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+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
+<title>Layout Classes</title>
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+ <a href="index.html">
+<font color="#004faf">Home</font></a>
+ | <a href="classes.html">
+<font color="#004faf">All&nbsp;Classes</font></a>
+ | <a href="mainclasses.html">
+<font color="#004faf">Main&nbsp;Classes</font></a>
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+<font color="#004faf">Annotated</font></a>
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+<font color="#004faf">Grouped&nbsp;Classes</font></a>
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+<font color="#004faf">Functions</font></a>
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+<td align="right" valign="center"><img src="logo32.png" align="right" width="64" height="32" border="0"></td></tr></table><h1 align=center>Layout Classes</h1>
+
+
+
+<p> The TQt layout system provides a simple and powerful way of specifying
+the layout of child widgets.
+<p> By specifying the logical layout once, you get the following benefits:
+<ul>
+<li> Positioning of child widgets.
+<li> Sensible default sizes for top-level widgets.
+<li> Sensible minimum sizes for top-level widgets.
+<li> Resize handling.
+<li> Automatic update when contents change:
+<ul>
+<li> Font size, text or other contents of subwidgets.
+<li> Hiding or showing a subwidget.
+<li> Removal of subwidget.
+</ul>
+</ul>
+<p> TQt's layout classes were designed for hand-written C++ code, so
+they're easy to understand and use.
+<p> The disadvantage of hand-written layout code is that it isn't very
+convenient when you're experimenting with the design of a form and you
+have to go through the compile, link and run cycle for each change.
+Our solution is <a href="designer-manual.html">TQt Designer</a>, a GUI
+visual design tool which makes it fast and easy to experiment with
+layouts and which generates the C++ layout code for you.
+<p> <h2> Layout Widgets
+</h2>
+<a name="1"></a><p> The easiest way to give your widgets a good layout is to use the
+layout widgets: <a href="qhbox.html">TQHBox</a>, <a href="qvbox.html">TQVBox</a> and <a href="qgrid.html">TQGrid</a>. A layout widget
+automatically lays out its child widgets in the order they are
+constructed. To create more complex layouts, you can nest layout
+widgets inside each other. (Note that <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a> does not have a
+layout by default, you must add one if you want to lay out widgets
+inside a <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a>.)
+<p> <ul>
+<li> A <a href="qhbox.html">TQHBox</a> lays out its child widgets in a horizontal row, left to right.
+<p> <center><img src="qhbox-m.png" alt="Horizontal box with five child widgets"></center>
+<p> <li> A <a href="qvbox.html">TQVBox</a> lays out its child widgets in a vertical column, top to bottom.
+<p> <center><img src="qvbox-m.png" alt="Vertical box with five child widgets"></center>
+<p> <li> A <a href="qgrid.html">TQGrid</a> lays out its child widgets in a two dimensional grid.
+You can specify how many columns the grid has, and it is populated left to
+right, beginning a new row when the previous row is full. The grid is
+fixed; the child widgets will not flow to other rows as the widget is
+resized.
+</ul>
+<p> <center><img src="qgrid-m.png" alt="Two-column grid with five child widgets"></center>
+<p> The grid shown above can be produced by the following code:
+<pre>
+ <a href="qgrid.html">TQGrid</a> *mainGrid = new <a href="qgrid.html">TQGrid</a>( 2 ); // a 2 x n grid
+ new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "One", mainGrid );
+ new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Two", mainGrid );
+ new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Three", mainGrid );
+ new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Four", mainGrid );
+ new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Five", mainGrid );
+</pre>
+
+<p> You can adjust the layout to some extent by calling
+<a href="qwidget.html#setMinimumSize">TQWidget::setMinimumSize</a>() or <a href="qwidget.html#setFixedSize">TQWidget::setFixedSize</a>() on the child widgets.
+<p> <h2> Adding Widgets to a Layout
+</h2>
+<a name="2"></a><p> When you add widgets to a layout the layout process works as follows:
+<ol type=1>
+<li> All the widgets will initially be allocated an amount of space in
+accordance with their <a href="qwidget.html#sizePolicy">TQWidget::sizePolicy</a>().
+<li> If any of the widgets have stretch factors set, with a value
+greater than zero, then they are allocated space in proportion to
+their <a href="#stretch">stretch factor</a>.
+<li> If any of the widgets have stretch factors set to zero they will
+only get more space if no other widgets want the space. Of these,
+space is allocated to widgets with an <tt>Expanding</tt> size policy first.
+<li> Any widgets that are allocated less space than their minimum size
+(or minimum size hint if no minimum size is specified) are allocated
+this minimum size they retquire. (Widgets don't have to have a minimum
+size or minimum size hint in which case the strech factor is their
+determining factor.)
+<li> Any widgets that are allocated more space than their maximum size
+are allocated the maximum size space they retquire. (Widgets don't have
+to have a maximum size in which case the strech factor is their
+determining factor.)
+</ol>
+<p> <a name="stretch"></a>
+<h3> Stretch Factors
+<!-- index stretch factor --><a name="stretch-factor"></a>
+</h3>
+<a name="2-1"></a><p> Widgets are normally created without any stretch factor set. When they
+are laid out in a layout the widgets are given a share of space in
+accordance with their <a href="qwidget.html#sizePolicy">TQWidget::sizePolicy</a>() or their minimum size hint
+whichever is the greater. Stretch factors are used to change how much
+space widgets are given in proportion to one another.
+<p> If we have three widgets laid out using a <a href="qhbox.html">TQHBox</a> with no stretch
+factors set we will get a layout like this:
+<p> <center><img src="layout1.png" alt="3 widgets in a row"></center>
+<p> If we apply stretch factors to each widget, they will be laid out in
+proportion (but never less than their minimum size hint), e.g.
+<p> <center><img src="layout2.png" alt="3 stretch factored widgets in a row"></center>
+<p> <h2> <a href="qlayout.html">TQLayout</a> subclassing
+</h2>
+<a name="3"></a><p> If you need more control over the layout, use a <a href="qlayout.html">TQLayout</a> subclass. The layout classes included in TQt are <a href="qgridlayout.html">TQGridLayout</a> and <a href="qboxlayout.html">TQBoxLayout</a>. (<a href="qhboxlayout.html">TQHBoxLayout</a> and <a href="qvboxlayout.html">TQVBoxLayout</a> are trivial subclasses of <a href="qboxlayout.html">TQBoxLayout</a>,
+that are simpler to use and make the code easier to read.)
+<p> When you use a layout, you must insert each child both into its parent
+widget (done in the constructor) and into its layout (typically done
+with a function called addWidget()). This way, you can give layout
+parameters for each widget, specifying properties like alignment,
+stretch, and placement.
+<p> The following code makes a grid like the one above, with a couple of
+improvements:
+<pre>
+ <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a> *main = new <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a>;
+
+ // make a 1x1 grid; it will auto-expand
+ <a href="qgridlayout.html">TQGridLayout</a> *grid = new <a href="qgridlayout.html">TQGridLayout</a>( main, 1, 1 );
+
+ // add the first four widgets with (row, column) addressing
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "One", main ), 0, 0 );
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Two", main ), 0, 1 );
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Three", main ), 1, 0 );
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Four", main ), 1, 1 );
+
+ // add the last widget on row 2, spanning from column 0 to
+ // column 1, and center aligned
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#addMultiCellWidget">addMultiCellWidget</a>( new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Five", main ), 2, 2, 0, 1,
+ TQt::AlignCenter );
+
+ // let the ratio between the widths of columns 0 and 1 be 2:3
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#setColStretch">setColStretch</a>( 0, 2 );
+ grid-&gt;<a href="qgridlayout.html#setColStretch">setColStretch</a>( 1, 3 );
+</pre>
+
+<p> You can insert layouts inside a layout by giving the parent layout as
+a parameter in the constructor.
+<pre>
+ <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a> *main = new <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a>;
+ <a href="qlineedit.html">TQLineEdit</a> *field = new <a href="qlineedit.html">TQLineEdit</a>( main );
+ <a href="qpushbutton.html">TQPushButton</a> *ok = new <a href="qpushbutton.html">TQPushButton</a>( "OK", main );
+ <a href="qpushbutton.html">TQPushButton</a> *cancel = new <a href="qpushbutton.html">TQPushButton</a>( "Cancel", main );
+ <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a> *label = new <a href="qlabel.html">TQLabel</a>( "Write once, compile everywhere.", main );
+
+ // a layout on a widget
+ <a href="qvboxlayout.html">TQVBoxLayout</a> *vbox = new <a href="qvboxlayout.html">TQVBoxLayout</a>( main );
+ vbox-&gt;<a href="qboxlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( label );
+ vbox-&gt;<a href="qboxlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( field );
+
+ // a layout inside a layout
+ <a href="qhboxlayout.html">TQHBoxLayout</a> *buttons = new <a href="qhboxlayout.html">TQHBoxLayout</a>( vbox );
+ buttons-&gt;<a href="qboxlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( ok );
+ buttons-&gt;<a href="qboxlayout.html#addWidget">addWidget</a>( cancel );
+</pre>
+
+If you are not satisfied with the default placement, you can create
+the layout without a parent and then insert it with addLayout().
+The inner layout then becomes a child of the layout it is inserted
+into.
+<p> <h2> Custom Layouts
+</h2>
+<a name="4"></a><p> If the built-in layout classes are not sufficient, you can define your
+own. You must make a subclass of <a href="qlayout.html">TQLayout</a> that handles resizing and
+size calculations, as well as a subclass of <a href="qglayoutiterator.html">TQGLayoutIterator</a> to
+iterate over your layout class.
+<p> See the <a href="customlayout.html">Custom Layout</a> page for an
+in-depth description.
+<p> <h2> Custom Widgets In Layouts
+</h2>
+<a name="5"></a><p> When you make your own widget class, you should also communicate its
+layout properties. If the widget has a <a href="qlayout.html">TQLayout</a>, this is already taken
+care of. If the widget does not have any child widgets, or uses manual
+layout, you should reimplement the following <a href="qwidget.html">TQWidget</a> member functions:
+<p> <ul>
+<li> <a href="qwidget.html#sizeHint">TQWidget::sizeHint</a>() returns the preferred size of the widget.
+<li> <a href="qwidget.html#minimumSizeHint">TQWidget::minimumSizeHint</a>() returns the smallest size the widget can have.
+<li> <a href="qwidget.html#sizePolicy">TQWidget::sizePolicy</a>() returns a <a href="qsizepolicy.html">TQSizePolicy</a>; a value describing
+the space retquirements of the widget.
+</ul>
+<p> Call <a href="qwidget.html#updateGeometry">TQWidget::updateGeometry</a>() whenever the size hint, minimum size
+hint or size policy changes. This will cause a layout recalculation.
+Multiple calls to updateGeometry() will only cause one recalculation.
+<p> If the preferred height of your widget depends on its actual width
+(e.g. a label with automatic word-breaking), set the <a href="qsizepolicy.html#hasHeightForWidth">hasHeightForWidth</a>() flag in
+<a href="qwidget.html#sizePolicy">sizePolicy</a>(), and reimplement <a href="qwidget.html#heightForWidth">TQWidget::heightForWidth</a>().
+<p> Even if you implement heightForWidth(), it is still necessary to
+provide a good sizeHint(). The sizeHint() provides the preferred width
+of the widget, and it is used by <a href="qlayout.html">TQLayout</a> subclasses that do not
+support heightForWidth() (both <a href="qgridlayout.html">TQGridLayout</a> and <a href="qboxlayout.html">TQBoxLayout</a> support it).
+<p> For further guidance when implementing these functions, see their
+implementations in existing TQt classes that have similar layout
+retquirements to your new widget.
+<p> <h2> Manual Layout
+</h2>
+<a name="6"></a><p> If you are making a one-of-a-kind special layout, you can also make a
+custom widget as described above. Reimplement <a href="qwidget.html#resizeEvent">TQWidget::resizeEvent</a>()
+to calculate the retquired distribution of sizes and call <a href="qwidget.html#setGeometry">setGeometry</a>() on each child.
+<p> The widget will get an event with <a href="qevent.html#type">type</a>
+<tt>LayoutHint</tt> when the layout needs to be recalculated. Reimplement
+<a href="qwidget.html#event">TQWidget::event</a>() to be notified of <tt>LayoutHint</tt> events.
+<p> <h2> Layout Issues
+</h2>
+<a name="7"></a><p> The use of rich text in a label widget can introduce some problems to
+the layout of its parent widget. Problems occur due to the way rich text
+is handled by TQt's layout managers when the label is word wrapped.
+In certain cases the parent layout is put into TQLayout::FreeResize mode,
+meaning that it will not adapt the layout of its contents to fit inside
+small sized windows, or even prevent the user from making the
+window too small to be usable. This can be overcome by subclassing
+the problematic widgets, and implementing suitable sizeHint() and
+minimumSizeHint() functions.
+<p>
+<!-- eof -->
+<p><address><hr><div align=center>
+<table width=100% cellspacing=0 border=0><tr>
+<td>Copyright &copy; 2007
+<a href="troll.html">Trolltech</a><td align=center><a href="trademarks.html">Trademarks</a>
+<td align=right><div align=right>TQt 3.3.8</div>
+</table></div></address></body>
+</html>