[DarrenB]

Hi Serge,

just thinking to myself and wondering and I stumbled upon an idea. AlphaSkins, by embedding a SkinProvider on each form along with a SkinManager, and associating the SkinProvider with it's relative SkinManager allows for multiple skins within a project. At the moment there are about 80 skins available? I was just wondering Serge if this new idea would be possible…

I'll try an give an example (no code obviously just a thought process).

****************

Imagine if all these controls were on *****Form4*****

sSpeedButton1.SkinProvider.AccessSkinProviderThroughSkinManager := form1.skinManager1;

sSpeedButton2.SkinProvider.AccessSkinProviderThroughSkinManager := form2.skinmanager1;

sSpinEdit1.SkinProvider.AccessSkinProviderThroughSkinManager := form2.skinmanager1;

****************

Do you get the idea? The controls inherit their drawing process from the Skinprovider on each form yeah? Well what if you could specify WHICH SkinManager instead of using the one which the Skinprovider has it's SkinManager property set to????

I think this would mean that upon any form… you could quite literally mix and match skins in multiple combinations across multiple controls WITHIN THE SAME form. This would quite literally lead to an almost infinite amount of possible permuations? Well, not quite!

Imagine if you place 6 SkinManagers on form1 along with 6 SkinProviders… associate EACH SkinProvider with it's own SkinManager and….

EACH control on EACH form could use the new ***AccessSkinProviderThroughSkinManager*** property instead of inheriting from the generic SkinProvider on it's owner form?????

I think it would be a lot of work but wow can you imagine the possibities??? You already point all the controls to the generic SkinProvider on the form? Is that right? … why not allow us to redirect which one they point to across forms? Not just for the form…but for every control on that form… would it be as simple as just changing a 'pointer' for the control so they 'look' at different skinmanagers and their associated skinproviders?

*****************

Edit : perhaps the new property name i suggested is named wrong…just an initial idea… maybe it should be

ControlName.UseSkinProviderAssociatedWithSkinManager := SkinManager(X)

or maybe

ControlName.InheritDrawingFromSkinProviderAssociatedWithSkinManager := SkinManager(X).SkinProvider

or something like that….

***********************

What do you think, Serge? Is it possible? Would it be advisable or is it a bad idea and I'm just tired?

Darren

[Support]

Darren, please look, sSpeedButton1.SkinData.SkinManager property exist already. Maybe that's what you meant?

You can define any SkinManager for a custom control from AlphaControls package.

Or I not quite understand your idea?

[DarrenB]

'Support' wrote:

Darren, please look, sSpeedButton1.SkinData.SkinManager property exist already. Maybe that's what you meant?

You can define any SkinManager for a custom control from AlphaControls package.

Or I not quite understand your idea?

omg lol Serge!! In all my years of using AlphaSkins I didn't know you could do that!!!!!

You're brilliant!!!!! Wow all my forms have used a single skin… and yet you have already offered this idea for years?!?!? lol I don't feel a fool for offering the idea because I knew it was a good one I just didn't know it was already there!!!

Brilliant Serge absolutely brilliant.

Serge, we gotta get some up to date documentation done! Hows that coming I know you are working on it?

Darren

[Support]

Yes, I'm writing it in Russian now, texts will be translated to english later with help of some people.

All new texts will be placed there : http://www.alphaskins.com/showdoc.php?l=en&n=0

Write me about all errors or not clear texts :blush:

[DarrenB]

Hi Serge,

just took a look at that link… looks exactly what we need… love the way you have it laid out and illustrating with the pictures is an excellent idea. Kudos Serge, busy man huh? lol 😉

I have Google Chrome set up to auto-translate Russian pages into English… it reads good so far, even with the auto-translator function. I will look at it closer l8r 🙂

Don't have time to look right now cos going out… can you put up the link as a 'STICKY'? (WORK IN PROGRESS) Or are u not ready to 'launch' yet?

Or does everyone else already know about it apart from me lol? Happens to me a lot, that 😉

[Support]

“Beginning of work” will be translated at the nearest days and this link will be published on the main page 🙂

[DarrenB]

'Support' wrote:

“Beginning of work” will be translated at the nearest days and this link will be published on the main page 🙂

Cool 🙂

[Author]

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