Chapter 2. Exploring wxGlade
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# Chapter 2. Exploring wxGlade

## Quick start

We will design a simple form.

Start wxGlade by running the wxglade program on Unix platforms or the wxglade.pyw program on Microsoft Windows.

You will see a Main Palette with several buttons, and a Tree Window with an icon marked Application. A Properties Window shows the properties of the Application.

If you move the mouse over a button in the main window, a tooltip will display its function.

To add a frame in the design window, from the Main Palette choose the first button: “Add a frame”.

Then choose `wxFrame` as the base class.

Look at the tree window and see that two icons are generated under the application icon, a frame icon and a sizer icon.

If you double click with the mouse on the frame icon, the designer window appears. Notice that the sizer is displayed as a set of gray boxes: they are the “slots” of the grid sizer where you will place the widgets.

You put a widget on a sizer by selecting it on the Main Window, then click on an empty slot on the frame on the designer window. Try adding a static text, a text control and a button.

If you want to add something else, add empty slots on the sizer by right-clicking on the sizer on the tree window and selecting “Add slot”.

Play around, adding four or five widgets on the frame.

Now look at the properties form; there are three tabs. In the “Common” tab you can specify the name, size and color of the widget.

In the “Layout” tab you can adjust borders and alignments.

In the “Widget” tab you find the properties depending on the widget.

You can select the properties of a widget by clicking on the designer window or the corresponding icon on the tree window.

Try adjusting widgets with the properties form until you know you have played enough.

Now let's generate the code.

Select the Application icon on the tree window and go to the properties window.

Check Name and Class, choose a “Top window”, check “Single file” and choose the language and set the “Output path” by pushing the button for selecting a path and a filename.

Finally press the “Generate code” button, and the code is generated.

Compile and enjoy.

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