1. A18: A Deep Dive into the OpenEdge GUI for .NET™
Peter Judge
OpenEdge Principal Software Engineer

2. Get Ready… We’re Going Under
Attended OpenEdge GUI for .NET Intro
Understand OO concepts
Classes, Inheritance, Methods
Comfortable with OpenEdge Architect
Can hold your breath for a really long time…

3. Demo: OpenEdge GUI for .NET in AutoEdge
Existing application following OERA
New: OpenEdge GUI for .NET
Main container
Customer maintenance form
Test drive scheduling form
Note that AutoEdge has ABL and ActiveX UIs. Say that this is the existing UI
with
OpenEdge GUI, Open Clients, WebSpeed®, Sonic™
Existing: Architecture / Code
Replaced View only in existing MVP model presentation layer
OERA business and data layers
Mix and match for remaining windows

4. Under Development D I S C L A I M E R
This talk includes information about potential future products and/or product enhancements.
What I am going to say reflects our current thinking, but the information contained herein is preliminary and subject to change. Any future products we ultimately deliver may be materially different from what is described here.
D I S C L A I M E R

5. Agenda ABL for the OpenEdge GUI for .NET
GUI for .NET Architecture
ABL Forms & Controls
ABL Data Binding
ABL Event Handlers
Mix and Match Support
Using the GUI for .NET in AutoEdge

6. OpenEdge GUI for .NET Architecture
Single Process for OpenEdge Runtime and .NET Common Language Runtime (CLR)
OpenEdge Runtime
.NET CLR
ABL Logic
.NET GUI
frm = NEW Form( ).
frm:Closing:Subscribe( EventHdlr1 ).
WAIT-FOR Application.Run( frm ).
EventHdlr1( ) …
OpenEdge UI (Presenter)
Bridge
.NET UI
(View)
Bridge

7. OpenEdge GUI for .NET Architecture
Single Process for OpenEdge Runtime and .NET Common Language Runtime (CLR)
OpenEdge Runtime
.NET CLR
ABL Logic
.NET GUI
frm = NEW Form( ).
frm:Closing:Subscribe( EventHdlr1 ).
WAIT-FOR Application.Run( frm ).
EventHdlr1( ) … 4 7 1 3 5 2
OpenEdge UI (Presenter)
Bridge
.NET UI
(View)
Bridge 6

8. Infragistics… UltraButton
.NET Inheritance Stack
UI components inheritance stack includes .NET root class: System.Object
All .NET Classes
ABL Forms
.NET Controls … … …
Progress.Lang.Object
System.Object
System… Form
System… Control
Progress.Windows.Forms mainly for future functionality, mix & match
Progress. Windows.Form
Infragistics… UltraButton
.NET Classes = Green
ABL Classes = Blue
CustEntryForm (ABL)

9. .NET Windows I/O Blocking Model
Application with a single main form
WAIT-FOR Application:Run( form ).
Used for dashboard and MDI applications
Other forms are “children” of the main form
Closing the main form automatically terminates WAIT-FOR
Application with several equal forms
WAIT-FOR Application:Run( ).
Forms shown at the same time or separately
An event handler needs to terminate WAIT-FOR
Application:Exit( ).
Note that if there’s even one .NET form in the app, you need to use .NET blocking model

10. ABL Forms in the OpenEdge GUI for .NET
CLASS CustForm INHERITS Progress.Windows.Form:
ABL Forms are containers for .NET UI Controls
.NET Controls
Microsoft® .NET Windows Form controls
OpenEdge Ultra Controls for .Net (Infragistics® NetAdvantage)
3rd-party .NET controls
ABL .NET controls
User controls
Inherited controls

11. ABL .NET Controls - User Control
CLASS AddrViewer INHERITS Progress…UserControl:
Custom ABL control container for complex behavior
Examples of user controls
Label and editor
Address block
Grid and viewer
Examples of user controls
Label and editbox
Address block
Grid and viewer
Sample inherited controls
OK button
Cancel button
Read-only grid

12. ABL .NET Controls – Inherited control
CLASS OkButton INHERITS Infragistics…UltraButton:
Inherits from existing .NET UI control for extending behavior
Examples on inherited controls
Buttons: Ok, Cancel, Help
Drop-downs: States, Post codes, Countries
Examples of user controls
Label and editbox
Address block
Grid and viewer
Sample inherited controls
OK button
Cancel button
Read-only grid

13. Demo: ABL Forms
Create a login dialog

14. .NET Event Model Controls define events they publish
Strongly-typed events
Support a list of handlers (callbacks)
Controls fire an event when an action occurs
All subscribed handlers get called
Event specific arguments passed in from .NET
System.EventArgs
Subscribe ABL event handlers to events
Classes define events – strong type to control – strong typing between event and handler . All benefits of OO.
CustForm:FormClosing:Subscribe( FormClosingHdlr ).

15. Demo: Event Handler
Validate user on OK button click

16. Progress.Data. BindingSource
.NET Data Binding Model
Progress.Data.BindingSource
Provides data for .NET UI Controls
How: Provides required APIs to .NET Controls (IList)
Why: OpenEdge data provided as .NET needs
What: Any ABL Query, Buffer or ProDataSet™
OpenEdge Runtime
.NET CLR
ProDataSet
Customer
Lift Line Skiing
Urpon Frisbee
Hoops Croquet
Order
/01/ /04/ /04/93
Query
Progress.Data. BindingSource 2 1 3

17. Power of Progress.Data.BindingSource
Brings ABL data-centric behavior to .NET
Automatic data synchronization
Automatic updating
Automatic batching
Automatic currency
Properties
Updating: AllowEdit, AllowNew, AllowRemove
Current row state: NewRow, RowModified
Typed screen value: InputValue, ChildInputValue
General Information: Position, Count

18. Data Binding Examples Simple .NET control ( UltraEdit )
.NET browse-like control ( UltraGrid )
.NET list control ( UltraListView )
editBox:DataBindings:Add ( “Text”, pBS, “OrderNum” ).
grid:DataSource = pBS.
LIST-ITEM-PAIRS attribute
list:DataSource = pBS.
list:DataTextField = “State”.
list:DataValueField = “State-Name”.

19. Demo: Data binding
Bind a list of client types to the login dialog

20. ABL Mix and Match UI for Migration
.NET forms and OpenEdge GUI windows can co-exist in same session
One can parent the other
All functionality maintained independently
OpenEdge GUI windows can be embedded in a .NET forms
Client area managed in ABL
Other functionality managed in .NET
Progress.Windows.MDIChildForm
Progress.Windows.WindowContainer

21. Agenda ABL for the OpenEdge GUI for .NET
GUI for .NET Architecture
ABL Forms & Controls
ABL Data Binding
ABL Event Handlers
Mix and Match Support
Using the GUI for .NET in AutoEdge
- Static members: overview of OOABL today – instance members
- What does it mean to be static?
- Static data (variables and properties)
- Static methods (methods and properties)
- What happens when a static member comes into being – static constructors
- Static members in the hierarchy – inheritance, overriding and overloading
- How to reference static members
- How to use static members, use case example
- Dynamic Programming (DYNAMIC-NEW, DYNAMIC-CAST
- Data Widening rules

22. Outlook-style Container for AutoEdge
OpenEdge GUI for .NET main form
Dashboard / Container
Dynamic menu and toolbar
Hook up events
Re-use existing architecture
OERA and MVP
Run using WAIT-FOR Application:Run ( ).

23. Demo
AutoEdge main container form

24. In Summary Modern, competitive UI in ABL Uses .NET objects
Object-oriented ABL
.NET object features (methods, properties, events)
WYSIWYG Visual Designer
Unlimited controls available
Leverages what you know
ABL (events, business logic, data constructs)
Event-driven programming (WAIT-FOR)
OpenEdge Architect

25. Relevant Exchange Sessions
DEV-2: Making OpenEdge Architect Work for You
DEV-6: Introduction to the OpenEdge GUI for .NET
DEV-16: Leveraging the Power of Advanced GUI
DEV-20: Sex and Sizzle – Developing with .NET and OpenEdge 10
DEV-32: Using the Advanced GUI, Structured Error Handling and SonicMQ to build a Semi-Disconnected Point of Sales
DEV-40: Using SmartDataObjects with the Advanced GUI

26. ?
Questions

27. Thank You