:mod:`Tix` --- Extension widgets for Tk

=======================================

.. module:: Tix

   :synopsis: Tk Extension Widgets for Tkinter

.. sectionauthor:: Mike Clarkson <mikeclarkson@users.sourceforge.net>

.. index:: single: Tix

The :mod:`Tix` (Tk Interface Extension) module provides an additional rich set

of widgets. Although the standard Tk library has many useful widgets, they are

far from complete. The :mod:`Tix` library provides most of the commonly needed

widgets that are missing from standard Tk: :class:`HList`, :class:`ComboBox`,

:class:`Control` (a.k.a. SpinBox) and an assortment of scrollable widgets.

:mod:`Tix` also includes many more widgets that are generally useful in a wide

range of applications: :class:`NoteBook`, :class:`FileEntry`,

:class:`PanedWindow`, etc; there are more than 40 of them.

With all these new widgets, you can introduce new interaction techniques into

applications, creating more useful and more intuitive user interfaces. You can

design your application by choosing the most appropriate widgets to match the

special needs of your application and users.

.. note::

   :mod:`Tix` has been renamed to :mod:`tkinter.tix` in Python 3.0.  The

   :term:`2to3` tool will automatically adapt imports when converting your

   sources to 3.0.

.. seealso::

   `Tix Homepage <http://tix.sourceforge.net/>`_

      The home page for :mod:`Tix`.  This includes links to additional documentation

      and downloads.

   `Tix Man Pages <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/>`_

      On-line version of the man pages and reference material.

   `Tix Programming Guide <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/docs/tix-book/tix.book.html>`_

      On-line version of the programmer's reference material.

   `Tix Development Applications <http://tix.sourceforge.net/Tixapps/src/Tide.html>`_

      Tix applications for development of Tix and Tkinter programs. Tide applications

      work under Tk or Tkinter, and include :program:`TixInspect`, an inspector to

      remotely modify and debug Tix/Tk/Tkinter applications.

Using Tix

---------

.. class:: Tix(screenName[, baseName[, className]])

   Toplevel widget of Tix which represents mostly the main window of an

   application. It has an associated Tcl interpreter.

   Classes in the :mod:`Tix` module subclasses the classes in the :mod:`Tkinter`

   module. The former imports the latter, so to use :mod:`Tix` with Tkinter, all

   you need to do is to import one module. In general, you can just import

   :mod:`Tix`, and replace the toplevel call to :class:`Tkinter.Tk` with

   :class:`Tix.Tk`::

      import Tix

      from Tkconstants import *

      root = Tix.Tk()

To use :mod:`Tix`, you must have the :mod:`Tix` widgets installed, usually

alongside your installation of the Tk widgets. To test your installation, try

the following::

   import Tix

   root = Tix.Tk()

   root.tk.eval('package require Tix')

If this fails, you have a Tk installation problem which must be resolved before

proceeding. Use the environment variable :envvar:`TIX_LIBRARY` to point to the

installed :mod:`Tix` library directory, and make sure you have the dynamic

object library (:file:`tix8183.dll` or :file:`libtix8183.so`) in  the same

directory that contains your Tk dynamic object library (:file:`tk8183.dll` or

:file:`libtk8183.so`). The directory with the dynamic object library should also

have a file called :file:`pkgIndex.tcl` (case sensitive), which contains the

line::

   package ifneeded Tix 8.1 [list load "[file join $dir tix8183.dll]" Tix]

Tix Widgets

-----------

`Tix <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/TixIntro.htm>`_

introduces over 40 widget classes to the :mod:`Tkinter`  repertoire.  There is a

demo of all the :mod:`Tix` widgets in the :file:`Demo/tix` directory of the

standard distribution.

.. The Python sample code is still being added to Python, hence commented out

Basic Widgets

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: Balloon()

   A `Balloon

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixBalloon.htm>`_ that

   pops up over a widget to provide help.  When the user moves the cursor inside a

   widget to which a Balloon widget has been bound, a small pop-up window with a

   descriptive message will be shown on the screen.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Balloon}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Balloon.tcl}

.. class:: ButtonBox()

   The `ButtonBox

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixButtonBox.htm>`_

   widget creates a box of buttons, such as is commonly used for ``Ok Cancel``.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ButtonBox}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/BtnBox.tcl}

.. class:: ComboBox()

   The `ComboBox

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixComboBox.htm>`_

   widget is similar to the combo box control in MS Windows. The user can select a

   choice by either typing in the entry subwdget or selecting from the listbox

   subwidget.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ComboBox}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/ComboBox.tcl}

.. class:: Control()

   The `Control

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixControl.htm>`_

   widget is also known as the :class:`SpinBox` widget. The user can adjust the

   value by pressing the two arrow buttons or by entering the value directly into

   the entry. The new value will be checked against the user-defined upper and

   lower limits.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Control}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Control.tcl}

.. class:: LabelEntry()

   The `LabelEntry

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixLabelEntry.htm>`_

   widget packages an entry widget and a label into one mega widget. It can be used

   be used to simplify the creation of "entry-form" type of interface.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{LabelEntry}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/LabEntry.tcl}

.. class:: LabelFrame()

   The `LabelFrame

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixLabelFrame.htm>`_

   widget packages a frame widget and a label into one mega widget.  To create

   widgets inside a LabelFrame widget, one creates the new widgets relative to the

   :attr:`frame` subwidget and manage them inside the :attr:`frame` subwidget.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{LabelFrame}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/LabFrame.tcl}

.. class:: Meter()

   The `Meter

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixMeter.htm>`_ widget

   can be used to show the progress of a background job which may take a long time

   to execute.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Meter}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Meter.tcl}

.. class:: OptionMenu()

   The `OptionMenu

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixOptionMenu.htm>`_

   creates a menu button of options.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{OptionMenu}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/OptMenu.tcl}

.. class:: PopupMenu()

   The `PopupMenu

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixPopupMenu.htm>`_

   widget can be used as a replacement of the ``tk_popup`` command. The advantage

   of the :mod:`Tix` :class:`PopupMenu` widget is it requires less application code

   to manipulate.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{PopupMenu}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/PopMenu.tcl}

.. class:: Select()

   The `Select

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixSelect.htm>`_ widget

   is a container of button subwidgets. It can be used to provide radio-box or

   check-box style of selection options for the user.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Select}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Select.tcl}

.. class:: StdButtonBox()

   The `StdButtonBox

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixStdButtonBox.htm>`_

   widget is a group of standard buttons for Motif-like dialog boxes.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{StdButtonBox}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/StdBBox.tcl}

File Selectors

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: DirList()

   The `DirList

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixDirList.htm>`_

   widget displays a list view of a directory, its previous directories and its

   sub-directories. The user can choose one of the directories displayed in the

   list or change to another directory.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{DirList}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/DirList.tcl}

.. class:: DirTree()

   The `DirTree

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixDirTree.htm>`_

   widget displays a tree view of a directory, its previous directories and its

   sub-directories. The user can choose one of the directories displayed in the

   list or change to another directory.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{DirTree}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/DirTree.tcl}

.. class:: DirSelectDialog()

   The `DirSelectDialog

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixDirSelectDialog.htm>`_

   widget presents the directories in the file system in a dialog window.  The user

   can use this dialog window to navigate through the file system to select the

   desired directory.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{DirSelectDialog}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/DirDlg.tcl}

.. class:: DirSelectBox()

   The :class:`DirSelectBox` is similar to the standard Motif(TM)

   directory-selection box. It is generally used for the user to choose a

   directory.  DirSelectBox stores the directories mostly recently selected into

   a ComboBox widget so that they can be quickly selected again.

.. class:: ExFileSelectBox()

   The `ExFileSelectBox

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixExFileSelectBox.htm>`_

   widget is usually embedded in a tixExFileSelectDialog widget. It provides an

   convenient method for the user to select files. The style of the

   :class:`ExFileSelectBox` widget is very similar to the standard file dialog on

   MS Windows 3.1.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ExFileSelectDialog}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/EFileDlg.tcl}

.. class:: FileSelectBox()

   The `FileSelectBox

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixFileSelectBox.htm>`_

   is similar to the standard Motif(TM) file-selection box. It is generally used

   for the user to choose a file. FileSelectBox stores the files mostly recently

   selected into a :class:`ComboBox` widget so that they can be quickly selected

   again.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{FileSelectDialog}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/FileDlg.tcl}

.. class:: FileEntry()

   The `FileEntry

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixFileEntry.htm>`_

   widget can be used to input a filename. The user can type in the filename

   manually. Alternatively, the user can press the button widget that sits next to

   the entry, which will bring up a file selection dialog.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{FileEntry}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/FileEnt.tcl}

Hierarchical ListBox

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: HList()

   The `HList

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixHList.htm>`_ widget

   can be used to display any data that have a hierarchical structure, for example,

   file system directory trees. The list entries are indented and connected by

   branch lines according to their places in the hierarchy.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{HList}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/HList1.tcl}

.. class:: CheckList()

   The `CheckList

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixCheckList.htm>`_

   widget displays a list of items to be selected by the user. CheckList acts

   similarly to the Tk checkbutton or radiobutton widgets, except it is capable of

   handling many more items than checkbuttons or radiobuttons.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ CheckList}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/ChkList.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledHList (1)}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SHList.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledHList (2)}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SHList2.tcl}

.. class:: Tree()

   The `Tree

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixTree.htm>`_ widget

   can be used to display hierarchical data in a tree form. The user can adjust the

   view of the tree by opening or closing parts of the tree.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Tree}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Tree.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Tree (Dynamic)}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/DynTree.tcl}

Tabular ListBox

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: TList()

   The `TList

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixTList.htm>`_ widget

   can be used to display data in a tabular format. The list entries of a

   :class:`TList` widget are similar to the entries in the Tk listbox widget.  The

   main differences are (1) the :class:`TList` widget can display the list entries

   in a two dimensional format and (2) you can use graphical images as well as

   multiple colors and fonts for the list entries.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledTList (1)}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/STList1.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledTList (2)}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/STList2.tcl}

.. Grid has yet to be added to Python

.. \subsubsection{Grid Widget}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Simple Grid}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SGrid0.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledGrid}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SGrid1.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Editable Grid}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/EditGrid.tcl}

Manager Widgets

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: PanedWindow()

   The `PanedWindow

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixPanedWindow.htm>`_

   widget allows the user to interactively manipulate the sizes of several panes.

   The panes can be arranged either vertically or horizontally.  The user changes

   the sizes of the panes by dragging the resize handle between two panes.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{PanedWindow}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/PanedWin.tcl}

.. class:: ListNoteBook()

   The `ListNoteBook

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixListNoteBook.htm>`_

   widget is very similar to the :class:`TixNoteBook` widget: it can be used to

   display many windows in a limited space using a notebook metaphor. The notebook

   is divided into a stack of pages (windows). At one time only one of these pages

   can be shown. The user can navigate through these pages by choosing the name of

   the desired page in the :attr:`hlist` subwidget.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ListNoteBook}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/ListNBK.tcl}

.. class:: NoteBook()

   The `NoteBook

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixNoteBook.htm>`_

   widget can be used to display many windows in a limited space using a notebook

   metaphor. The notebook is divided into a stack of pages. At one time only one of

   these pages can be shown. The user can navigate through these pages by choosing

   the visual "tabs" at the top of the NoteBook widget.

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{NoteBook}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/NoteBook.tcl}

.. \subsubsection{Scrolled Widgets}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledListBox}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SListBox.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledText}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SText.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{ScrolledWindow}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/SWindow.tcl}

.. Python Demo of:

.. \ulink{Canvas Object View}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/CObjView.tcl}

Image Types

^^^^^^^^^^^

The :mod:`Tix` module adds:

* `pixmap <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/pixmap.htm>`_

  capabilities to all :mod:`Tix` and :mod:`Tkinter` widgets to create color images

  from XPM files.

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{XPM Image In Button}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Xpm.tcl}

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{XPM Image In Menu}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/Xpm1.tcl}

* `Compound

  <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/compound.htm>`_ image

  types can be used to create images that consists of multiple horizontal lines;

  each line is composed of a series of items (texts, bitmaps, images or spaces)

  arranged from left to right. For example, a compound image can be used to

  display a bitmap and a text string simultaneously in a Tk :class:`Button`

  widget.

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{Compound Image In Buttons}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/CmpImg.tcl}

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{Compound Image In NoteBook}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/CmpImg2.tcl}

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{Compound Image Notebook Color Tabs}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/CmpImg4.tcl}

  .. Python Demo of:

  .. \ulink{Compound Image Icons}{http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/demos/samples/CmpImg3.tcl}

Miscellaneous Widgets

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: InputOnly()

   The `InputOnly

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixInputOnly.htm>`_

   widgets are to accept inputs from the user, which can be done with the ``bind``

   command (Unix only).

Form Geometry Manager

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

In addition, :mod:`Tix` augments :mod:`Tkinter` by providing:

.. class:: Form()

   The `Form

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tixForm.htm>`_ geometry

   manager based on attachment rules for all Tk widgets.

Tix Commands

------------

.. class:: tixCommand()

   The `tix commands

   <http://tix.sourceforge.net/dist/current/man/html/TixCmd/tix.htm>`_ provide

   access to miscellaneous elements of :mod:`Tix`'s internal state and the

   :mod:`Tix` application context.  Most of the information manipulated by these

   methods pertains to the application as a whole, or to a screen or display,

   rather than to a particular window.

   To view the current settings, the common usage is::

      import Tix

      root = Tix.Tk()

      print root.tix_configure()

.. method:: tixCommand.tix_configure([cnf,] **kw)

   Query or modify the configuration options of the Tix application context. If no

   option is specified, returns a dictionary all of the available options.  If

   option is specified with no value, then the method returns a list describing the

   one named option (this list will be identical to the corresponding sublist of

   the value returned if no option is specified).  If one or more option-value

   pairs are specified, then the method modifies the given option(s) to have the

   given value(s); in this case the method returns an empty string. Option may be

   any of the configuration options.