Converting To The ExpressVerticalGrid

• Dec 28, 2020
• 2 minutes to read

If you upgrade to the new ExpressVerticalGrid controls you may need to exchange data between old and new versions of the controls. The ExpressVerticalGrid package provides tools that allow users to convert data from the legacy controls at design time.

These converters are available for the following ExpressVerticalGrid controls:

• cxVerticalGrid;

• cxDBVerticalGrid;

• cxRTTIInspector.

Converters apply to the dxInspector, dxDBInspector, dxRTTIInspector that serve as sources.

The following table maps the source and target controls:

Source	Target
dxInspector	cxVerticalGrid
dxDBInspector	cxDBVerticalGrid
dxRTTIInspector	cxRTTIInspector

Consider a conversion example for the dxDBInspector and cxDBVerticalGrid controls.

To make a conversion right-click the target control and then select Import… item from the pop-up menu:

The Import dialog window now appears:

When you invoke the converter for the desired control it automatically recognizes the source control type and provides a list of available source controls in the Import dialog for importing into the target control. Select the source control to be imported and then click on the Import button. The import operation is now finished:

Conversion procedures for the other controls mentioned above are similar. However conversion is not valid for the controls descendants for both versions. You should implement custom converters for the new types.

Note the following:

• If the row’s TdxInspectorRow.IsCategory property is set to True this row will be converted to the TcxCategoryRow type. If the row type is TdxInspectorComplexRow the row will be converted to the TcxMultiEditorRow type. The other row types will be converted to the TcxEditorRow type.

• The row’s tree structure which was created in the target control mirrors the tree structure in the source control.

• All the data binding settings in the target control are the same as they were in the source control.

• No source controls events are handed off to the target controls.

• Due to different settings for the PaintStyle property in the controls the following conversion rule is applied:

Source	Target
ipsCategorized	psdotNet
ipsNet	psdotNet
ipsExtended	psDelphi
ipsSimple	psDelphi
ipsStandard	psDelphi

• If the source control TdxInspector.Flat property value is True the target control LookAndFeel.Kind property’s value will be lfFlat. Otherwise the LookAndFeel.Kind property’s value is lfStandard.

• If the ioAutoBandCount flag on the TdxInspector.Options property is active the TcxVerticalGrid.LayoutStyle property’s value is ulsBandsView. Otherwise the TcxVerticalGrid.LayoutStyle property’s value is ulsSingleRecordView.