On-Form Object Access
- 2 minutes to read
This capability allows users to select a layout control and/or its elements directly on a form, without using the Customization Form.
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Design-Time Object Selection
Runtime Object Selection
Design-Time Object Selection
At design time, selecting a layout control or its elements on a form automatically synchronizes the Object TreeView and the Object Inspector to provide access to control and/or element settings.
Design-time object selection can be performed in the following ways:
- Layout items – click an item’s caption or selector (an item can be selected with the selector if the Customization Form is not open).
- Linked item controls – click inside a control’s rectangle or click the item selector (the item selector works in this manner only in customization mode, when the Customization Form is open).
- Layout groups – click a group’s caption or click within a group area that is free from layout elements.
- Layout control – click the control selector.
Multiple layout elements can be selected simultaneously using the above actions, along with the Shift key. For the multiple selected elements, the Object Inspector displays their shared properties and events.
A parent of a selected element can be selected in turn, by pressing the Esc key.
Runtime Object Selection
At runtime, end-users can select a layout control and/or its elements in customization mode only, in order to invoke customization context menus.
Runtime object selection can be performed in the following ways:
- Layout items – click an item’s caption or linked control. Selecting items within a group locked for customization results in selecting the group rather than the items.
- Layout groups – click a group’s caption or click within a group area that is free from layout elements. Double-clicking a group caption initiates its editing provided that a layout control’s OptionsItem.AllowRename property is set to True.
Multiple layout elements can be selected simultaneously using the actions above along with the Shift and/or Ctrl key. Clicking a selected element while holding down the Ctrl key deselects it.
As with the design-time object selection, a parent of a selected element can be selected by pressing the Esc key.
Note
In quick customization mode, end-users can rearrange layout elements using drag and drop without having to select them.