Class: ClientArea

cObject
---cUIObject
------DfBaseObject
---------DfBaseWindow
------------DfBaseUIWindow
---------------DfBaseContainer
------------------DfBaseDialog
---------------------DfBasemdiclient
------------------------MdiClientArea
---------------------------AppClientArea
------------------------------ClientArea

ClientArea is used to provide an area on the screen to contain all of an application's views. The container is placed within a the program's main panel object (based on Panel class) and contains child views (View, dbView, ReportView).

Sample

Object oMain is an Panel
    :
    Object oClientArea is a ClientArea
        : Add MDI view objects
    End_Object
    :
End_Object

Syntax

Object object_name is a ClientArea
    :
    : Add view objects
    :
End_object

Of Special Notice

Three levels of programming classes are supported: basic (non-MDI, no support for tool bars or status bars), application (App... classes - MDI support, basic tool bar and tool-bar support), and high-level-application.

A proper MDI (Multiple Document Interface) application consists of an MDI Panel object (which contains and supports a menu bar, a tool bar, a status bar and a client area), an MDI client-area object which contains and supports child MDI dialogs or views. The App... classes (AppPanel, AppClientArea, AppDialog) provide the needed cooperative support to create an MDI application.

Although complete applications can be written using the App... classes, they are considered to be intermediate-level classes. A higher and more-powerful level of classes exists and it is expected that most applications will be written using these high-level classes (Panel, ClientArea, cToolBar, cStatusBar, MenuBar, View, dbView, and ReportView).

A normal program is structured as follows:

    oMain (Panel)
        MenuBar
            PopupMenus
            :
        ToolBar
        oClientArea (ClieantArea)
            :
            Views (View, dbView, ReportView)
            :
        Statusbar

Normally you will not set properties or send messages directly within a ClientArea object. Its size, location and characteristics is set by its parent panel object (Panel) either automatically or through the panel's public interface. Often messages sent from the panel will require the client-area to direct these messages to its children. A number of these messages are pre-defined. The ClientArea object can be instructed to do the following to all child view objects: minimize, restore, arrange all icons, cascade, tile, verify exit application, and notify exit application. If a custom process is required, the next_mdi_dialog message can used to retrieve the object id of all child MDI dialog objects.

This class is a subclass of AppClientArea and inherits all of its interface with no changes. It exists to provide a logical separation between the three levels of program classes.

The ClientArea class is designed to contain MDI child objects and not for other types of visible object, such as Buttons or Containers.