If you have done any Silverlight development, then you are familiar with the Canvas, the Grid and the StackPanel.
All 3 containers are unique in their own way. But they all have some limitations/drawbacks. Let's see:
1: The Canvas:
<Canvas Background="Blue">
<TextBlock Height="50" Width="50" Canvas.Left="15" Canvas.Top="15" />
</Canvas>
I don't want to pixelate my items.
2: The StackPanel:
<StackPanel>
<TextBlock Height="50" Width="50" />
<TextBlock Height="50" Width="50" />
</StackPanel>
Just not rich enough to do any complex layouts.
3: The Grid:
<Grid Background="Silver">
<Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
<ColumnDefinition Width="*2" />
<ColumnDefinition Width="*1" />
</Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
<Grid.RowDefinitions>
<RowDefinition Height="50" />
<RowDefinition Height="100" />
</Grid.RowDefinitions>
<TextBlock Height="50" Width="50" Grid.Row="1" Grid.Column="1"/>
</Grid>
Yes, I can define a very complex layout using the Grid. But I am still required to place my items inside "a" cell by specifying
the Grid.Row and Grid.Column attributes on each individual item. I also need to decide, how may rows and columns my page has.
This just does not feel natural.
To address this, Developer Express is working on a special LayoutControl container that will eliminate these hassles. All you have to do is specify where you want
your items placed. Left, Right, Top or Bottom.
<DockedLayoutControl x:Name="layoutItems" DockedLayoutControl.Dock="Client">
<TextBlock Text="My Top Text" DockedLayoutControl.Dock="Left"/>
<TextBlock Text="My Bottom Text" DockedLayoutControl.Dock="Bottom"/>
</DockedLayoutControl>
Here is a screen shot of a layout done using a DockedLayoutControl.
Next time, we will look at another layout control that we are working on, called the FlowLayoutControl.