How to Reference objects from another XAML file to objects in other resource dictionaries?

Question

Hi all,
I would like to structure my XAML code into different files related to different Views. So I coded the following:

 <Window.Resources>
 <ResourceDictionary>

 <!-- Create instance(s) of the ViewModel(s) and 
 related objects.
 -->  
 <m:ViewModelBase x:Key="ViewModelBase"/>
 <m:GatherFileSet x:Key="GatherFileSet"/>
 <m:LoadFileSet x:Key="LoadFileSet"/>
 <m:ExecuteTheJob x:Key="ExecuteTheJob"/>
 <m:SaveFileSet x:Key="SaveFileSet"/>
 <m:ChangeSettings x:Key="ChangeSettings"/>

 <m:StringBuilderConverter x:Key="StringToBuilder"/>
 <m:EnumHasFlagConverter x:Key="HasFlag"/>
 <m:EnumEqualityConverter x:Key="EnumEqualTrue"/>
 <m:EnumEqualityConverter x:Key="EnumEqualFalse" Negation="True" />

 <ResourceDictionary.MergedDictionaries>
 <ResourceDictionary 
 <ResourceDictionary Source="pack://application:,,,/10 Classes/10 Views/10 Styles/GeneralStyles.xaml" />
 <ResourceDictionary Source="pack://application:,,,/10 Classes/10 Views/ExecuteTheJobStyles.xaml" />
 </ResourceDictionary.MergedDictionaries>

 </ResourceDictionary>
 </Window.Resources>

Unfortunately all references with StaticResource or DynamicResource coded in the RD "ExecuteTheJobStyles.xaml" against objects outside of the file don't work against the Window.Resources nor against the GeneralStyles.xaml-file. References from Window.Resources to objects within the "external" xaml-files do work.

Works as designed or is my code wrong?

TIA.
JD

Answer 1

I made a sample to use UserControl.Xaml, ResourceDictionary.xaml and Converter.cs from my WPF project which named MVVMDemo in UseXamlFromOthers.
The project directory of MVVMDemois as below:

Right click UseXamlFromOthers's references and add MVVMDemo , then add below code in UseXamlFromOthers's App.xaml

  <ResourceDictionary>  
            <ResourceDictionary.MergedDictionaries>  
                <ResourceDictionary Source="pack://application:,,,/MVVMDemo;component/Styles/MyMVVMStyles.xaml"/>  
            </ResourceDictionary.MergedDictionaries>  
        </ResourceDictionary>  

Add xmlns:mvvm="clr-namespace:MVVMDemo;assembly=MVVMDemo" and xmlns:sys="clr-namespace:System;assembly=mscorlib" in UseXamlFromOthers's Xaml, then use code from MVVMDemo in UseXamlFromOthers like below:

<Window.Resources>  
            <mvvm:PersonViewModel x:Key="VM"></mvvm:PersonViewModel>  
            <mvvm:Converter x:Key="conv"></mvvm:Converter>  
        </Window.Resources>  
      
        <StackPanel>  
            <StackPanel Background="Azure">  
                <Label Content="Use UserControl from MVVMDemo" />  
                <mvvm:UserControl1 Width="300" Height="200" DataContext="{StaticResource VM}"></mvvm:UserControl1>  
            </StackPanel>  
      
            <StackPanel Background="LightGreen">  
                <Label Content="Use DictionaryStyle from MVVMDemo" />  
                <Button Name="btn" Content="Use Dictionary MVVMDemo " Style="{StaticResource StyleA}" Width="200" Height="30"></Button>  
            </StackPanel>  
      
            <StackPanel Background="LightPink">  
                <Label Content="Use Converter from MVVMDemo" />  
                <TextBox Margin="4"  Text="{Binding Source={x:Static sys:DateTime.Now}, Converter={StaticResource conv},Mode=OneWay}" Width="200"/>  
            </StackPanel>  
      
        </StackPanel>  

Result picture is:

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