parse-layout-descriptor

parse-layout-descriptor Generic Function

Summary

Returns the object that layout uses for displaying a child.

Package

capi

Signature

parse-layout-descriptor child-descriptor interface layout => result

Arguments

`child-descriptor`⇩	An element, a symbol, a geometry object or a string.
`interface`⇩	An interface.
`layout`⇩	A layout.

Values

result

An element or a geometry object.

Description

The generic function parse-layout-descriptor takes a description of a layout's child, and returns the object that the layout is actually going to use. The returned object is an element (simple-pane or pinboard-object) or a geometry object (the result of call to the default method of parse-layout-descriptor).

layout is the layout for which child-descriptor is being parsed. interface is the interface of layout.

parse-layout-descriptor is called by interpret-description to parse individual children in a layout.

The default method accepts a child-descriptor argument which can be one of:

An element.
A symbol naming a slot in the interface which contains an element.
A geometry object.
A string (used to construct a title-pane or item-pinboard-object with the string as its text).

Note that when parse-layout-descriptor is passed an element, it does not necessarily return that element. For example, it may wrap it with some layout that adds functionality. It may also return a completely separate element.

You can define your own methods, which may specialize on the interface, the layout if you define your own layout class(es), or the description by using a description of your own defined type.

The element that parse-layout-descriptor returns, whether explicitly or indirectly, must not be returned more than once for any layouts that are displayed at the same time.