I seem to have a simple data-binding problem, but can't figure out the right way to do it. There is a TabControl which defines two DataTemplate's, one for the tab header and one for the tab content.
The content template contains an ItemsControl. The ItemsControl tries to bind to a dynamically created ViewModel (ConnectionInfoVM).
When I display the UI, the binding just fails, but there is no error-message in the output about it.
How do I have to set up the DataContext and the binding so the binding works and the DataBuffer is actually displayed? Any help greatly appreciated.
ConnectionsControl:
<UserControl x:Class="XXXViewer.Views.ConnectionsControl"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
xmlns:viewModels="clr-namespace:XXXViewer.ViewModels"
mc:Ignorable="d"
d:DesignHeight="300" d:DesignWidth="300">
<Grid>
<Grid.RowDefinitions>
<RowDefinition Height="*" />
</Grid.RowDefinitions>
<TabControl Grid.Row="0" Name="TabDynamic" SelectionChanged="tabDynamic_SelectionChanged">
<TabControl.Resources>
<DataTemplate x:Key="TabHeader" DataType="TabItem">
<DockPanel>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type TabItem}}, Path=Header}" />
<Button Name="btnDelete" DockPanel.Dock="Right" Margin="5,0,0,0" Padding="0" Click="btnTabDelete_Click" CommandParameter="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type TabItem}}, Path=Name}">
<Image Source="{DynamicResource DeleteImg}" Height="11" Width="11"></Image>
</Button>
</DockPanel>
</DataTemplate>
<DataTemplate x:Key="TabContent" DataType="viewModels:ConnectionInfoVM">
<StackPanel>
<ScrollViewer Name="Scroller" Background="Black">
<StackPanel>
<TextBlock Text="This line gets printed" Foreground="White" FontFamily="Consolas"/>
<ItemsControl Name="ItemCtrl" ItemsSource="{Binding DataBuffer}">
<ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding Path=.}" Foreground="White" FontFamily="Consolas"/>
</DataTemplate>
</ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
</ItemsControl>
</StackPanel>
</ScrollViewer>
</StackPanel>
</DataTemplate>
</TabControl.Resources>
</TabControl>
</Grid>
</UserControl>
ConnectionsControl code behind:
namespace XXXViewer.Views
{
public partial class ConnectionsControl : UserControl
{
private readonly ObservableCollection<TabItem> _tabItems = new ObservableCollection<TabItem>();
public ConnectionsControl()
{
InitializeComponent();
// bindings
TabDynamic.ItemsSource = _tabItems;
TabDynamic.DataContext = this;
}
// assume this gets called
private void AddTabItem(ConnectionInfoVM ci)
{
DataTemplate headerTemplate = TabDynamic.FindResource("TabHeader") as DataTemplate;
DataTemplate contentTemplate = TabDynamic.FindResource("TabContent") as DataTemplate;
// create new tab item
TabItem tab = new TabItem
{
Header = $"Tab {ci.ConnectionID}",
Name = $"T{ci.ConnectionID}",
HeaderTemplate = headerTemplate,
ContentTemplate = contentTemplate,
DataContext = ci
};
_tabItems.Insert(0, tab);
// set the new tab as active tab
TabDynamic.SelectedItem = tab;
}
}
}
ConnectionInfoVM:
namespace XXXViewer.ViewModels
{
public class ConnectionInfoVM : ViewModelBase
{
private readonly ObservableQueue<string> _dataBuffer = new ObservableQueue<string>();
public ObservableQueue<string> DataBuffer => _dataBuffer;
}
}
Screenshot of the tab that gets created: resulting tab
You set the ContentTemplate but never the Content, so the ContentTemplate is never applied because it's applied only when there's Content set. Instead of DataContext = ci write Content = ci.
By the way the DataContext = ci was useless because the DataContext is already implicitely the object on which the DataTemplate is applied.
Edit
As you're using WPF, use and abuse of its core feature: bindings.
How I would have written your code (if I didn't use full MVVM compliant code):
Your XAML:
<TabControl Grid.Row="0" Name="TabDynamic"
ItemsSource="{Binding TabItems, Mode=OneWay}"
SelectionChanged="tabDynamic_SelectionChanged">
<TabControl.Resources>
<DataTemplate x:Key="TabHeader" DataType="TabItem">
<DockPanel>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type TabItem}}, Path=Header}" />
<Button Name="btnDelete" DockPanel.Dock="Right" Margin="5,0,0,0" Padding="0" Click="btnTabDelete_Click" CommandParameter="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type TabItem}}, Path=Name}">
<Image Source="{DynamicResource DeleteImg}" Height="11" Width="11"></Image>
</Button>
</DockPanel>
</DataTemplate>
</TabControl.Resources>
<TabControl.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate DataType="viewModels:ConnectionInfoVM">
<TabItem Header="{Binding ConnectionID, Mode=OneWay}"
Name="{Binding ConnectionID, Mode=OneWay}"
HeaderTemplate="{StaticResources TabHeader}">
<StackPanel>
<ScrollViewer Name="Scroller" Background="Black">
<StackPanel>
<TextBlock Text="This line gets printed" Foreground="White" FontFamily="Consolas"/>
<ItemsControl Name="ItemCtrl" ItemsSource="{Binding DataBuffer}">
<ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
<DataTemplate>
<TextBlock Text="{Binding Path=.}" Foreground="White" FontFamily="Consolas"/>
</DataTemplate>
</ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
</ItemsControl>
</StackPanel>
</ScrollViewer>
</StackPanel>
</TabItem>
</DataTemplate>
</TabControl.ItemTemplate>
</TabControl>
You cs code become much simpler:
namespace XXXViewer.Views
{
public partial class ConnectionsControl : UserControl
{
private readonly ObservableCollection<ConnectionInfoVM> _tabItems = new ObservableCollection<ConnectionInfoVM>();
public ObservableCollection<ConnectionInfoVM> TabItems {get {return _tabItems;}}
public ConnectionsControl()
{
InitializeComponent();
// bindings
//TabDynamic.ItemsSource = _tabItems;
TabDynamic.DataContext = this;
}
// assume this gets called
private void AddTabItem(ConnectionInfoVM ci)
{
TabItems.Add(ci);
}
}
}
I noted while re-reading your code that you were probably confused about binding in code-behind.
Your code TabDynamic.ItemsSource = _tabItems; is not a binding, it will only set it once.
Anyway, I suggest you read a bit about MVVM. The TabItems should be in a ViewModel class instead of being in code-behind.