, there are other cases where you may want to provide a different look and feel for certain situations. So, in addition to the standard button, wxPython also has several other types of buttons that provide additional features to customize their look and feel.

How to do it…

You need to perform the following steps:

  1. Let's start simply by stubbing out our panel that will hold the buttons in this example through this code:

    import wx
    import wx.lib.platebtn as platebtn
    
    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Layout sizers
            vsizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.VERTICAL)
            sizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.HORIZONTAL)
            vsizer.Add(sizer)
  2. Now, let's create a couple of ToggleButton controls, as follows:

            # Toggle Button
            toggle = wx.ToggleButton(self, label="Toggle Me")
            sizer.Add(toggle)
            toggle = wx.ToggleButton(self...

Offering options with CheckBoxes


The CheckBox control in its usual configuration is similar to a type of binary input; it is either checked or not checked. So, as such, it is often used to offer selection options to "yes/no" questions in a user interface, such as an option to enable or disable a feature in an application's configuration screen. In this recipe, we will take a look at the ways of using a CheckBox control.

How to do it…

To offer options with checkboxes, you need to do the following:

  1. First, we will start by making a panel that has three CheckBox controls on it through the following code:

    class MyPanel(wx.Panel):
        def __init__(self, parent):
            super(MyPanel, self).__init__(parent)
    
            # Layout sizers
            vsizer = wx.BoxSizer(wx.VERTICAL)
    
            # Toggle Button
            self.allCB = wx.CheckBox(self, label="All Selected",
                                     style=wx.CHK_3STATE)
            vsizer.Add(self.allCB)
            self.option1 = wx.CheckBox(self,label="Option 1"...

Using TextCtrl


The TextCtrl control is versatile; it allows the display and entry of textual data in an application. In its default form, TextCtrl is a single-line entry field that is often used on forms to allow users to input information such as names, places, and descriptions. From wxPython 2.9 onward, TextCtrl added some features to support auto-completion of input. This feature lets some input help be shown in a pop-up list that filters as the typing narrows down the available options. In this recipe, we will explore how to activate and use some of these features by making a custom the TextCtrl control that remembers previous entries that were made in it and offers them as input tips the next time data is typed into the field.

How to do it…

Perform the following steps:

  1. First, let's create the class' definition and its constructor to set up the extensions and events that we need to handle in order to add the memory feature:

    class MemoryTextCtrl(wx.TextCtrl):
        """TextCtrl that remembers...
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Key benefits

  • This book empowers you to create rich cross-platform graphical user interfaces using Python
  • It helps you develop applications that can be deployed on Windows, OSX, and Linux
  • The recipes in the book involve real-world applications, giving you a first-hand experience of the practical scenarios

Description

wxPython is a GUI toolkit for the Python programming language built on top of the cross-platform wxWidgets GUI libraries. wxPython provides a powerful set of tools that allow you to quickly and efficiently building applications that can run on a variety of different platforms. Since wxWidgets provides a wrapper around each platform’s native GUI toolkit, the applications built with wxPython will have a native look and feel wherever they are deployed. This book will provide you with the skills to build highly functional and native looking user interfaces for Python applications on multiple operating system environments. By working through the recipes, you will gain insights into and exposure to creating applications using wxPython. With a wide range of topics covered in the book, there are recipes to get the most basic of beginners started in GUI programming as well as tips to help experienced users get more out of their applications. The recipes will take you from the most basic application constructs all the way through to the deployment of complete applications.

Who is this book for?

For those who are familiar with programming in Python and want to start building applications with graphical user interfaces, this book will get you up and running quickly. A basic understanding of the Python programming language and object-oriented concepts are all that is needed.

What you will learn

  • Create full featured user interfaces
  • Design and develop custom controls
  • Deploy and distribute wxPython applications to Windows, Macintosh OS X, Linux, and other UNIX-like environments
  • Handle and respond to application events
  • Manage and display data using grids
  • Interact with web services from your GUI
  • Use Paint events to draw custom displays
  • Support the display of user interfaces in multiple languages

Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Dec 24, 2015
Length: 264 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785287732
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Tools :

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Product Details

Publication date : Dec 24, 2015
Length: 264 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785287732
Category :
Languages :
Tools :

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Table of Contents

11 Chapters
1. wxPython Starting Points Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
2. Common User Controls Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
3. UI Layout and Organization Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
4. Containers and Advanced Controls Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
5. Data Displays and Grids Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
6. Ways to Notify and Alert Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
7. Requesting and Retrieving Information Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
8. User Interface Primitives Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
9. Creating and Customizing Components Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
10. Getting Your Application Ready for Release Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

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Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon Empty star icon 3.5
(6 Ratings)
5 star 16.7%
4 star 33.3%
3 star 33.3%
2 star 16.7%
1 star 0%
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Jens Goe Feb 10, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
I did the technical review for this book and i liked the way the book is structured. It is suitable for developers of all levels. Basic knowledge about Python and object oriented programming is recommended. This book contains a huge collection of recipes which shows how to use the various controls of wxPython 3. Every recipe describes an use case for each control followed by a code sample and a detailed explanation how the code works. Most of the samples are visualized with screenshots.The recipes starts easy with basic knowledge about graphical user interfaces and ends up with techniques to create customized controls for unique applications.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Amazon Customer May 27, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon 4
This a pretty good book for getting started learning wxPython. The examples work just fine with the exception of trying to use a ListCtrl in a sizer, which seems to have some problems.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Public name Oct 18, 2018
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon 4
This was a great book to get someone started with developing with wxPython. However, it is meant to be used with Python 2, and with an older version of wxPython. Many changes have been made since the book was published that require updating code.However, the concepts are still the same, and the book (even though out-dated) does not feel out-dated.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Cici Ciconia Mar 05, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 3
You can find all of the samples contained in the book on the internet. This book is not comprehensive at all.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Amazon Customer Feb 16, 2018
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 3
It was alright
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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