/ 
Gtk2-Ex-Xor-23
River stage one • 1 direct dependent • 1 total dependent
/ Gtk2::Ex::Lasso

NAME

Gtk2::Ex::Lasso -- drag the mouse to lasso a rectangular region

SYNOPSIS

use Gtk2::Ex::Lasso;
my $lasso = Gtk2::Ex::Lasso->new (widget => $widget);
$lasso->signal_connect (ended => sub { some_code() });
$lasso->start ($event);

OBJECT HIERARCHY

Gtk2::Ex::Lasso is a subclass of Glib::Object.

Glib::Object
  Gtk2::Ex::Lasso

DESCRIPTION

A Gtk2::Ex::Lasso object implements a "lasso" style user selection of a rectangular region in a widget window, drawing dashed lines as visual feedback while selecting.

+-------------------------+
|                         |
|   +-----------+         |
|   |           |         |
|   |           |         |
|   +-----------*         |
|                \mouse   |
|                         |
|                         |
+-------------------------+

The lasso is activated by the start() function (see "FUNCTIONS" below), normally called from a mouse button press or keypress event handler. When started from a mouse button the lasso is active while the button is held down, ie. a drag. This is usual, but it can also begin from a keypress or even something strange like a menu entry.

The following keys are recognised while lassoing,

Return      end selection
Esc         abort the selection
Space       swap the mouse pointer to the opposite corner

Other keys are propagated to normal processing. The space for "swap" lets the user move the initial corner if it wasn't quite right. (This requires $display->warp_pointer() and so is only possible in Gtk 2.8 and up.)

See examples/lasso-area.pl for a complete sample program.

FUNCTIONS

Gtk2::Ex::Lasso->new (key => value, ...)

Create and return a new Lasso object. Optional key/value pairs set initial properties as per Glib::Object->new. Eg.

my $ch = Gtk2::Ex::Lasso->new (widget => $widget);
$lasso->start ()
$lasso->start ($event)

Start a lasso selection with $lasso. If $event is a Gtk2::Gdk::Event::Button then releasing that button ends the selection. For other event types or for undef or omitted the selection ends only with the Return key or an end() call.

$lasso->end ()
$lasso->end ($event)

End the $lasso selection and emit the ended signal, or if $lasso is already inactive then do nothing. This end is the user Return key or button release.

If you end a lasso in response to a button release, button press, motion notify, or similar, then pass the Gtk2::Gdk::Event as the optional $event parameter so that end() can use it for a final X,Y position and for a server timestamp if ungrabbing. Both are important if event processing in the client is lagged for any reason.

$lasso->abort ()

Abort the $lasso selection and emit the aborted signal, or if $lasso is already inactive then do nothing. This is the user Esc key.

$lasso->swap_corners()

Swap the mouse pointer to the opposite corner of the selection by a "warp" of the pointer (ie. a forcible movement). This is the user Space key.

For Gtk 2.6 and earlier there's no $display->warp_pointer and currently this method does nothing in that case.

PROPERTIES

widget (a Gtk2::Widget or undef)

The target widget to act on. This can be changed to act on a different widget. Setting a new widget target is even possible when the lasso is active, though doing so might confuse the user.

active (boolean, default false)

True while lasso selection is in progress. Turning this on or off is the same as calling start() or end() above (except you can't pass events).

foreground (scalar, default undef)
foreground-name (string, default undef)
foreground-gdk (Gtk2::Gdk::Color object, default undef)

The colour for the lasso. This can be

  • undef (the default) for the widget style fg foreground colour (see Gtk2::Style).

  • A string colour name or #RGB form per Gtk2::Gdk::Color->parse() (see Gtk2::Gdk::Color).

  • A Gtk2::Gdk::Color object with red, green, blue fields set. (A pixel value will be looked up for the particular widget in use.)

All three foreground, foreground-name and foreground-gdk access the same underlying setting. foreground-name and foreground-gdk help Gtk2::Builder since the generic Perl scalar foreground property can't be set from a Builder.

In the current code, if the foreground is a Gtk2::Gdk::Color object then foreground-name reads as its to_string() form such as "#11112222333", or if foreground is a string name then foreground-gdk reads as parsed to a Gtk2::Gdk::Color. Is this a good idea? Perhaps it will change in the future.

cursor (scalar, default "hand1")
cursor-name (string, cursor enum nick or "invisible", default "hand1")
cursor-object (Gtk2::Gdk::Cursor)

The mouse cursor type to display while lassoing. This can be any string or object understood by Gtk2::Ex::WidgetCursor, or undef for no cursor change.

A different cursor is highly desirable because when starting a lasso it's normally too small for the user to see and so needs another visual indication that selection has begun. The default "hand1" is meant to be reasonable.

The cursor, cursor-name and cursor-object properties all access the same underlying setting but with string or cursor object type respectively. cursor-name and cursor-object can be used from a Gtk2::Builder specification.

If using a Gtk2::Gdk::Cursor object then remember cursor objects are a per-display resource and the cursor must be on the same display as the target widget.

The cursor can be changed while the lasso is active. Doing so is probably unusual but works and could be used for something creative like further visual feedback or maybe keeping an arrow outwards so as not to obscure the selected region.

SIGNALS

moved, parameters: lasso, x1, y1, x2, y2, userdata

Emitted whenever the in-progress selected region changes (but not when it ends). x2,y2 is the corner with the mouse.

ended, parameters: lasso, x1, y1, x2, y2, userdata

Emitted when a selection is complete and accepted by the user (not when aborted). x2,y2 is the corner where the mouse finished, though it's unusual to care which way around the corners are.

aborted, parameters: lasso, userdata

Emitted when a region selection ends by user abort, which normally means the user doesn't want any action.

BUILDABLE

Lasso can be created from Gtk2::Builder the same as other objects. The class name is Gtk2__Ex__Lasso. It will normally be a top-level object with the widget property telling it what to act on.

<object class="Gtk2__Ex__Lasso" id="mylasso">
  <property name="widget">drawingwidget</property>
  <property name="foreground-name">orange</property>
  <property name="cursor-name">umbrella</property>
  <signal name="ended" handler="do_lasso_ended"/>
</object>

See examples/lasso-builder.pl for a complete program.

The foreground-name property is the best way to control the colour. The generic foreground can't be used because it's a Perl scalar type. foreground-gdk works too since Gtk2::Builder knows how to parse a colour name to a Gtk2::Gdk::Color object, but in that case the Builder also allocates a pixel in the default colormap, which is unnecessary since the Lasso will do that itself on the target widget's colormap.

The cursor-name property is similarly the best way to control the mouse cursor type, if the default hand is not wanted. The generic cursor property can't be used because it's a Perl scalar type. The cursor-object probably can't be used since the Builder doesn't support cursor creation (as of Gtk circa 2.16).

OTHER NOTES

The lasso is drawn using xors in the widget window. See Gtk2::Ex::Xor for notes on this.

Keypresses are obtained from the Gtk "snooper" mechanism (Gtk2->key_snooper_install()), so they work even if the lasso target widget doesn't have the focus. Keys not for the lasso are propagated in the usual way.

When the lasso is started from a keypress etc, rather than a button press, an explicit pointer grab is used so motion events outside the widget window are seen. In the current code a further start() call with a button press event will switch to drag mode, so the corresponding release has the expected effect. This does the right thing, but is a bit obscure.

If start() needs an explicit grab but can't get it (because another application or a button held down has a grab) then in the current code carps a warning and continues anyway. Perhaps that will change, though it only affects the slightly unusual case of a keyboard initiated lasso.

SEE ALSO

Gtk2::Ex::CrossHair, Gtk2::Ex::Xor, Glib::Object, Gtk2::Ex::WidgetCursor

HOME PAGE

http://user42.tuxfamily.org/gtk2-ex-xor/index.html

LICENSE

Copyright 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2019 Kevin Ryde

Gtk2-Ex-Xor is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3, or (at your option) any later version.

Gtk2-Ex-Xor is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with Gtk2-Ex-Xor. If not, see http://www.gnu.org/licenses/.