Provided by: tklib_0.6-1_all 
NAME
menubar - Creates an instance of the menubar Class.
SYNOPSIS
package require Tcl 8.6
package require Tk 8.6
package require menubar ?0.5?
menubar new ?options?
mBarInst define body
mBarInst install pathName body
mBarInst menu.configure option tag-settings ?option tag-settings ...?
mBarInst menu.namespace tag namespace
mBarInst menu.hide tag
mBarInst menu.show tag
mBarInst tag.add tag value
mBarInst tag.configure pathName tag ?option value ...option value?
mBarInst tag.cget pathName tag ?option?
mBarInst group.add tag label ?cmd? ?accel? ?sequence? ?state?
mBarInst group.delete tag label
mBarInst group.move direction tag label
mBarInst group.configure tag label ?option value ...option value?
mBarInst group.serialize tag
mBarInst group.deserialize tag stream
mBarInst notebook.addTabStore pathname
mBarInst notebook.deleteTabStore pathname
mBarInst notebook.setTabValue pathname tag
mBarInst notebook.restoreTabValues pathname
_________________________________________________________________
DESCRIPTION
menubar new ?options?
Create and return a new instance of the menubar class. The menubar class encapsulates the
definition, installation and dynamic behavior of a menubar. The class doesn't depend on a
widget framework and therefore can be used with or without a framework (e.g. Bwidget,
IWidget, Snit, etc.). Unlike other Tk widget commands, the menubar command doesn't have a
pathName argument because menubars are handled by the window manager (i.e. wm) and not the
application.
OPTIONS
The following options can be passed to the menubar new command.
These options are inherited from the Tk menu command, their effect is platform specific.
-activebackground [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-
activebackground]
-activeborderwidth [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-
activeborderwidth]
-activeforeground [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-
activeforeground]
-background [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-background]
-borderwidth [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-
borderwidth]
-cursor [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-cursor]
-disabledforeground [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-
disabledforeground]
-font [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-font]
-foreground [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-foreground]
-relief [http://docs.activestate.com/activetcl/8.5/tcl/TkCmd/options.htm#M-relief]
INTRODUCTION
An instance of the menubar class provides methods for compiling a description of the
menubar, configuring menu items and installing the menubar in toplevel windows.
A menubar can be thought of as a tree of cascading menus. Users define a menubar using a
language that results in a human readable description of a menubar. The description of the
menubar is then compiled by an instance of the menubar class after which it can be
installed in one or more toplevel windows.
The menubar class provides many unique capabilities that are not found in other tcl/tk
menubar implementation. Some of these are:
• A tagging system that simplifies access to menu entries in the menu tree.
• Support for user defined tags that depend on the toplevel window context.
• A simplified and uniform interface for all callback commands.
• Namespace support for all callback commands so callback commands can be easily
grouped into namespaces.
• Support for hiding and exposing menus on the menubar.
• A simplified method for creating radiobutton groups.
• Automatic management of state variables for checkbuttons and radiobuttons.
• Scope control for the state variables of checkbuttons and radiobuttons.
• Tear-off menu management that ensures only one tearoff menu is created.
• Support for dynamic menu extension to simplify the creation of recent document
menus.
• Support for saving and restoring dynamic menu extensions.
TERMINOLOGY
MENUBAR
The visible rendering of a menubar in a toplevel window is a horizontally group of
cascading Tk menus.
MENU A menu is an ordered list of items that is rendered vertically. Menus are not
visible until a user preforms some action (normally a <ButtonPress-1> event). A
menu may contain any number of child menus that are rendered as cascading menus.
Cascading menus are rendered next to the parent menu when they are activated.
MENU ENTRY
A menu contains an ordered list of items called entries. Menu entries have a type
and the menubar class supports the following 6 entry types: Command, Checkbutton,
Radiobutton, Separator, Group and Menu.
ENTRY LABEL
Each menu entry has a visible string that is called the entry label.
TAG A tag is name that is normally used to referr to an item in a menu tree. A tag name
is an alphanumeric character string that may include the underscore character. Menu
tree tags are defined for all nodes and leafs in a menu tree. This provides a flat
abstraction of the tree and simplifies item referencing in menubar methods. Without
this abstraction it would be necessary to reference menu elements using a tree path
which could change at run-time. The menubar class also has a method that can create
a user defined tag. User defined tags store values that change based on the
currently active toplevel window. User defined tags can be used to store widget
pathnames use by callback code so that output can be routed to the appropriate
toplevel window.
METHODS
mBarInst define body
Compiles body into a tree of menu entries which define the visual layout of the
menubar. The body argument describes the layout using the following syntax, where
the elements of the syntax are described below.
body == definitions
definitions ::= { <ignore> | <definition> | <definition> <definitions> }
ignore ::= { <nl> | <white-space> <nl> | # <comment> <nl> }
definition ::= { <command> | <checkbutton> | <radiobutton> | <separator> | <group> | <menu> }
command ::= <label> C <tag> <nl>
checkbutton ::= <label> X<scope> { <tag> | <tag>+ } <nl>
radiobutton ::= <label> R<scope> { <tag> | <tag>+ } <nl>
separator ::= <stext> S <tag> <nl>
group ::= <dummy> G <tag> <nl>
menu ::= <label> { M:<tag> | M:<tag>+ } <nl> <definitions>
stext ::= '--' | <label>
scope ::= '' | '@' | '='
C - Command
The C type entry is the most common type of entry. This entry executes a
command when it is invoked.
X - Checkbutton
A X type entry behaves much like a Tk checkbutton widget. When it is invoked
it toggles back and forth between a selected and deselected states. The
value of a checkbutton is a boolean (i.e. 1 or 0). By default all
checkbuttons are deselected. If you want the checkbutton to be initially
selected then include a trailing plus (+) with the tag name. See SCOPE
CONTROL below for a description of the scope indicator.
R - Radiobutton
A R type menu entry behaves much like a Tk radiobutton widget. Each
radiobutton entry is a member of a radiobutton group that controls the
behavior of the radiobuttons in the group. All radiobuttons in a group are
given the same tag name. In the example below Red, Green and Blue all have
the same tag and are therefore all in the same radiobutton group. A trailing
plus (+) on the tag name of a radiobutton entry will cause the entry to be
the initially selected entry. See SCOPE CONTROL below for a description of
the scope indicator.
S - Separator
A S type menu entry is an entry that is displayed either as a horizontal
dividing line or a label. Separators are not active elements of a menu and
have no associated behavior if they are invoked. If <stext> is two dashes
(i.e. '--') then the separator will be displayed as a horizontal line
otherwise <stext> will be displayed as a bold label surrounded by double
dashes (e.g. "-- <stext> --") with a lightgray background.
G - Command Group
The G type menu entry marks a location in the menu tree where entries can be
dynamically added and removed. Menu extension can only occur at the end of a
menu so G type entries must be the last item on a menu. A G type entry is
rendered as a separator line. The group.<xxx> sub-commands are used to
manipulate command group entries.
M - Menu
An M type entry is used to define both menubar menus and cascading menus.
Menu entries are the most complicated of the 6 menu types. A menu entry is
composed of three list elements. The first element of the list is its label.
The second element of the list is a composite string consisting of a type
identifier (M) followed by an optional tag (beginning with a ':' separator)
and finally an optional plus (+) which indicates that the menu is a tear-off
menu. The final element of the list is a LIST VALUE.
mBarInst install pathName body
The install method installs the menubar created with the define method into
toplevel window pathName. The body argument of the command contains a tcl script
which is used to initialize the installed menubar. Normally the tcl script will
contain calls to various menubar methods to perform the initialization. The
initialization code is only run once when the menubar is installed. The namespace
in which the install method is executed becomes the default namespace for callback
commands (see menu.namespace below for more details).
METHODS - MENU.XXX
mBarInst menu.configure option tag-settings ?option tag-settings ...?
Configures the tags of a menubar and returns an empty string. This method provides
a convenient way to configure a larger number of tags without the verbosity of
using the tag.configure method.
option Option may have any of the values accepted by the tag.configure method.
tag-settings
The tag-settings argument is a string that is converted to a list of tag-
value pairs using the following syntax.
Syntax for tag-settings.
tag-settings ::= { <ignore> | <value> | <value> <tag-settings> }
ignore ::= { <nl> | <white-space> <nl> | # <comment> <nl> }
value ::= <tag> <option-value> <nl>
mBarInst menu.namespace tag namespace
Change the namespace for a sub-tree of the menubar starting at entry tag. The new
value will be namespace. Each entry in the menubar tree has an associated
namespace which will be used for its callback procedure. The default namespace is
the namespace where the install method was executed. The namespace method can be
used to change the namespace that will be used for callbacks in a sub-tree of the
menubar. This method can only be used in the context of an install script.
mBarInst menu.hide tag
Remove (hide) a menubar entry. When a menubar tree is defined all entries are
visible by default. This method can be used to hide a menubar entry. The hide
methods can be used in the context of an install script so that a menu will be
initially hidden at application start up. The tag argument is the tag name of the
menu to be hidden.
mBarInst menu.show tag
Exposes (shows) a hidden menubar entry. When a menubar tree is defined all entries
are visible by default. If a entry is hidden from the user (using the menu.hide
method) then it can be exposed again using the show method. The tag argument is the
tag name of the menu to be shown.
METHODS - TAG.XXX
mBarInst tag.add tag value
Add a user defined tag value. The tag.add method adds a new tag-value pair to the
the tags defined for a menubar. User defined tags are different from the tags
created by the define method. The tag.add method can only be used in an install
script and its value is associated with the toplevel where the menubar is
installed. This makes the tag context sensitive so callback code that queries the
tag value will receive a value that is associated with the window that performed
the callback.
mBarInst tag.configure pathName tag ?option value ...option value?
Given the pathName of a toplevel window and a tag this method configures the menu
entry associated with the tag and return an empty string.
Standard Options
These option are the same as those described for menu entries in the Tk menu
documentation.
-activebackground
-activeforeground
-background
-bitmap
-columnbreak
-compound
-font
-foreground
-hidemargin
-image
-indicatoron
-label
-selectcolor
-selectimage
-state
Class Specific Options
-bind {uline accel sequence}
The value of the -bind option is three element list where the values
are as follows.
uline An integer index of a character to underline in the entry.
This value performs the same function as the Tk menu
-underline option. If this value is an empty string then no
underlining is performed.
accel A string to display at the right side of the menu entry. The
string normally describes an accelerator keystroke sequence
that may be typed to invoke the same function as the menu
entry. This value performs the same function as the Tk menu
-accelerator option. If this value is an empty string then no
accelerator is displayed.
sequence
A bind sequence that will cause the entries associated command
to fire.
-command cmdprefix
The value of the -command option a command prefix that is evaluated
when the menu entry is invoked. By default the callback is evaluate
in the namespace where the install method was executed. Additional
values are appended to the cmdprefix and are thus passed to the
callback command as argument. These additional arguments are
described in the list below.
command entry
1) The pathname of the toplevel window that invoked the
callback.
checkbutton entry
1) The pathname of the toplevel window that invoked the
callback.
2) The checkbutton's tag name
3) The new value for the checkbutton
radiobutton entry
1) The pathname of the toplevel window that invoked the
callback.
2) The radiobutton's tag name
3) The label of the button that was selected
group entry
1) The pathname of the toplevel window that invoked the
callback.
mBarInst tag.cget pathName tag ?option?
Returns the value of the configuration option given by option or the value of a
user defined tag. The option argument may be any of the options accepted by the
tag.configure method for the tag type. User defined tags are queried without an
option value.
METHODS - GROUP.XXX
mBarInst group.add tag label ?cmd? ?accel? ?sequence? ?state?
Add a command to the group with tag name tag. This method appends a new command
entry to the end of a command group. The order of the arguments is fixed but
arguments to the right can be ignored. Arguments to this method have the following
meaning.
tag (string)
The tag name of the command group.
label (string)
The displayed label for the menu entry.
cmd (string)
A command prefix that will be used for callback command.
accel (string)
An accelerator string that will be displayed next to the entry label.
sequence (string)
A bind sequence that will be bound to the callback command.
state (enum)
Sets the active state of the command. One of: normal, disabled, active
mBarInst group.delete tag label
Delete a command from a group with tag name tag. This method deletes command label
from a command group.
mBarInst group.move direction tag label
Change the position of an entry in a group with tag name tag. The direction
argument is the direction ('up' or 'down') the entry will be moved. The entry that
is moved has the name label.
mBarInst group.configure tag label ?option value ...option value?
Configure the options of an entry in the command group with tag name tag. This
method is similar to the tag.configure method except that it works on entries in a
command group. Set documentation for the tag.configure method (above) for more
details on command entry options.
mBarInst group.serialize tag
Return a string serialization of the entries in a command group. The argument tag
is the tag name for the group that is to be serialized. The resulting
serialization is a list containing three element (1) the tag name of the group
(2) a dictionary containing group level options (3tk) a list of zero or more
similar three element lists that describe the entries in the group.
mBarInst group.deserialize tag stream
Replace the contents of group tag tag with the commands defined in the
serialization stream. The original contents of the group are lost.
METHODS - NOTEBOOK.XXX
mBarInst notebook.addTabStore pathname
This method should be used in code that creates a new notebook tab. Execution of
this method will cause state storage to be allocated for the new notebook tab. The
pathname for the notebook tab is passed as an argument to the method.
mBarInst notebook.deleteTabStore pathname
This command deallocates the state store for a notebook tab. The pathname for the
notebook tab is passed as an argument to the method.
mBarInst notebook.setTabValue pathname tag
This method should be used in the callback for menubar checkbuttons or radiobuttons
that have notebook tab scope control. When this method is executed it will move the
value associated with tag into the tab store for the tab identified by pathname.
mBarInst notebook.restoreTabValues pathname
This method should be place in a bind script that is triggered by a notebooks
<<NotebookTabChanged>> event.
SCOPE CONTROL
By default a menubar instance looks the same in all installed toplevel windows. As changes
are made to one instance of a menubar all the other instances are immediately updated.
This means the internal state of all the menu entries for the instances are synchronized.
This behavior is called global scope control of the menubar state.
The menubar class allows finer scope control on check and radio buttons. The scope of
these entry types can be modified by adding a modifier character to their type character.
Two modifier characters are supported as show in the table below.
When the local scope character (@) is added to the definition of a button, the button is
given a new variable for each installed toplevel window. This has the effect of making the
button's state local to the window (i.e. local scope). An example use case for this
behavior might be a status bar that can be toggled on an off by a checkbutton. The
developer may want to allow the user to control the visibility of the status bar on a per
window basis. In this case a local modifier would be added to the status bar selector so
the callback code would receive an appropriate value based on the current toplevel window.
The notebook tab scope character (=) is similar in effect to the local scope character but
it allows a notebook tab selection to also manage the state of of a button. Adding the
notebook tab scope modifier enables notebook tab scope control but the developer must then
make use of the notebook.xxxx sub-commands to actively manage state values as tabs are
added, deleted and selected.
EXAMPLE
package require Tcl
package require Tk
package require menubar
set tout [text .t -width 25 -height 12]
pack ${tout} -expand 1 -fill both
set mbar [menubar new \
-borderwidth 4 \
-relief groove \
-foreground black \
-background tan \
]
${mbar} define {
File M:file {
Exit C exit
}
Edit M:items+ {
# Label Type Tag Name(s)
# ----------------- ---- ---------
"Cut" C cut
"Copy" C copy
"Paste" C paste
-- S s2
"Options" M:opts {
"CheckList" M:chx+ {
Coffee X coffee+
Donut X donut
Eggs X eggs
}
"RadioButtons" M:btn+ {
"Red" R color
"Green" R color+
"Blue" R color
}
}
}
Help M:help {
About C about
}
}
${mbar} install . {
${mbar} tag.add tout ${tout}
${mbar} menu.configure -command {
# file menu
exit {Exit}
# Item menu
cut {CB Edit cut}
copy {CB Edit copy}
paste {CB Edit paste}
# boolean menu
coffee {CB CheckButton}
donut {CB CheckButton}
eggs {CB CheckButton}
# radio menu
color {CB RadioButton}
# Help menu
about {CB About}
} -bind {
exit {1 Cntl+Q Control-Key-q}
cut {2 Cntl+X Control-Key-x}
copy {0 Cntl+C Control-Key-c}
paste {0 Cntl+V Control-Key-v}
coffee {0 Cntl+A Control-Key-a}
donut {0 Cntl+B Control-Key-b}
eggs {0 Cntl+C Control-Key-c}
about 0
} -background {
exit red
} -foreground {
exit white
}
}
proc pout { txt } {
global mbar
set tout [${mbar} tag.cget . tout]
${tout} insert end "${txt}\n"
}
proc Exit { args } {
puts "Goodbye"
exit
}
proc CB { args } {
set alist [lassign ${args} cmd]
pout "${cmd}: [join ${alist} {, }]"
}
wm minsize . 300 300
wm geometry . +4+4
wm protocol . WM_DELETE_WINDOW exit
wm title . "Example"
wm focusmodel . active
pout "Example started ..."
CAVEATS
This implementation uses TclOO so it requires 8.6. The code has been tested on Windows
(Vista), Linux and OSX (10.4).
SEE ALSO
A command that creates menubar objects [http://wiki.tcl.tk/25231], menu
[http://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl8.6/TkCmd/menu.htm]
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (c) 2009 Tom Krehbiel <krehbiel.tom@gmail.com> All rights reserved.