Creating Sample Data from a Class - Page 2
by
kirupa | 5 February 2011
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tutorial with others on the forums.
In the
previous page, you created a simple class and generated
some sample data based on the properties that class exposed.
In this page, let's go a step further and learn how to
generate a collection so that you can see many instances of
your simple class!
Right now, our Address class is pretty
boring...and lonely. If you want to see a collection of
Addresses, you'll need to define another class that closely
mimics a collection.
Go back into Visual Studio, Reload the project if
prompted, and make sure Address.cs is open and displayed. At
the bottom of your code, outside of the Address class, let's
define a new class called AddressList. Go ahead and add the
AddressList code (the part below that isn't faded):
- public
class
Address
- {
-
public
string
Name
- {
-
get;
-
set;
- }
-
-
public
string
Street
- {
-
get;
-
set;
- }
-
-
public
int
ZipCode
- {
-
get;
-
set;
- }
- }
-
- public
class
AddressList
:
ObservableCollection<Address>
- {
- }
You may need to add a
using statement to resolve your use of
ObservableCollection, so go ahead and do that if you are
getting build errors or warnings.
Before we jump back into Blend and marvel at our latest
creation, let's just look at what this one line of code
actually does. What you have done is defined a class that is
nothing more than a collection of Address objects. More
specifically, you created a new class called AddressList.
This class extends the ObservableCollection class to give it
magical item carrying powers, and you specify that your
collection will only store Address objects.
Jump back into Blend, and make sure to Build your project
again. It is important to build, for if you don't build your
project again, the AddressList class you added in Visual
Studio will be ignored by Blend. Blend is a bit
high-maintenance like that. Anyhoo, go back to your Data
panel, click on the Create Sample Data button, and click
(one more time!) on the Create Sample Data from Class menu
item.
The Create Sample Data from Class dialog will appear
again, but this time, notice what you see extra:
[ the AddressList class you saw earlier is being displayed ]
The collection of addresses you dubbed AddressList is now
visible. Double click on it (or single click and click the
OK button) to add a new sample data source based on your
AddressList class.
In your Data panel, you will now see your AddressList
appear. Because AddressList is a collection that takes
Address objects as its children, you'll see the three
Address properties displayed beneath it:
[ you now see a collection of Addresses ]
If you drag and drop your AddressList onto your artboard
to see the sample data generated, you will see a collection
of sample data as opposed to just a single piece of sample
data that you saw before!
The ability to
generate sample data from a class that you define closes a
missing part of the original sample data feature you may
have used. By allowing you to define the structure of the
sample data that gets generated, you retain the ability to
design the data inside Expression Blend while avoiding the
hassle of mapping between a datasource created by Blend and
one that closely mimics your live data.
Need Help?
If you have questions, need some assistance on this topic, or just want to
chat - please drop by our friendly forums
and post your question. There are a lot of knowledgeable and witty people who
would be happy to help you out. Plus, we have a
large collection of smileys
you can use
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your friends:
If you didn't like it, I always like to hear how I can do better next time.
Please feel free to contact me directly at kirupa[at]kirupa.com.
Cheers!
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