## wxAuiManager

wxAuiManager is the central class of the wxAUI class framework.

See also wxAUI overview.

wxAuiManager manages the panes associated with it for a particular wxFrame, using a pane's wxAuiPaneInfo information to determine each pane's docking and floating behavior. wxAuiManager uses wxWidgets' sizer mechanism to plan the layout of each frame. It uses a replaceable dock art class to do all drawing, so all drawing is localized in one area, and may be customized depending on an application's specific needs.

wxAuiManager works as follows: the programmer adds panes to the class, or makes changes to existing pane properties (dock position, floating state, show state, etc.). To apply these changes, wxAuiManager's Update() function is called. This batch processing can be used to avoid flicker, by modifying more than one pane at a time, and then "committing" all of the changes at once by calling Update().

Panes can be added quite easily:

    wxTextCtrl* text1 = new wxTextCtrl(this, -1);
    wxTextCtrl* text2 = new wxTextCtrl(this, -1);
    m_mgr.AddPane(text1, wxLEFT, wxT("Pane Caption"));
    m_mgr.AddPane(text2, wxBOTTOM, wxT("Pane Caption"));
    m_mgr.Update();

Later on, the positions can be modified easily. The following will float an existing pane in a tool window:

    m_mgr.GetPane(text1).Float();

Layers, Rows and Directions, Positions

Inside wxAUI, the docking layout is figured out by checking several pane parameters. Four of these are important for determining where a pane will end up:

Direction: Each docked pane has a direction, Top, Bottom, Left, Right, or Center. This is fairly self-explanatory. The pane will be placed in the location specified by this variable.

Position: More than one pane can be placed inside of a dock. Imagine two panes being docked on the left side of a window. One pane can be placed over another. In proportionally managed docks, the pane position indicates its sequential position, starting with zero. So, in our scenario with two panes docked on the left side, the top pane in the dock would have position 0, and the second one would occupy position 1.

Row: A row can allow for two docks to be placed next to each other. One of the most common places for this to happen is in the toolbar. Multiple toolbar rows are allowed, the first row being row 0, and the second row 1. Rows can also be used on vertically docked panes.

Layer: A layer is akin to an onion. Layer 0 is the very center of the managed pane. Thus, if a pane is in layer 0, it will be closest to the center window (also sometimes known as the "content window"). Increasing layers "swallow up" all layers of a lower value. This can look very similar to multiple rows, but is different because all panes in a lower level yield to panes in higher levels. The best way to understand layers is by running the wxAUI sample.

Derived from

wxEvtHandler

Include files

<wx/aui/aui.h>

See also

wxAuiPaneInfo, wxAuiDockArt

Data structures

    enum wxAuiManagerDock
    {
        wxAUI_DOCK_NONE = 0,
        wxAUI_DOCK_TOP = 1,
        wxAUI_DOCK_RIGHT = 2,
        wxAUI_DOCK_BOTTOM = 3,
        wxAUI_DOCK_LEFT = 4,
        wxAUI_DOCK_CENTER = 5,
        wxAUI_DOCK_CENTRE = wxAUI_DOCK_CENTER
    }

    enum wxAuiManagerOption

        wxAUI_MGR_ALLOW_FLOATING           = 1 << 0,
        wxAUI_MGR_ALLOW_ACTIVE_PANE        = 1 << 1,
        wxAUI_MGR_TRANSPARENT_DRAG         = 1 << 2,
        wxAUI_MGR_TRANSPARENT_HINT         = 1 << 3,
        wxAUI_MGR_VENETIAN_BLINDS_HINT     = 1 << 4,
        wxAUI_MGR_RECTANGLE_HINT           = 1 << 5,
        wxAUI_MGR_HINT_FADE                = 1 << 6,
        wxAUI_MGR_NO_VENETIAN_BLINDS_FADE  = 1 << 7,
        wxAUI_MGR_LIVE_RESIZE              = 1 << 8,

        wxAUI_MGR_DEFAULT = wxAUI_MGR_ALLOW_FLOATING |
                            wxAUI_MGR_TRANSPARENT_HINT |
                            wxAUI_MGR_HINT_FADE |
                            wxAUI_MGR_NO_VENETIAN_BLINDS_FADE

Members

wxAuiManager::wxAuiManager
wxAuiManager::~wxAuiManager
wxAuiManager::AddPane
wxAuiManager::DetachPane
wxAuiManager::GetAllPanes
wxAuiManager::GetArtProvider
wxAuiManager::GetDockSizeConstraint
wxAuiManager::GetFlags
wxAuiManager::GetManagedWindow
wxAuiManager::GetManager
wxAuiManager::GetPane
wxAuiManager::HideHint
wxAuiManager::InsertPane
wxAuiManager::LoadPaneInfo
wxAuiManager::LoadPerspective
wxAuiManager::ProcessDockResult
wxAuiManager::SavePaneInfo
wxAuiManager::SavePerspective
wxAuiManager::SetArtProvider
wxAuiManager::SetDockSizeConstraint
wxAuiManager::SetFlags
wxAuiManager::SetManagedWindow
wxAuiManager::ShowHint
wxAuiManager::UnInit
wxAuiManager::Update

### wxAuiManager::wxAuiManager

wxAuiManager(wxWindow* managed_wnd = NULL, unsigned int flags = wxAUI_MGR_DEFAULT)

Constructor. managed_wnd specifies the wxFrame which should be managed. flags specifies options which allow the frame management behavior to be modified.

### wxAuiManager::~wxAuiManager

~wxAuiManager()

### wxAuiManager::AddPane

bool AddPane(wxWindow* window, const wxAuiPaneInfo& pane_info)

bool AddPane(wxWindow* window, int direction = wxLEFT, const wxString& caption = wxEmptyString)

bool AddPane(wxWindow* window, const wxAuiPaneInfo& pane_info, const wxPoint& drop_pos)

AddPane() tells the frame manager to start managing a child window. There are several versions of this function. The first version allows the full spectrum of pane parameter possibilities. The second version is used for simpler user interfaces which do not require as much configuration. The last version allows a drop position to be specified, which will determine where the pane will be added.

### wxAuiManager::DetachPane

bool DetachPane(wxWindow* window)

Tells the wxAuiManager to stop managing the pane specified by window. The window, if in a floated frame, is reparented to the frame managed by wxAuiManager.

### wxAuiManager::GetAllPanes

wxAuiPaneInfoArray& GetAllPanes()

Returns an array of all panes managed by the frame manager.

### wxAuiManager::GetArtProvider

wxAuiDockArt* GetArtProvider() const

Returns the current art provider being used.

See also: wxAuiDockArt.

### wxAuiManager::GetDockSizeConstraint

void GetDockSizeConstraint(double* widthpct, double* heightpct)

Returns the current dock constraint values. See SetDockSizeConstraint() for more information.

### wxAuiManager::GetFlags

unsigned int GetFlags() const

Returns the current manager's flags.

### wxAuiManager::GetManagedWindow

wxWindow* GetManagedWindow() const

Returns the frame currently being managed by wxAuiManager.

### wxAuiManager::GetManager

static wxAuiManager* GetManager(wxWindow* window)

Calling this method will return the wxAuiManager for a given window. The window parameter should specify any child window or sub-child window of the frame or window managed by wxAuiManager. The window parameter need not be managed by the manager itself, nor does it even need to be a child or sub-child of a managed window. It must however be inside the window hierarchy underneath the managed window.

### wxAuiManager::GetPane

wxAuiPaneInfo& GetPane(wxWindow* window)

wxAuiPaneInfo& GetPane(const wxString& name)

GetPane is used to lookup a wxAuiPaneInfo object either by window pointer or by pane name, which acts as a unique id for a window pane. The returned wxAuiPaneInfo object may then be modified to change a pane's look, state or position. After one or more modifications to wxAuiPaneInfo, wxAuiManager::Update() should be called to commit the changes to the user interface. If the lookup failed (meaning the pane could not be found in the manager), a call to the returned wxAuiPaneInfo's IsOk() method will return false.

### wxAuiManager::HideHint

void HideHint()

HideHint() hides any docking hint that may be visible.

### wxAuiManager::InsertPane

bool InsertPane(wxWindow* window, const wxAuiPaneInfo& insert_location, int insert_level = wxAUI_INSERT_PANE)

This method is used to insert either a previously unmanaged pane window into the frame manager, or to insert a currently managed pane somewhere else. InsertPane will push all panes, rows, or docks aside and insert the window into the position specified by insert_location. Because insert_location can specify either a pane, dock row, or dock layer, the insert_level parameter is used to disambiguate this. The parameter insert_level can take a value of wxAUI_INSERT_PANE, wxAUI_INSERT_ROW or wxAUI_INSERT_DOCK.

### wxAuiManager::LoadPaneInfo

void LoadPaneInfo(wxString pane_part, wxAuiPaneInfo& pane)

LoadPaneInfo() is similar to to LoadPerspective, with the exception that it only loads information about a single pane. It is used in combination with SavePaneInfo().

### wxAuiManager::LoadPerspective

bool LoadPerspective(const wxString& perspective, bool update = true)

Loads a saved perspective. If update is true, wxAuiManager::Update() is automatically invoked, thus realizing the saved perspective on screen.

### wxAuiManager::ProcessDockResult

bool ProcessDockResult(wxAuiPaneInfo& target, const wxAuiPaneInfo& new_pos)

ProcessDockResult() is a protected member of the wxAUI layout manager. It can be overridden by derived classes to provide custom docking calculations.

### wxAuiManager::SavePaneInfo

wxString SavePaneInfo(wxAuiPaneInfo& pane)

SavePaneInfo() is similar to SavePerspective, with the exception that it only saves information about a single pane. It is used in combination with LoadPaneInfo().

### wxAuiManager::SavePerspective

wxString SavePerspective()

Saves the entire user interface layout into an encoded wxString, which can then be stored by the application (probably using wxConfig). When a perspective is restored using LoadPerspective(), the entire user interface will return to the state it was when the perspective was saved.

### wxAuiManager::SetArtProvider

void SetArtProvider(wxAuiDockArt* art_provider)

Instructs wxAuiManager to use art provider specified by parameter art_provider for all drawing calls. This allows plugable look-and-feel features. The previous art provider object, if any, will be deleted by wxAuiManager.

See also: wxAuiDockArt.

### wxAuiManager::SetDockSizeConstraint

void SetDockSizeConstraint(double widthpct, double heightpct)

When a user creates a new dock by dragging a window into a docked position, often times the large size of the window will create a dock that is unwieldly large. wxAuiManager by default limits the size of any new dock to 1/3 of the window size. For horizontal docks, this would be 1/3 of the window height. For vertical docks, 1/3 of the width. Calling this function will adjust this constraint value. The numbers must be between 0.0 and 1.0. For instance, calling SetDockSizeContraint with 0.5, 0.5 will cause new docks to be limited to half of the size of the entire managed window.

### wxAuiManager::SetFlags

void SetFlags(unsigned int flags)

This method is used to specify wxAuiManager's settings flags. flags specifies options which allow the frame management behavior to be modified.

### wxAuiManager::SetManagedWindow

void SetManagedWindow(wxWindow* managed_wnd)

Called to specify the frame or window which is to be managed by wxAuiManager. Frame management is not restricted to just frames. Child windows or custom controls are also allowed.

### wxAuiManager::ShowHint

void ShowHint(const wxRect& rect)

This function is used by controls to explicitly show a hint window at the specified rectangle. It is rarely called, and is mostly used by controls implementing custom pane drag/drop behaviour. The specified rectangle should be in screen coordinates.

### wxAuiManager::UnInit

void UnInit()

Uninitializes the framework and should be called before a managed frame or window is destroyed. UnInit() is usually called in the managed wxFrame's destructor. It is necessary to call this function before the managed frame or window is destroyed, otherwise the manager cannot remove its custom event handlers from a window.

### wxAuiManager::Update

void Update()

This method is called after any number of changes are made to any of the managed panes. Update() must be invoked after AddPane() or InsertPane() are called in order to "realize" or "commit" the changes. In addition, any number of changes may be made to wxAuiPaneInfo structures (retrieved with wxAuiManager::GetPane), but to realize the changes, Update() must be called. This construction allows pane flicker to be avoided by updating the whole layout at one time.