best practices: I'm doing it wrong

[mzimmers]

@mrjj thanks for the example. It appears that I was on the right track.

I'm trying to use your example as a model, but I'm getting a compiler error. Here's the header file:

#ifndef EDITDIALOG_H
#define EDITDIALOG_H

#include <QDialog>

namespace Ui {
class EditDialog;
}

class EditDialog : public QDialog
{
    Q_OBJECT

public:
    explicit EditDialog(QWidget *parent = nullptr);

private:
    Ui::EditDialog *ui;

signals:

public slots:
};

#endif // EDITDIALOG_H

and here's the source:

#include "editdialog.h"

EditDialog::EditDialog(QWidget *parent) : QDialog(parent), ui(new Ui::EditDialog)
{
}

But I'm getting a compiler error about an incomplete type Ui::EditDialog. I can't see what I'm missing; does anything look wrong to you?

Thanks...

[mrjj]

@mzimmers
Did you make it with UI ?
You seems to be missing
#include "ui_EditDialog .h"

[mzimmers]

I've never needed a line like #include "ui_EditDialog .h" before. But I did try including it, and I get the same error message.

Not sure what yopu mean by "make it with UI" though...

[mrjj]

@mzimmers
when you use the wizard to make a new class, you can select

and then base class

Then the besides .h and .cpp u have .ui file which you can use for visual designing.
that also adds the Ui::EditDialog *ui; to the class def.

if you dont want it, you can simply remove all of it.
and create widgets in code.

[mzimmers]

I'm doing something wrong. I deleted all my editdialog files, and recreated the .ui file. I then added the class, but Creator doesn't add the UI::EditDialog *ui for me.
EDIT: I think I found the problem -- used Qt Designer Form instead of Qt Designer Form Class. Will report back momentarily.

[mrjj]

@mzimmers
Yep the Designer form is without .h and cpp.
Use the Class version to get complete kit.

[kshegunov]

The name of the class follows what you give it for the root object in the form editor - right pane, topmost entry.

[mzimmers]

Based on input from a few people here, I've decided to leave the details in the main display disabled. The user will press an "edit" button which will create a QDialog with the details enabled for editing.

It's not a huge deal, but I will be performing redundant work if I just re-create the display elements for the details in the QDialog. Does it make sense to create an aggregate display element with all the details, and use this element in both the main and edit windows? Can .ui files be nested?

[mzimmers]

I've created an edit dialog, but I'm not able to map the individual elements to the model as I did in the main widget. I create the edit dialog like this:

DeviceModel *m_d;
...
void Widget::on_pushButtonEdit_clicked()
{
    EditDialog editDialog(m_d);
    QObject::connect(&editDialog, &EditDialog::editCommitPressed, this, &Widget::sendCommit);
    editDialog.exec();
}

And I try to map to the model like this (seemingly identical to how I do it in the main widget):

EditDialog::EditDialog(DeviceModel *d, QWidget *parent) :
    QDialog(parent),
    ui(new Ui::EditDialog)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);
    m_mapper = new QDataWidgetMapper(this);
    m_mapper->setModel(d->getModel());

    m_mapper->addMapping(ui->deviceName, TAG_DEVICENAME);

The mapping works in the main widget, but not for my edit dialog. Any ideas what I'm doing wrong? Thanks.

[VRonin]

Did you forget to connect to setCurrentModelIndex?

[mzimmers]

Well...maybe.

In my main widget, I have this line:

    QObject::connect(ui->tableView->selectionModel(), &QItemSelectionModel::currentRowChanged,
                     m_mapper, &QDataWidgetMapper::setCurrentModelIndex);

Wouldn't that be sufficient for anything using the same model?

[VRonin]

@mzimmers said in best practices: I'm doing it wrong:

for anything using the same model

The connect uses the selection of the view and the mapper so has nothing to do with the model.
If either the view or the m_mapper are different objects from those in the main window then you have to redo the connection

[mzimmers]

Oh, OK, I think I see the problem: since my edit dialog doesn't have a QTableView, there's no way to select a row (no table --> no rows). I guess I can't just have the details mapped without some table to give it context, right?

So, do I need an invisible table in my edit dialog, or is there some more clever way around this?

[VRonin]

No, you can also just straight call m_mapper->setCurrentModelIndex(index); where index is the index of the model you want to load without doing any connection

[mzimmers]

I'm getting a bad index back. Here's my c'tor:

EditDialog::EditDialog(DeviceModel *d, QWidget *parent) :
    QDialog(parent),
    ui(new Ui::EditDialog)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);
    m_mapper = new QDataWidgetMapper(this);
    m_mapper->setModel(d->getModel());

    int i = m_mapper->currentIndex();
    QModelIndex qmi = d->getModel()->index(i, 0);
    m_mapper->setCurrentModelIndex(qmi);

The variable i is set to (-1). What might I be doing wrong?

[VRonin]

create a public method in the dialog:
void EditDialog::loadIndex(const QModelIndex& idx){m_mapper->setCurrentModelIndex(idx);}

After EditDialog editDialog(m_d);, add
editDialog.loadIndex(ui->tableView->selectionModel()->currentIndex());

[mzimmers]

@VRonin a couple questions, please:

1. EditDialog doesn't have a method setCurrentModelIndex(). Perhaps you meant:

QDataWidgetMapper *m_mapper;
...
m_mapper.setCurrentModelIndex(ui->tableView->selectionModel()->currentIndex());

2. How does loadIndex() get invoked?

Thanks...

[VRonin]

Edited the answer above. editDialog.setCurrentModelIndex should have been editDialog.loadIndex sorry

[mzimmers]

Clever...very clever. So, to summarize:

1. it's generally a good idea to perform editing in a separate window/dialog.
2. create this window with new->Qt Designer Form Class; this create everything at once.
3. use the QDataWidgetMapper in the edit dialog to display the details from the model.
4. use VRonin's technique of setting the model index for the edit dialog by using the index from the parent window.

I'll edit the summary if anyone informs me of errata. Thanks for all the assistance.