I always use Expression Interactive Designer when I want to see the full default style of a control, but here I have found a equally easy way: just dump it into XML.

Style style = FindResources(typeof(Button)) as Style; //Get button's default Style
if (style != null)
{
XmlWriterSettings settings = new XmlWriterSettings();
settings.Indent = true;
settings.IndentChars = new string(' ', 4);
StringBuilder strbuild = new StringBuilder();
XmlWriter xmlwrite = XmlWriter.Create(strbuild, settings);
XamlWriter.Save(style, xmlwrite);//Use XamlWriter to dump the style
return strbuild.ToString();
}

It uses the findresources method to find a style and then just writes it out. Might come in handy!

My previous post was about not being able to bind to a named element outside of your scope. With the help of some great people, we figured out a workaround: you can bind to an ancestor. So, this does work:

<StackPanel DataContext="{Binding ElementName=lb, Path=SelectedItem}">
<ListBox Name="lb" ItemsSource="{Binding Source={StaticResource InventoryData}, XPath='Book'}" IsSynchronizedWithCurrentItem="True" />
<local:CustomItemsControl ItemsSource="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType={x:Type StackPanel}}, Path=DataContext}" />
</StackPanel>

This has a listbox that binds to a datasource (xml this time) and a stackpanel above it binds it's datacontext to the selecteditem of the listbox.
Obviously this has all kinds of nasty smells surrounding it.... Next please!

We might not be able to bind to a named element outside of scope, but if we can bind to an ancestor, chances are good that we can bind to a staticResource as well. So let's introduce a CollectionView around our XML datasource. In the Window.Resources:
<CollectionViewSource x:Key="InventoryView" Source="{Binding Source={StaticResource InventoryData}, XPath='Book'}" />

And then we can bind to the currentitem of this view, instead of the ugly datacontext of the parent stackpanel:

<StackPanel >
<ListBox Name="lb" ItemsSource="{Binding Source={StaticResource InventoryView}}" IsSynchronizedWithCurrentItem="True" />
<local:CustomItemsControl ItemsSource="{Binding Source={StaticResource InventoryView}, Path=CurrentItem}" />
</StackPanel>

This is a good enough workaround for now.

I've been working hard on seemingly simple functionality. I have a usercontrol (derived from ItemsControl) which has a panel (the itemshost) and a few other things like so:

<ItemsControl x:Class="VisualizerUsercontrol.myVisualizer"
              x:Name="parentControl"
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
    xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml">
  <ItemsControl.Style>
    <Style TargetType="{x:Type ItemsControl}">
      <Setter Property="Template">
        <Setter.Value>
          <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type ItemsControl}">
            <StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal">
              <Button>press me</Button>
              <ScrollViewer VerticalScrollBarVisibility="Auto">
                <StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal"
                            IsItemsHost="True" />
              </ScrollViewer>
            </StackPanel>
          </ControlTemplate>
        </Setter.Value>
      </Setter>
    </Style>
  </ItemsControl.Style>
</ItemsControl>

When instantiating the control on a window, I bind it's ItemsSource to some other control, like a listbox's selectedItem. This of course, for a master-detail view. The bug is that this ItemsControl is unable to resolve it's ItemsSource, because the Element for which it is looking, is in another scope.

That actually is kind of unpleasant, and I hope to find a workaround for it. I appear not to be alone in this finding, and the consequences of it really limit the use of a usercontrol severely.

I've completely rewritten the RssBandit to Grazr converter, so that alphabetic order is used. That looks way nicer, doesn't it?

Program.cs (4.49 KB)