Download source code - 19.45 KB Download demo - 197.83 KB Introduction Microsoft's CListCtrl has support for displaying data in a grid using the report style, but we have to make several changes to implement features like: Sorting Cell navigation and keyboard search Tooltips Hiding and showing columns Cell editing This article will demonstrate a customized CListCtrl, which implements all the above features, while maintaining the Windows XP/Vista look. Background There are lots of advanced grid controls that extend the CListCtrl, and one of those is the Enhanced List Control (CGfxListCtrl). This wonderful control provides all the above features, but fails to handle Windows XP and Vista. Finding a good replacement for this control is not very easy: MFC Grid Control - Doesn't inherit from CListCtrl, so applications will not get the benefit of the improvements Microsoft adds to the CListCtrl CQuickList - Very close to being a perfect replacement, but hard to add new ways to display data, and it requires LVS_OWNERDATA that makes sorting a little harder XListCtrl - Also a very complete CListCtrl, but hard to add new ways to display data, and it tries to store a copy of the entire data model inside itself Another Report List Grid Control - Simple and easy to use, but lacks other means to edit data besides using CEdit, and also misses subitem navigation The CGridListCtrlEx tries to be simple, while still providing the ability to customize how a cell should be displayed and edited. In case Microsoft extends their CListCtrl again, then hopefully, the core of CGridListCtrlEx will continue to function. How to Use the CGridListCtrlEx The CGridListCtrlEx tries to stay true to the CListCtrl, and doesn't try to replace anything the CListCtrl already provides. This means we can replace a CListCtrl with CGridListCtrlEx without needing to do anything more. It is recommended that we don't use the CGridListCtrlEx directly, but create a new class that inherits/derives from CGridListCtrlEx. This will make it easier to migrate any updates there will be to the CGridListCtrlEx class later on. Editing Cells/Subitems By default, when inserting columns in the CGridListCtrlEx, they will be configured as read-only, without the ability to be edited. By using CGridListCtrlEx::InsertColumnTrait(), we can provide a CGridColumnTrait class which specifies what grid control type of editor it should use. CGridColumnTrait* pTrait = new CGridColumnTraitEdit; m_ListCtrl.InsertColumnTrait(nCol, title.c_str(), LVCFMT_LEFT, 100, nCol, pTrait); When having edited an item, a standard LVN_ENDLABELEDIT message will be sent to the CListCtrl Library Source Code. When the CGridListCtrlEx receives this message, it will automatically call the virtual method CGridListCtrlEx::OnTraitEditComplete(), allowing a derived class to validate the input and maybe update an underlying data model. Editing Cells/Subitems with a Combo-box By using CGridListCtrlEx::InsertColumnTrait(), we can also provide a CGridColumnTrait class which works as a combobox. CGridColumnTraitCombo* pTrait = new CGridColumnTraitCombo; pTrait->AddItem(0, "Hello"); pTrait->AddItem(1, "Goodbye"); m_ListCtrl.InsertColumnTrait(nCol, title.c_str(), LVCFMT_LEFT, 100, nCol, pTrait); We can specify the items of the combobox when inserting the columns (as shown above). If we want to provide the combobox items dynamically, then we can override the CGridListCtrlEx::OnTraitEditBegin(), and then either use dynamic_cast<> or use the CGridColumnTraitVisitor to modify the items in the combobox. Sorting Rows By default, the GridListCtrlEx will have sorting enabled for all columns, where it will perform a simple text-comparison. If we want a more advanced Grid Control sorting, then we can override the CGridListCtrlEx::SortColumn() method. Then, it is just a matter of choosing the right way to perform the sorting. See CListCtrl and Sorting Rows. Showing Tooltip By default, the CGridListCtrlEx will just display the cell contents as tooltip. If we want to display something different in the tooltip, then we can override the CGridListCtrlEx::GetCellTooltip() method. Formatting Cells/Subitems If we want to change the foreground/background color or the font style (bold, italic, underline), then we can override the methods CGridListCtrlEx::GetCellCustomColor() and CGridListCtrlEx::GetCellCustomFont(). How Does the CGridColumnTrait Work CGridListCtrlEx tries to keep away from all the nasty details about how to display and edit data. These things are instead handled by the CGridColumnTrait class, and if we want to modify how data is displayed, then it is "just" a matter of creating a new Grid Contrl Library CGridColumnTrait class. When inserting a column, we can assign a Grid Contrl Library CGridColumnTrait to the column. The CGridListCtrlEx will activate the appropriate CGridColumnTrait when we need to draw a cell in that column, or edit a cell in the column. The CGridColumnTrait includes some Grid VC++ Source Code special members known as meta-data. These members can be used by your own class when it derives from CGridListCtrlEx, so we can easily add extra properties to a column. When inheriting from CGridColumnTrait, we must consider the following: If performing custom drawing, we must also handle the selection and focus coloring. If performing editing, we must ensure that the editor closes when it loses focus, and also sends a LVN_ENDLABELEDIT message when the edit is complete. Using the Code The VC++ source code includes the following classes: CGridListCtrlEx - The specialized CListCtrl CGridColumnTrait - Specifies the interface of a column-trait CGridColumnTraitText - Implements cell formatting CGridColumnTraitEdit - Implements cell editing with CEdit CGridColumnTraitCombo - Implements cell editing with CComboBox CGridColumnTraitVisitor - Visitor pattern if wanting to add new behavior to the column-traits Things To Do The CGridListCtrlEx is not quite finished, as it still lacks some features: CListCtrl group-style and the ability to group rows according to a chosen column Better handling of LVS_EX_SUBITEMIMAGES, as subitem images now overlap the grid-borders (bug in CListCtrl) Support for checkboxes (might consider some misuse of the Image property) Support for progress bar Support for date / time editing Only the group-style handling should be part of the CGridListCtrlEx itself, while the other features should be handled with new specialized CGridColumnTraits.