459 lines
15 KiB
C++
459 lines
15 KiB
C++
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
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// Name: python.h
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// Purpose: topic overview
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// Author: wxWidgets team
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// Licence: wxWindows licence
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/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
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/**
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@page overview_python wxPython Overview
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@tableofcontents
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This topic was written by Robin Dunn, author of the
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<a href="http://www.python.org/">wxPython</a> wrapper.
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@section overview_python_what What is wxPython?
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wxPython is a blending of the wxWidgets GUI classes and the Python programming
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language.
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@subsection overview_python_what_py Python
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So what is Python? Go to http://www.python.org to learn more, but in a
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nutshell Python is an interpreted, interactive, object-oriented programming
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language. It is often compared to Tcl, Perl, Scheme or Java.
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Python combines remarkable power with very clear syntax. It has modules,
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classes, exceptions, very high level dynamic data types, and dynamic typing.
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There are interfaces to many system calls and libraries, and new built-in
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modules are easily written in C or C++. Python is also usable as an extension
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language for applications that need a programmable interface.
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Python is copyrighted but freely usable and distributable, even for commercial
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use.
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@subsection overview_python_what_wxpy wxPython
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wxPython is a Python package that can be imported at runtime that includes a
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collection of Python modules and an extension module (native code). It provides
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a series of Python classes that mirror (or shadow) many of the wxWidgets GUI
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classes. This extension module attempts to mirror the class hierarchy of
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wxWidgets as closely as possible. This means that there is a wxFrame class in
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wxPython that looks, smells, tastes and acts almost the same as the wxFrame
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class in the C++ version.
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wxPython is very versatile. It can be used to create standalone GUI
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applications, or in situations where Python is embedded in a C++ application as
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an internal scripting or macro language.
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Currently wxPython is available for Win32 platforms and the GTK toolkit (wxGTK)
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on most Unix/X-windows platforms. See the wxPython website http://wxPython.org/
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for details about getting wxPython working for you.
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@section overview_python_why Why Use wxPython?
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So why would you want to use wxPython over just C++ and wxWidgets? Personally I
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prefer using Python for everything. I only use C++ when I absolutely have to
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eke more performance out of an algorithm, and even then I usually code it as an
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extension module and leave the majority of the program in Python.
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Another good thing to use wxPython for is quick prototyping of your wxWidgets
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apps. With C++ you have to continuously go though the edit-compile-link-run
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cycle, which can be quite time consuming. With Python it is only an edit-run
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cycle. You can easily build an application in a few hours with Python that
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would normally take a few days or longer with C++. Converting a wxPython app to
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a C++/wxWidgets app should be a straight forward task.
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@section overview_python_othergui Other Python GUIs
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There are other GUI solutions out there for Python.
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@subsection overview_python_othergui_tkinter Tkinter
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Tkinter is the de facto standard GUI for Python. It is available on nearly
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every platform that Python and Tcl/TK are. Why Tcl/Tk? Well because Tkinter is
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just a wrapper around Tcl's GUI toolkit, Tk. This has it's upsides and it's
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downsides...
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The upside is that Tk is a pretty versatile toolkit. It can be made to do a lot
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of things in a lot of different environments. It is fairly easy to create new
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widgets and use them interchangeably in your programs.
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The downside is Tcl. When using Tkinter you actually have two separate language
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interpreters running, the Python interpreter and the Tcl interpreter for the
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GUI. Since the guts of Tcl is mostly about string processing, it is fairly slow
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as well. (Not too bad on a fast Pentium II, but you really notice the
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difference on slower machines.)
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It wasn't until the latest version of Tcl/Tk that native Look and Feel was
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possible on non-Motif platforms. This is because Tk usually implements its own
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widgets (controls) even when there are native controls available.
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Tkinter is a pretty low-level toolkit. You have to do a lot of work (verbose
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program code) to do things that would be much simpler with a higher level of
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abstraction.
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@subsection overview_python_othergui_pythonwin PythonWin
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PythonWin is an add-on package for Python for the Win32 platform. It includes
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wrappers for MFC as well as much of the Win32 API. Because of its foundation,
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it is very familiar for programmers who have experience with MFC and the Win32
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API. It is obviously not compatible with other platforms and toolkits.
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PythonWin is organized as separate packages and modules so you can use the
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pieces you need without having to use the GUI portions.
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@subsection overview_python_othergui_others Others
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There are quite a few other GUI modules available for Python, some in active
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use, some that haven't been updated for ages. Most are simple wrappers around
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some C or C++ toolkit or another, and most are not cross-platform compatible.
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See <a href="http://pypi.python.org/pypi?:action=browse&show=all&c=433">this link</a>
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for a listing of a few of them.
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@section overview_python_using Using wxPython
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I'm not going to try and teach the Python language here. You can do that at the
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<a href="http://www.python.org/doc/tut/tut.html">Python Tutorial</a>. I'm also
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going to assume that you know a bit about wxWidgets already, enough to notice
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the similarities in the classes used.
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Take a look at the following wxPython program. You can find a similar program
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in the @c wxPython/demo directory, named @c DialogUnits.py. If your Python and
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wxPython are properly installed, you should be able to run it by issuing this
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command:
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@code
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python DialogUnits.py
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@endcode
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@code
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01: ## import all of the wxPython GUI package
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02: from wxPython.wx import *
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03:
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04: ## Create a new frame class, derived from the wxPython Frame.
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05: class MyFrame(wxFrame):
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06:
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07: def __init__(self, parent, id, title):
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08: # First, call the base class' __init__ method to create the frame
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09: wxFrame.__init__(self, parent, id, title,
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10: wxPoint(100, 100), wxSize(160, 100))
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11:
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12: # Associate some events with methods of this class
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13: EVT_SIZE(self, self.OnSize)
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14: EVT_MOVE(self, self.OnMove)
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15:
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16: # Add a panel and some controls to display the size and position
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17: panel = wxPanel(self, -1)
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18: wxStaticText(panel, -1, "Size:",
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19: wxDLG_PNT(panel, wxPoint(4, 4)), wxDefaultSize)
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20: wxStaticText(panel, -1, "Pos:",
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21: wxDLG_PNT(panel, wxPoint(4, 14)), wxDefaultSize)
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22: self.sizeCtrl = wxTextCtrl(panel, -1, "",
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23: wxDLG_PNT(panel, wxPoint(24, 4)),
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24: wxDLG_SZE(panel, wxSize(36, -1)),
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25: wxTE_READONLY)
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26: self.posCtrl = wxTextCtrl(panel, -1, "",
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27: wxDLG_PNT(panel, wxPoint(24, 14)),
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28: wxDLG_SZE(panel, wxSize(36, -1)),
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29: wxTE_READONLY)
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30:
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31:
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32: # This method is called automatically when the CLOSE event is
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33: # sent to this window
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34: def OnCloseWindow(self, event):
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35: # tell the window to kill itself
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36: self.Destroy()
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37:
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38: # This method is called by the system when the window is resized,
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39: # because of the association above.
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40: def OnSize(self, event):
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41: size = event.GetSize()
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42: self.sizeCtrl.SetValue("%s, %s" % (size.width, size.height))
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43:
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44: # tell the event system to continue looking for an event handler,
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45: # so the default handler will get called.
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46: event.Skip()
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47:
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48: # This method is called by the system when the window is moved,
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49: # because of the association above.
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50: def OnMove(self, event):
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51: pos = event.GetPosition()
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52: self.posCtrl.SetValue("%s, %s" % (pos.x, pos.y))
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53:
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54:
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55: # Every wxWidgets application must have a class derived from wxApp
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56: class MyApp(wxApp):
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57:
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58: # wxWidgets calls this method to initialize the application
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59: def OnInit(self):
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60:
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61: # Create an instance of our customized Frame class
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62: frame = MyFrame(NULL, -1, "This is a test")
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63: frame.Show(true)
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64:
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67:
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68: # Return a success flag
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69: return true
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70:
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71:
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72: app = MyApp(0) # Create an instance of the application class
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73: app.MainLoop() # Tell it to start processing events
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74:
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@endcode
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@subsection overview_python_using_notice Things to Notice
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At line 2 the wxPython classes, constants, and etc. are imported into the
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current module's namespace. If you prefer to reduce namespace pollution you can
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use @c "from wxPython import wx" and then access all the wxPython identifiers
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through the wx module, for example, @c "wx.wxFrame".
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At line 13 the frame's sizing and moving events are connected to methods of the
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class. These helper functions are intended to be like the event table macros
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that wxWidgets employs. But since static event tables are impossible with
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wxPython, we use helpers that are named the same to dynamically build the
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table. The only real difference is that the first argument to the event helpers
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is always the window that the event table entry should be added to.
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Notice the use of @c wxDLG_PNT and @c wxDLG_SZE in lines 19-29 to convert from
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dialog units to pixels. These helpers are unique to wxPython since Python can't
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do method overloading like C++.
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There is an @c OnCloseWindow method at line 34 but no call to @c EVT_CLOSE to
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attach the event to the method. Does it really get called? The answer is, yes
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it does. This is because many of the standard events are attached to windows
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that have the associated standard method names. I have tried to follow the lead
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of the C++ classes in this area to determine what is standard but since that
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changes from time to time I can make no guarantees, nor will it be fully
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documented. When in doubt, use an @c EVT_*** function.
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At lines 17 to 21 notice that there are no saved references to the panel or the
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static text items that are created. Those of you who know Python might be
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wondering what happens when Python deletes these objects when they go out of
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scope. Do they disappear from the GUI? They don't. Remember that in wxPython
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the Python objects are just shadows of the corresponding C++ objects. Once the
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C++ windows and controls are attached to their parents, the parents manage them
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and delete them when necessary. For this reason, most wxPython objects do not
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need to have a @c __del__ method that explicitly causes the C++ object to be
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deleted. If you ever have the need to forcibly delete a window, use the
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Destroy() method as shown on line 36.
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Just like wxWidgets in C++, wxPython apps need to create a class derived from
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@c wxApp (line 56) that implements a method named @c OnInit, (line 59.) This
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method should create the application's main window (line 62) and show it.
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And finally, at line 72 an instance of the application class is created. At
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this point wxPython finishes initializing itself, and calls the @c OnInit
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method to get things started. (The zero parameter here is a flag for
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functionality that isn't quite implemented yet. Just ignore it for now.) The
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call to @c MainLoop at line 73 starts the event loop which continues until the
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application terminates or all the top level windows are closed.
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@section overview_python_classes Classes Implemented in wxPython
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The following classes are supported in wxPython. Most provide nearly full
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implementations of the public interfaces specified in the C++ documentation,
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others are less so. They will all be brought as close as possible to the C++
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spec over time.
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@li wxAcceleratorEntry
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@li wxAcceleratorTable
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@li wxActivateEvent
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@li wxBitmap
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@li wxBitmapButton
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@li wxBitmapDataObject
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@li wxBMPHandler
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@li wxBoxSizer
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@li wxBrush
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@li wxBusyInfo
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@li wxBusyCursor
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@li wxButton
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@li wxCalculateLayoutEvent
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@li wxCalendarCtrl
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@li wxCaret
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@li wxCheckBox
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@li wxCheckListBox
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@li wxChoice
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@li wxClientDC
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@li wxClipboard
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@li wxCloseEvent
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@li wxColourData
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@li wxColourDialog
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@li wxColour
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@li wxComboBox
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@li wxCommandEvent
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@li wxConfigBase
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@li wxControl
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@li wxCursor
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@li wxCustomDataObject
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@li wxDataFormat
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@li wxDataObject
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@li wxDataObjectComposite
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@li wxDataObjectSimple
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@li wxDateTime
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@li wxDateSpan
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@li wxDC
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@li wxDialog
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@li wxDirDialog
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@li wxDragImage
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@li wxDropFilesEvent
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@li wxDropSource
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@li wxDropTarget
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@li wxEraseEvent
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@li wxEvent
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@li wxEvtHandler
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@li wxFileConfig
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@li wxFileDataObject
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@li wxFileDialog
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@li wxFileDropTarget
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@li wxFileSystem
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@li wxFileSystemHandler
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@li wxFocusEvent
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@li wxFontData
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@li wxFontDialog
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@li wxFont
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@li wxFrame
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@li wxFSFile
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@li wxGauge
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@li wxGIFHandler
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@li wxGLCanvas
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@li wxHtmlCell
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@li wxHtmlContainerCell
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@li wxHtmlDCRenderer
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@li wxHtmlEasyPrinting
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@li wxHtmlParser
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@li wxHtmlTagHandler
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@li wxHtmlTag
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@li wxHtmlWinParser
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@li wxHtmlPrintout
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@li wxHtmlWinTagHandler
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@li wxHtmlWindow
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@li wxIconizeEvent
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@li wxIcon
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@li wxIdleEvent
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@li wxImage
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@li wxImageHandler
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@li wxImageList
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@li wxIndividualLayoutConstraint
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@li wxInitDialogEvent
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@li wxInputStream
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@li @ref wxFileSystem "wxInternetFSHandler"
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@li wxJoystickEvent
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@li wxJPEGHandler
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@li wxKeyEvent
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@li wxLayoutAlgorithm
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@li wxLayoutConstraints
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@li wxListBox
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@li wxListCtrl
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@li wxListEvent
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@li wxListItem
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@li wxMask
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@li wxMaximizeEvent
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@li wxMDIChildFrame
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@li wxMDIClientWindow
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@li wxMDIParentFrame
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@li wxMemoryDC
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@li wxMemoryFSHandler
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@li wxMenuBar
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@li wxMenuEvent
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@li wxMenuItem
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@li wxMenu
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@li wxMessageDialog
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@li wxMetafileDC
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@li wxMiniFrame
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@li wxMouseEvent
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@li wxMoveEvent
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@li wxNotebookEvent
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@li wxNotebook
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@li wxPageSetupDialogData
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@li wxPageSetupDialog
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@li wxPaintDC
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@li wxPaintEvent
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@li wxPalette
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@li wxPanel
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@li wxPen
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@li wxPNGHandler
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@li wxPoint
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@li wxPostScriptDC
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@li wxPreviewFrame
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@li wxPrintData
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@li wxPrintDialogData
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@li wxPrintDialog
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@li wxPrinter
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@li wxPrintPreview
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@li wxPrinterDC
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@li wxPrintout
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@li wxProcess
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@li wxQueryLayoutInfoEvent
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@li wxRadioBox
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@li wxRadioButton
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@li wxRealPoint
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@li wxRect
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@li wxRegionIterator
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@li wxRegion
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@li wxSashEvent
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@li wxSashLayoutWindow
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@li wxSashWindow
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@li wxScreenDC
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@li wxScrollBar
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@li wxScrollEvent
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@li ::wxScrolledWindow
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@li wxScrollWinEvent
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@li wxShowEvent
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@li wxSingleChoiceDialog
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@li wxSizeEvent
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@li wxSize
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@li wxSizer
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@li wxSizerItem
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@li wxSlider
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@li wxSpinButton
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@li wxSpinEvent
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@li wxSplitterWindow
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@li wxStaticBitmap
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@li wxStaticBox
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@li wxStaticBoxSizer
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@li wxStaticLine
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@li wxStaticText
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@li wxStatusBar
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@li wxSysColourChangedEvent
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@li wxTaskBarIcon
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@li wxTextCtrl
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@li wxTextDataObject
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@li wxTextDropTarget
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@li wxTextEntryDialog
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@li wxTimer
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@li wxTimerEvent
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@li wxTimeSpan
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@li wxTipProvider
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@li wxToolBarTool
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@li wxToolBar
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@li wxToolTip
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@li wxTreeCtrl
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@li wxTreeEvent
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@li wxTreeItemData
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@li wxTreeItemId
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@li wxUpdateUIEvent
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@li wxValidator
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@li wxWindowDC
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@li wxWindow
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@li @ref wxFileSystem "wxZipFSHandler"
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@section overview_python_help Where to Go for Help
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Since wxPython is a blending of multiple technologies, help comes from multiple
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sources. See http://wxpython.org/ for details on various sources of help, but
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probably the best source is the wxPython-users mail list. You can view the
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archive or subscribe by going to http://wxpython.org/maillist.php
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Or you can send mail directly to the list using this address:
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wxpython-users@lists.wxwidgets.org
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*/
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