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A data-bound multi-column combobox

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27 Jul 2007BSD4 min read 341K   12.1K   151   76
An ownerdrawn multi-column combobox class with support for data-binding

Image 1

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Introduction

I had to write a multi-column combobox at work that supported generic data binding, and I thought it might prove useful for others too.

C#
MultiColumnComboBox
is a ComboBox derived class written entirely in C# and you can bind it to any data source that has multiple columns (though it doesn't matter if it only has a single column either). It also works in unbound mode though it doesn't make much sense to use it if you are not using data binding.

Class usage

Using the class is fairly straightforward. Once you have your data source you just need to set the DataSource property of the

C#
MultiColumnComboBox
class. The control does not support the
C#
ComboBoxStyle.Simple
style and in addition it will insist on
C#
DrawMode
being set to OwnerDrawVariable. Exceptions are thrown so that you won't inadvertently attempt to break either of those limitations which is pretty handy because the Visual Studio property grid will not then let you change those values.

Image 4

The class has been tested on Windows XP SP2 as well as on Windows Vista (Ultimate Edition) both from a Visual Studio design perspective as well as from a runtime perspective. Here are some examples of populating the control with various types of data sources. In this first example, we populate it using a DataTable.

C#
// Populate using a DataTable

DataTable dataTable = new DataTable("Employees");

dataTable.Columns.Add("Employee ID", typeof(String));
dataTable.Columns.Add("Name", typeof(String));
dataTable.Columns.Add("Designation", typeof(String));

dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D1", "Natalia", "Developer" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D2", "Jonathan", "Developer" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D3", "Jake", "Developer" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D4", "Abraham", "Developer" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "T1", "Mary", "Team Lead" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "PM1", "Calvin", "Project Manager" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "T2", "Sarah", "Team Lead" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D12", "Monica", "Developer" });
dataTable.Rows.Add(new String[] { "D13", "Donna", "Developer" });

multiColumnComboBox1.DataSource = dataTable;
multiColumnComboBox1.DisplayMember = "Employee ID";
multiColumnComboBox1.ValueMember = "Name";

The DisplayMember property will dictate the value that's visible in the edit box part of the combobox. And the ValueMember property will dictate which of the columns will show up in bold. If you look at the screenshots, you can clearly see this in action. In the next example, we use an array of a custom type.

C#
public class Student
{
    public Student(String name, int age)
    {
        this.name = name;
        this.age = age;
    }

    String name;

    public String Name
    {
        get { return name; }
    }

    int age;

    public int Age
    {
        get { return age; }
    }
}

// Populate using a collection

Student[] studentArray = new Student[] 
{ new Student("Andrew White", 10), new Student("Thomas Smith", 10), 
  new Student("Alice Brown", 11), new Student("Lana Jones", 10), 
  new Student("Jason Smith", 9), new Student("Amamda Williams", 11)
};

multiColumnComboBox2.DataSource = studentArray;
multiColumnComboBox2.DisplayMember = multiColumnComboBox2.ValueMember = "Name";

Notice how we've set both DisplayMember and ValueMember to the same column field - this is perfectly okay to do. By the way if you don't set the ValueMember it will use the first column by default. You must set the DisplayMember though, else you'll see some odd strings depending on how a specific type's ToString is implemented. I decided not to provide a default as it would most likely result in non-ideal columns getting displayed. I've used a drop-down list style combobox for my 3rd example and also used a List<> object - though by now it must be pretty obvious to anyone reading this that you can basically use any standard data source.

C#
// Drop-down list (non-editable)

List<Student> studentList = new List<Student>(studentArray);

The main difference in using a drop-down list will be that you'll see the multiple columns even when the combobox is not dropped down. Note that those who want to prevent this behavior can check if DrawItemEventArgs.State has the ComboBoxEdit flag (in the OnDrawItem method) and change the behavior accordingly. For our purposes this behavior was pretty good and I personally thought it to be the more intuitive way to do it. And finally, you can use it without data-binding, though I can't think of any reason why you'd want to do that.

C#
// Trying to use as a regular combobox

multiColumnComboBox4.Items.Add("Cat");
multiColumnComboBox4.Items.Add("Tiger");
multiColumnComboBox4.Items.Add("Lion");
multiColumnComboBox4.Items.Add("Cheetah");
multiColumnComboBox4.SelectedIndex = 0;

Implementation details

One of the first things I did was to hide both the DrawMode and the DropDownStyle properties to prevent users from inadvertently setting unsupported values.

C#
public new DrawMode DrawMode 
{ 
    get
    {
        return base.DrawMode;
    } 
    set
    {
        if (value != DrawMode.OwnerDrawVariable)
        {
            throw new NotSupportedException("Needs to be DrawMode.OwnerDrawVariable");
        }
        base.DrawMode = value;
    }
}

public new ComboBoxStyle DropDownStyle
{ 
    get
    {
        return base.DropDownStyle;
    } 
    set
    {
        if (value == ComboBoxStyle.Simple)
        {
            throw new NotSupportedException("ComboBoxStyle.Simple not supported");
        }
        base.DropDownStyle = value;
    } 
}

I overrode OnDataSourceChanged so that the column names could be initialized.

C#
protected override void OnDataSourceChanged(EventArgs e)
{
    base.OnDataSourceChanged(e);

    InitializeColumns();
}

private void InitializeColumns()
{
    PropertyDescriptorCollection propertyDescriptorCollection = 
        DataManager.GetItemProperties();

    columnWidths = new float[propertyDescriptorCollection.Count];
    columnNames = new String[propertyDescriptorCollection.Count];

    for (int colIndex = 0; colIndex < propertyDescriptorCollection.Count; colIndex++)
    {
        String name = propertyDescriptorCollection[colIndex].Name;
        columnNames[colIndex] = name;
    }
}

I use the DataManager property which returns the

C#
CurrencyManager
objects that managed the bound objects for the control. Initially I've also set a widths array to 0 (later the required widths will be calculated). I also override the
C#
OnValueMemberChanged
method so that I could correctly set the value member column internally which I use in the drawing code to make the value column drawn in bold text.

C#
protected override void OnValueMemberChanged(EventArgs e)
{
    base.OnValueMemberChanged(e);

    InitializeValueMemberColumn();
}

private void InitializeValueMemberColumn()
{
    int colIndex = 0;
    foreach (String columnName in columnNames)
    {
        if (String.Compare(columnName, ValueMember, true, 
            CultureInfo.CurrentUICulture) == 0)
        {
            valueMemberColumnIndex = colIndex;
            break;
        }
        colIndex++;
    }
}

OnMeasureItem will be called once for every row in the combobox and that's where I do my width calculations.

C#
protected override void OnMeasureItem(MeasureItemEventArgs e)
{
    base.OnMeasureItem(e);

    if (DesignMode)
        return;

    for (int colIndex = 0; colIndex < columnNames.Length; colIndex++)
    {
        string item = Convert.ToString(
            FilterItemOnProperty(Items[e.Index], columnNames[colIndex]));
        SizeF sizeF = e.Graphics.MeasureString(item, Font);
        columnWidths[colIndex] = Math.Max(columnWidths[colIndex], sizeF.Width);
    }

    float totWidth = CalculateTotalWidth();

    e.ItemWidth = (int)totWidth;
}

The interesting trick here is to use FilterItemOnProperty to get the text associated with a specific column. The width calculation is elementary and I calculate the total width using a CalculateTotalWidth method which merely adds all the individual column widths. I also add width for the vertical scrollbar (in case one shows up). We must also remember to override OnDropDown to set the drop down width appropriately (remember this is different from the width of the combobox itself).

C#
protected override void OnDropDown(EventArgs e)
{
    base.OnDropDown(e);
    this.DropDownWidth = (int)CalculateTotalWidth();
}

Now we come to the meat of the class -the OnDrawItem override.

C#
protected override void OnDrawItem(DrawItemEventArgs e)
{
    base.OnDrawItem(e);

    if (DesignMode)
        return;

    e.DrawBackground();

    Rectangle boundsRect = e.Bounds;
    int lastRight = 0;

    using (Pen linePen = new Pen(SystemColors.GrayText))
    {
        using (SolidBrush brush = new SolidBrush(ForeColor))
        {
            if (columnNames.Length == 0)
            {
                e.Graphics.DrawString(Convert.ToString(Items[e.Index]), 
                    Font, brush, boundsRect);
            }
            else
            {
                for (int colIndex = 0; colIndex < columnNames.Length; colIndex++)
                {
                    string item = Convert.ToString(FilterItemOnProperty(
                        Items[e.Index], columnNames[colIndex]));

                    boundsRect.X = lastRight;
                    boundsRect.Width = (int)columnWidths[colIndex] + columnPadding;
                    lastRight = boundsRect.Right;

                    if (colIndex == valueMemberColumnIndex)
                    {
                        using (Font boldFont = new Font(Font, FontStyle.Bold))
                        {
                            e.Graphics.DrawString(item, boldFont, brush, boundsRect);
                        }
                    }
                    else
                    {
                        e.Graphics.DrawString(item, Font, brush, boundsRect);
                    }

                    if (colIndex < columnNames.Length - 1)
                    {
                        e.Graphics.DrawLine(linePen, boundsRect.Right, boundsRect.Top, 
                            boundsRect.Right, boundsRect.Bottom);
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }

    e.DrawFocusRectangle();
}

Though it's the longest function in the class (and probably exceeds the Marc Clifton approved limit for maximum number of lines in a method), it's quite straightforward. For each row, it iterates through all the columns, gets the column text and draws the text along with vertical lines that will act as column separators.

Acknowledgements

  • Rama Krishna Vavilala - For some awesome suggestions on the implementation.

History

  • July 27th 2007 - Article first published.

License

This article, along with any associated source code and files, is licensed under The BSD License


Written By
United States United States
Nish Nishant is a technology enthusiast from Columbus, Ohio. He has over 20 years of software industry experience in various roles including Chief Technology Officer, Senior Solution Architect, Lead Software Architect, Principal Software Engineer, and Engineering/Architecture Team Leader. Nish is a 14-time recipient of the Microsoft Visual C++ MVP Award.

Nish authored C++/CLI in Action for Manning Publications in 2005, and co-authored Extending MFC Applications with the .NET Framework for Addison Wesley in 2003. In addition, he has over 140 published technology articles on CodeProject.com and another 250+ blog articles on his WordPress blog. Nish is experienced in technology leadership, solution architecture, software architecture, cloud development (AWS and Azure), REST services, software engineering best practices, CI/CD, mentoring, and directing all stages of software development.

Nish's Technology Blog : voidnish.wordpress.com

Comments and Discussions

 
GeneralRe: How do we add this to my VS 2005 project please? Pin
Member 197457027-Mar-09 5:34
Member 197457027-Mar-09 5:34 
QuestionCant add this Multicolum to toolbox ? Pin
softkey24-Mar-09 1:35
softkey24-Mar-09 1:35 
AnswerRe: Cant add this Multicolum to toolbox ? Pin
Nish Nishant27-Mar-09 4:47
sitebuilderNish Nishant27-Mar-09 4:47 
GeneralRe: Cant add this Multicolum to toolbox ? Pin
Asif Rehman4-Jun-11 1:44
Asif Rehman4-Jun-11 1:44 
GeneralColumn Headings Pin
kevinlkingma2-Dec-08 5:27
kevinlkingma2-Dec-08 5:27 
GeneralVertical Scroll Pin
Paul Gill20-Nov-08 4:33
Paul Gill20-Nov-08 4:33 
GeneralRe: Vertical Scroll Pin
Chris Spicer27-Aug-13 6:05
Chris Spicer27-Aug-13 6:05 
GeneralCouple of things Pin
Microdev27-Dec-07 1:15
Microdev27-Dec-07 1:15 
QuestionAutocomplete Pin
ksumm31-Oct-07 6:33
ksumm31-Oct-07 6:33 
GeneralDrop Down displays 1 character only Pin
alias4724-Oct-07 16:33
alias4724-Oct-07 16:33 
GeneralRe: Drop Down displays 1 character only [modified] Pin
alias4729-Oct-07 14:14
alias4729-Oct-07 14:14 
AnswerRe: Drop Down displays 1 character only Pin
kiennt23-Jan-08 20:15
kiennt23-Jan-08 20:15 
GeneralRightToLeft support Pin
Abo Yahya21-Oct-07 10:17
Abo Yahya21-Oct-07 10:17 
GeneralRe: RightToLeft support Pin
Nader Al Khatib8-Feb-08 18:47
Nader Al Khatib8-Feb-08 18:47 
GeneralThanks :) Pin
meryzoltan25-Sep-07 2:41
meryzoltan25-Sep-07 2:41 
QuestionWhat about PPC? Pin
Victor Peralta24-Aug-07 10:20
Victor Peralta24-Aug-07 10:20 
GeneralNice, what about not display certain properties from a class Pin
jordanhammond18-Aug-07 5:18
jordanhammond18-Aug-07 5:18 
GeneralCan't set SelectedValue to null Pin
Tavbi14-Aug-07 0:08
Tavbi14-Aug-07 0:08 
QuestionColumns Pin
lsconyer3-Aug-07 9:03
lsconyer3-Aug-07 9:03 
AnswerRe: Columns Pin
Darryl Caillouet23-Aug-07 3:44
Darryl Caillouet23-Aug-07 3:44 
AnswerRe: Columns Pin
Ralph Huffnagle2-Sep-09 4:08
Ralph Huffnagle2-Sep-09 4:08 
GeneralGreat, one little bug.. Pin
H_R_O31-Jul-07 8:04
H_R_O31-Jul-07 8:04 
GeneralThis is excellent Pin
Sacha Barber30-Jul-07 0:57
Sacha Barber30-Jul-07 0:57 
GeneralInteresting start point to further development Pin
lponiew29-Jul-07 22:03
lponiew29-Jul-07 22:03 
GeneralAwesome! Pin
Paul Conrad29-Jul-07 6:55
professionalPaul Conrad29-Jul-07 6:55 

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