ListBox.ObjectCollection Class

Definition

Namespace:

System.Windows.Forms

Assembly:

System.Windows.Forms.dll

Represents the collection of items in a ListBox.

public: ref class ListBox::ObjectCollection : System::Collections::IList

[System.ComponentModel.ListBindable(false)]
public class ListBox.ObjectCollection : System.Collections.IList

[<System.ComponentModel.ListBindable(false)>]
type ListBox.ObjectCollection = class
    interface IList
    interface ICollection
    interface IEnumerable

Public Class ListBox.ObjectCollection
Implements IList

Inheritance

Object

ListBox.ObjectCollection

Derived

System.Windows.Forms.CheckedListBox.ObjectCollection

Attributes

ListBindableAttribute

Implements

ICollection IEnumerable IList

Examples

The following code example demonstrates an owner-drawn ListBox by setting the DrawMode property to the OwnerDrawVariable value and handling the DrawItem and MeasureItem events. It also demonstrates setting the BorderStyle and ScrollAlwaysVisible properties and using the AddRange method.

To run this example, paste it into an empty form that imports the System.Drawing namespace and the System.Windows.Forms namespace. Call InitializeOwnerDrawnListBox from the form's constructor or Load method.

internal:
   System::Windows::Forms::ListBox^ ListBox1;

private:
   void InitializeOwnerDrawnListBox()
   {
      this->ListBox1 = gcnew System::Windows::Forms::ListBox;
      
      // Set the location and size.
      ListBox1->Location = Point(20,20);
      ListBox1->Size = System::Drawing::Size( 240, 240 );
      
      // Populate the ListBox.ObjectCollection property 
      // with several strings, using the AddRange method.
      array<Object^>^temp0 = {"System.Windows.Forms","System.Drawing","System.Xml","System.Net","System.Runtime.Remoting","System.Web"};
      this->ListBox1->Items->AddRange( temp0 );
      
      // Turn off the scrollbar.
      ListBox1->ScrollAlwaysVisible = false;
      
      // Set the border style to a single, flat border.
      ListBox1->BorderStyle = BorderStyle::FixedSingle;
      
      // Set the DrawMode property to the OwnerDrawVariable value. 
      // This means the MeasureItem and DrawItem events must be 
      // handled.
      ListBox1->DrawMode = DrawMode::OwnerDrawVariable;
      ListBox1->MeasureItem += gcnew MeasureItemEventHandler( this, &Form1::ListBox1_MeasureItem );
      ListBox1->DrawItem += gcnew DrawItemEventHandler( this, &Form1::ListBox1_DrawItem );
      this->Controls->Add( this->ListBox1 );
   }

   // Handle the DrawItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
   void ListBox1_DrawItem( Object^ /*sender*/, DrawItemEventArgs^ e )
   {
      // If the item is the selected item, then draw the rectangle
      // filled in blue. The item is selected when a bitwise And  
      // of the State property and the DrawItemState.Selected 
      // property is true.
      if ( (e->State & DrawItemState::Selected) == DrawItemState::Selected )
      {
         e->Graphics->FillRectangle( Brushes::CornflowerBlue, e->Bounds );
      }
      else
      {
         
         // Otherwise, draw the rectangle filled in beige.
         e->Graphics->FillRectangle( Brushes::Beige, e->Bounds );
      }
      
      // Draw a rectangle in blue around each item.
      e->Graphics->DrawRectangle( Pens::Blue, e->Bounds );
      
      // Draw the text in the item.
      e->Graphics->DrawString( ListBox1->Items[ e->Index ]->ToString(), this->Font, Brushes::Black, (float)e->Bounds.X, (float)e->Bounds.Y );
      
      // Draw the focus rectangle around the selected item.
      e->DrawFocusRectangle();
   }


   // Handle the MeasureItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
   void ListBox1_MeasureItem( Object^ sender, MeasureItemEventArgs^ e )
   {
      
      // Cast the sender object back to ListBox type.
      ListBox^ theListBox = dynamic_cast<ListBox^>(sender);
      
      // Get the string contained in each item.
      String^ itemString = dynamic_cast<String^>(theListBox->Items[ e->Index ]);
      
      // Split the string at the " . "  character.
      array<Char>^temp1 = {'.'};
      array<String^>^resultStrings = itemString->Split( temp1 );
      
      // If the string contains more than one period, increase the 
      // height by ten pixels; otherwise, increase the height by 
      // five pixels.
      if ( resultStrings->Length > 2 )
      {
         e->ItemHeight += 10;
      }
      else
      {
         e->ItemHeight += 5;
      }
   }

internal System.Windows.Forms.ListBox ListBox1;

private void InitializeOwnerDrawnListBox()
{
    this.ListBox1 = new System.Windows.Forms.ListBox();

    // Set the location and size.
    ListBox1.Location = new Point(20, 20);
    ListBox1.Size = new Size(240, 240);

    // Populate the ListBox.ObjectCollection property 
    // with several strings, using the AddRange method.
    this.ListBox1.Items.AddRange(new object[]{"System.Windows.Forms", 
        "System.Drawing", "System.Xml", "System.Net", "System.Runtime.Remoting", 
        "System.Web"});

    // Turn off the scrollbar.
    ListBox1.ScrollAlwaysVisible = false;

    // Set the border style to a single, flat border.
    ListBox1.BorderStyle = BorderStyle.FixedSingle;

    // Set the DrawMode property to the OwnerDrawVariable value. 
    // This means the MeasureItem and DrawItem events must be 
    // handled.
    ListBox1.DrawMode = DrawMode.OwnerDrawVariable;
    ListBox1.MeasureItem += 
        new MeasureItemEventHandler(ListBox1_MeasureItem);
    ListBox1.DrawItem += new DrawItemEventHandler(ListBox1_DrawItem);
    this.Controls.Add(this.ListBox1);
}

// Handle the DrawItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
private void ListBox1_DrawItem(object sender, DrawItemEventArgs e)
{

    // If the item is the selected item, then draw the rectangle
    // filled in blue. The item is selected when a bitwise And  
    // of the State property and the DrawItemState.Selected 
    // property is true.
    if ((e.State & DrawItemState.Selected) == DrawItemState.Selected)
    {
        e.Graphics.FillRectangle(Brushes.CornflowerBlue, e.Bounds);
    }
    else
    {
        // Otherwise, draw the rectangle filled in beige.
        e.Graphics.FillRectangle(Brushes.Beige, e.Bounds);
    }

    // Draw a rectangle in blue around each item.
    e.Graphics.DrawRectangle(Pens.Blue, e.Bounds);

    // Draw the text in the item.
    e.Graphics.DrawString(ListBox1.Items[e.Index].ToString(),
        this.Font, Brushes.Black, e.Bounds.X, e.Bounds.Y);

    // Draw the focus rectangle around the selected item.
    e.DrawFocusRectangle();
}

// Handle the MeasureItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
private void ListBox1_MeasureItem(object sender, 
    MeasureItemEventArgs e)
{

    // Cast the sender object back to ListBox type.
    ListBox theListBox = (ListBox) sender;

    // Get the string contained in each item.
    string itemString = (string) theListBox.Items[e.Index];

    // Split the string at the " . "  character.
    string[] resultStrings = itemString.Split('.');

    // If the string contains more than one period, increase the 
    // height by ten pixels; otherwise, increase the height by 
    // five pixels.
    if (resultStrings.Length>2)
    {
        e.ItemHeight += 10;
    }
    else
    {
        e.ItemHeight += 5;
    }
}

Friend WithEvents ListBox1 As System.Windows.Forms.ListBox

Private Sub InitializeOwnerDrawnListBox()
    Me.ListBox1 = New System.Windows.Forms.ListBox

    ' Set the location and size.
    ListBox1.Location = New Point(20, 20)
    ListBox1.Size = New Size(240, 240)

    ' Populate the ListBox.ObjectCollection property 
    ' with several strings, using the AddRange method.
    Me.ListBox1.Items.AddRange(New Object() _
        {"System.Windows.Forms", "System.Drawing", "System.Xml", _
        "System.Net", "System.Runtime.Remoting", "System.Web"})

    ' Turn off the scrollbar.
    ListBox1.ScrollAlwaysVisible = False

    ' Set the border style to a single, flat border.
    ListBox1.BorderStyle = BorderStyle.FixedSingle

    ' Set the DrawMode property to the OwnerDrawVariable value. 
    ' This means the MeasureItem and DrawItem events must be 
    ' handled.
    ListBox1.DrawMode = DrawMode.OwnerDrawVariable
    Me.Controls.Add(Me.ListBox1)
End Sub


' Handle the DrawItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
Private Sub ListBox1_DrawItem(ByVal sender As Object, _
    ByVal e As DrawItemEventArgs) Handles ListBox1.DrawItem

    ' If the item is the selected item, then draw the rectangle filled in
    ' blue. The item is selected when a bitwise And of the State property
    ' and the DrawItemState.Selected property is true. 
    If (e.State And DrawItemState.Selected = DrawItemState.Selected) Then
        e.Graphics.FillRectangle(Brushes.CornflowerBlue, e.Bounds)
    Else
        ' Otherwise, draw the rectangle filled in beige.
        e.Graphics.FillRectangle(Brushes.Beige, e.Bounds)
    End If

    ' Draw a rectangle in blue around each item.
    e.Graphics.DrawRectangle(Pens.Blue, e.Bounds)

    ' Draw the text in the item.
    e.Graphics.DrawString(Me.ListBox1.Items(e.Index), Me.Font, _
        Brushes.Black, e.Bounds.X, e.Bounds.Y)

    ' Draw the focus rectangle around the selected item.
    e.DrawFocusRectangle()
End Sub

' Handle the MeasureItem event for an owner-drawn ListBox.
Private Sub ListBox1_MeasureItem(ByVal sender As Object, _
    ByVal e As MeasureItemEventArgs) Handles ListBox1.MeasureItem

    ' Cast the sender object back to ListBox type.
    Dim theListBox As ListBox = CType(sender, ListBox)

    ' Get the string contained in each item.
    Dim itemString As String = CType(theListBox.Items(e.Index), String)

    ' Split the string at the " . "  character.
    Dim resultStrings() As String = itemString.Split(".")

    ' If the string contains more than one period, increase the 
    ' height by ten pixels; otherwise, increase the height by 
    ' five pixels.
    If (resultStrings.Length > 2) Then
        e.ItemHeight += 10
    Else
        e.ItemHeight += 5
    End If

End Sub

Remarks

The ListBox.ObjectCollection class stores the items displayed in the ListBox. There are two other collections defined within the ListBox class that enable you to determine what items are selected within this collection. The ListBox.SelectedObjectCollection class provides properties and methods for determining what items are selected within the ListBox.ObjectCollection, while the ListBox.SelectedIndexCollection class enables you to determine what indexes within the ListBox.ObjectCollection are selected.

There are a number of ways to add items to the collection. The Add method provides the ability to add a single object to the collection. To add a number of objects to the collection, you create an array of items and assign it to the AddRange method. If you want to insert an object at a specific location within the collection, you can use the Insert method. To remove items, you can use either the Remove method or the RemoveAt method if you know where the item is located within the collection. The Clear method enables you to remove all items from the collection instead of using the Remove method to remove a single item at a time.

You can also manipulate the items of a ListBox by using the DataSource property. If you use the DataSource property to add items to a ListBox, you can view the items in the ListBox using the Items property but you cannot add or remove items from the list using the methods of the ListBox.ObjectCollection.

In addition to methods and properties for adding and removing items, the ListBox.ObjectCollection also provides methods to find items within the collection. The Contains method enables you to determine whether an object is a member of the collection. Once you know that the item is located within the collection, you can use the IndexOf method to determine where the item is located within the collection.

Constructors

ListBox.ObjectCollection(ListBox, ListBox+ObjectCollection)	Initializes a new instance of ListBox.ObjectCollection based on another ListBox.ObjectCollection.
ListBox.ObjectCollection(ListBox, Object[])	Initializes a new instance of ListBox.ObjectCollection containing an array of objects.
ListBox.ObjectCollection(ListBox)	Initializes a new instance of ListBox.ObjectCollection.

Properties

Count	Gets the number of items in the collection.
IsReadOnly	Gets a value indicating whether the collection is read-only.
Item[Int32]	Gets or sets the item at the specified index within the collection.

Methods

Add(Object)	Adds an item to the list of items for a ListBox.
AddRange(ListBox+ObjectCollection)	Adds the items of an existing ListBox.ObjectCollection to the list of items in a ListBox.
AddRange(Object[])	Adds an array of items to the list of items for a ListBox.
Clear()	Removes all items from the collection.
Contains(Object)	Determines whether the specified item is located within the collection.
CopyTo(Object[], Int32)	Copies the entire collection into an existing array of objects at a specified location within the array.
Equals(Object)	Determines whether the specified object is equal to the current object. (Inherited from Object)
GetEnumerator()	Returns an enumerator to use to iterate through the item collection.
GetHashCode()	Serves as the default hash function. (Inherited from Object)
GetType()	Gets the Type of the current instance. (Inherited from Object)
IndexOf(Object)	Returns the index within the collection of the specified item.
Insert(Int32, Object)	Inserts an item into the list box at the specified index.
MemberwiseClone()	Creates a shallow copy of the current Object. (Inherited from Object)
Remove(Object)	Removes the specified object from the collection.
RemoveAt(Int32)	Removes the item at the specified index within the collection.
ToString()	Returns a string that represents the current object. (Inherited from Object)

Explicit Interface Implementations

ICollection.CopyTo(Array, Int32)	This API supports the product infrastructure and is not intended to be used directly from your code. Copies the elements of the collection to an array, starting at a particular array index.
ICollection.IsSynchronized	For a description of this member, see IsSynchronized.
ICollection.SyncRoot	For a description of this member, see SyncRoot.
IList.Add(Object)	This API supports the product infrastructure and is not intended to be used directly from your code. Adds an object to the ListBox class.
IList.Contains(Object)	Determines whether the IList contains a specific value.
IList.IndexOf(Object)	Determines the index of a specific item in the IList.
IList.Insert(Int32, Object)	Inserts an item to the IList at the specified index.
IList.IsFixedSize	For a description of this member, see IsFixedSize.
IList.Item[Int32]	Gets or sets the element at the specified index.
IList.Remove(Object)	Removes the first occurrence of a specific object from the IList.

Extension Methods

See also

• ListBox.SelectedObjectCollection
• ListBox.SelectedIndexCollection