iwidgets::combobox(1) [incr Widgets] iwidgets::combobox(1)
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NAME
iwidgets::combobox - Create and manipulate combination box widgets
SYNOPSIS
iwidgets::combobox pathName ?options?
INHERITANCE
itk::Widget <- iwidgets::LabeledWidget <- iwidgets::Entryfield <- iwidgets::Combobox
STANDARD OPTIONS
background borderWidth cursor justify
exportSelection foreground highlightColor highlightThickness
insertWidth insertBackground insertOffTime insertOnTime
insertWidth insertBorderWidth relief selectForeground
selectBackground selectBorderWidth textVariable width
See the "options" manual entry for details on the standard options.
ASSOCIATED OPTIONS
hscrollmode textBackground textFont vscrollmode
See the "scrolledlistbox" manual entry for details on the above inherited options.
show
See the "entry" manual entry for details on the above inherited option.
INHERITED OPTIONS
childSitePos command fixed focusCommand
invalid textBackground textFont validate
See the "entryfield" class manual entry for details on the inherited options.
labelBitmap labelFont labelImage labelMargin
labelPos labelText labelVariable sticky
See the "labeledwidget" class manual entry for details on the inherited options.
WIDGET-SPECIFIC OPTIONS
Name: arrowRelief
Class: Relief
Command-Line Switch: -arrowrelief
Specifies the relief style to use for a dropdown Combobox's arrow button in a normal (not depressed) state. Acceptable values are
raised, sunken, flat, ridge, and groove. Sunken is discouraged as this is the relief used to indicate a depressed state. This
option has no effect on simple Comboboxes. The default is raised.
Name: completion
Class: Completion
Command-Line Switch: -completion
Boolean given in any of the forms acceptable to Tcl_GetBoolean which determines whether insertions into the entry field, whether
from the keyboard or programmatically via the insert method, are automatically completed with the first matching item from the list-
box. The default is true.
Name: dropdown
Class: Dropdown
Command-Line Switch: -dropdown
Boolean describing the Combobox layout style given in any of the forms acceptable to Tcl_GetBoolean. If true, the Combobox will be a
dropdown style widget which displays an entry field and an arrow button which when activated will pop up a scrollable list of items.
If false, a simple Combobox style will be used which has an entry field and a scrollable list beneath it which is always visible.
Both styles allow an optional label for the entry field area. The default is true.
Name: editable
Class: Editable
Command-Line Switch: -editable
Boolean describing whether or not the text entry area is editable by the user. If true the user can add items to the combobox by
entering text into the entry area and then pressing Return. If false, the list of items is non-editable and can only be changed by
calling the insert or delete methods. (The value in the entry field can still be modified by selecting from the list.) Given in any
of the forms acceptable to Tcl_GetBoolean. The default is true.
Name: grab
Class: Grab
Command-Line Switch: -grab
This option sets the grab scope for the appearance of the listbox in drop-down comboboxes. It can be either global or local. The
default is local.
Name: listHeight
Class: Height
Command-Line Switch: -listheight
Height of the listbox specified in any of the forms acceptable to Tk_GetPixels. The default is 150 pixels.
Name: margin
Class: Margin
Command-Line Switch: -margin
Specifies the width in pixels between the entry component and the arrow button for a dropdown Combobox given in any of the forms
acceptable to Tk_GetPixels. This option has no effect on a simple Combobox. The default is 1.
Name: popupCursor
Class: Cursor
Command-Line Switch: -popupcursor
Specifies the cursor to be used for dropdown style listboxes. The value may have any of the forms acceptable to Tk_GetCursor. The
default is arrow.
Name: selectionCommand
Class: SelectionCommand
Command-Line Switch: -selectioncommand
Specifies a Tcl command procedure which is called when an item in the listbox area is selected. The item will be selected in the
list, the listbox will be removed if it is a dropdown Combobox, and the selected item's text will be inserted into the entry field
before the -selectioncommand proc is called. The default is {}.
Name: state
Class: State
Command-Line Switch: -state
Specifies the overall state of the Combobox megawidget. Can be either normal or disabled. If the Combobox is disabled, no text can
be entered into the entry field, no selection can be made in the listbox, and the arrowBtn component is disabled. The default is
normal.
Name: unique
Class: Unique
Command-Line Switch: -unique
Boolean describing whether or not duplicate items are allowed in the combobox list. If true, then duplicates are not allowed to be
inserted. If false, a duplicate entry causes selection of the item. Given in any of the forms acceptable to Tcl_GetBoolean. The
default is true.
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DESCRIPTION
The iwidgets::combobox command creates an enhanced entry field widget with an optional associated label and a scrollable list. When an item
is selected in the list area of a Combobox, its value is then displayed in the entry field text area. Functionally similar to an Option-
menu, the Combobox adds (optional) list scrolling and (optional) item editing and inserting capabilities.
There are two basic styles of Comboboxes (determined by the -dropdown option): dropdown and simple. The dropdown style adds an arrow button
to the right of the entry field which when activated will pop up (and down) the scrolled listbox beneath the entry field. The simple (non-
dropdown) Combobox permanently displays the listbox beneath the entry field and has no arrow button. Either style allows an optional entry
field label.
METHODS
The iwidgets::combobox command creates a new Tcl command whose name is pathName. This command may be used to invoke various operations on
the widget. It has the following general form: pathName option ?arg arg ...? Option and the args determine the exact behavior of the com-
mand. The following commands are possible for Combobox widgets:
ASSOCIATED METHODS
icursor scan
See the "entry" manual entries for details on the above associated methods.
curselection index see size
xview yview
See the "listbox" manual entries for details on the above associated methods.
getcurselection justify sort
See the "scrolledlistbox" manual entries for details on the above associated methods.
WIDGET-SPECIFIC METHODS
pathName cget option
Returns the current value of the configuration option given by option. Option may have any of the values accepted by the iwid-
gets::combobox command.
pathName clear ?component?
Clears the contents from one or both components. Valid component values are list, or entry. With no component specified, both are
cleared.
pathName configure ?option? ?value option value ...?
Query or modify the configuration options of the widget. If no option is specified, returns a list describing all of the available
options for pathName (see Tk_ConfigureInfo for information on the format of this list). If option is specified with no value, then
the command returns a list describing the one named option (this list will be identical to the corresponding sublist of the value
returned if no option is specified). If one or more option-value pairs are specified, then the command modifies the given widget
option(s) to have the given value(s); in this case the command returns an empty string. Option may have any of the values accepted
by the iwidgets::combobox command.
pathName delete component first ?last?
Delete one or more elements from a given component, list or entry. If a list item to be removed is currently selected (displayed in
the entry field area), the entry field will be cleared.
pathName get ?index?
With no arguments, returns the contents currently in the entry field area. With a single argument, returns the contents of the list-
box item at the indicated index.
pathName insert component index element ?element element ...?
Insert one or more new elements into the given component, list or entry, just before the element given by index.
pathName selection option first ?last?
Adjust the selection within the listbox component and updates the contents of the entry field component to the value of the selected
item. See the "listbox" manual entry for more details on parameter options.
COMPONENTS
Name: entry
Class: Entry
Text entry area where the current selection is displayed. If the Combobox is editable and its state is normal, the user can edit the
contents of this item.
Name: list
Class: Scrolledlistbox
Scrollable list which stores all the items which the user can select from. For dropdown Comboboxes, this component is hidden until
the user pops it up by pressing on the arrow button to the right of the entry component. For simple Comboboxes this component is
always visible just beneath the entry component.
DEFAULT BINDINGS
The Combobox generally has the same bindings as its primary component items - the Scrolledlistbox and Entryfield. However it also adds
these:
[1] Button-1 mouse press on the arrow key of a dropdown Combobox causes the list to be popped up. If the combobox is non-editable, a But-
ton-1 press on the entry field area will also pop up the list.
[2] Button-1 mouse press anywhere on the display removes a dropdown listbox which has been popped up, unless the keypress is upon one of
the Combobox scrollbars which scrolls the list. If it is pressed upon an item in the list area, that item will be selected before the list
is removed.
[3] Button-3 mouse press on the arrow key of a dropdown Combobox causes the next item to be selected. Shift-Button-3 causes the previous
item to be selected.
[4] Escape keypress removes a dropdown list which has been popped up.
[5] The <space> and <Return> keystrokes select the current item. They also remove the popped up list for dropdown comboboxes.
[6] Up and Down arrow keypresses from the entry field and arrow button component cause the previous and next items in the listbox to be
selected respectively. Ctl-P and Ctl-N are similarly mapped for emacs emulation.
[7] Entry field and arrow button component Shift-Up and Shift-Down arrow keys pop up and down the listbox of a dropdown Combobox. The arrow
button component also maps <Return> and <space> similarly.
EXAMPLE
package require Iwidgets 4.0
proc selectCmd {} {
puts stdout "[.cb2 getcurselection]"
}
#
# Non-editable Dropdown Combobox
#
iwidgets::combobox .cb1 -labeltext Month:
-selectioncommand {puts "selected: [.cb1 getcurselection]"}
-editable false -listheight 185 -popupcursor hand1
.cb1 insert list end Jan Feb Mar Apr May June Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
#
# Editable Dropdown Combobox
#
iwidgets::combobox .cb2 -labeltext "Operating System:" -selectioncommand selectCmd
.cb2 insert list end Linux HP-UX SunOS Solaris Irix
.cb2 insert entry end L
pack .cb1 -padx 10 -pady 10 -fill x
pack .cb2 -padx 10 -pady 10 -fill x
ORIGINAL AUTHOR
John S. Sigler
CURRENT MAINTAINER
Mitch Gorman (logain@erols.com)
KEYWORDS
combobox, entryfield, scrolledlistbox, itk::Widget, entry, listbox, widget, iwidgets
Tk iwidgets::combobox(1)