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EventBox

Some gtkmm widgets don't have associated X windows; they draw on their parents' windows. Because of this, they cannot receive events. Also, if they are incorrectly sized, they don't clip, so you can get messy overwriting etc. To receive events on one of these widgets, you can it inside an EventBox widget and then call Gtk::Widget::set_events() on the EventBox before showing it.

Although the name EventBox emphasises the event-handling method, the widget can also be used for clipping (and more; see the example below).

The constructor for Gtk::EventBox is: 

Gtk::EventBox();

A child widget can be added to the EventBox using: 

event_box.add(child_widget);

Reference

15.1.1. Example

The following example demonstrates both uses of an EventBox - a label is created that is clipped to a small box, and set up so that a mouse-click on the label causes the program to exit. Resizing the window reveals varying amounts of the label.

Figure 15-1 EventBox

Source Code

File: examplewindow.h (For use with gtkmm 3, not gtkmm 2) 

#ifndef GTKMM_EXAMPLEWINDOW_H
#define GTKMM_EXAMPLEWINDOW_H

#include <gtkmm.h>

class ExampleWindow : public Gtk::Window
{
public:
  ExampleWindow();
  virtual ~ExampleWindow();

protected:
  //Signal handlers:
  virtual bool on_eventbox_button_press(GdkEventButton* event);

  //Child widgets:
  Gtk::EventBox m_EventBox;
  Gtk::Label m_Label;
};

#endif //GTKMM_EXAMPLEWINDOW_H

File: examplewindow.cc (For use with gtkmm 3, not gtkmm 2) 

#include "examplewindow.h"

ExampleWindow::ExampleWindow()
: m_Label("Click here to quit, quit, quit, quit, quit")
{
  set_title ("EventBox");
  set_border_width(10);

  add(m_EventBox);

  m_EventBox.add(m_Label);

  //Clip the label short:
  m_Label.set_size_request(110, 20);

  //And bind an action to it:
  m_EventBox.set_events(Gdk::BUTTON_PRESS_MASK);
  m_EventBox.signal_button_press_event().connect(
    sigc::mem_fun(*this, &ExampleWindow::on_eventbox_button_press) );

  m_EventBox.set_tooltip_text("Click me!");

  show_all_children();
}

ExampleWindow::~ExampleWindow()
{
}

bool ExampleWindow::on_eventbox_button_press(GdkEventButton*)
{
  hide();
  return true;
}

File: main.cc (For use with gtkmm 3, not gtkmm 2) 

#include "examplewindow.h"
#include <gtkmm/main.h>

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
  Gtk::Main kit(argc, argv);

  ExampleWindow window;
  //Shows the window and returns when it is closed.
  Gtk::Main::run(window);

  return 0;
}
EventBox Dialogs

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