[RESOLVED] Get control collection from mdi active child form

[tassa]

Hi,

After getting the current mdi active child form, how can I get it's control collection so I can access their data?

Thanks in advance!

[jmcilhinney]

That would be its Controls property.

[tassa]

Yes, sorry, I now see I have explained myself poorly.

I have a MDI form, which adds a user control (which has three textboxes) in each MDIChildForm. When adding the control I create a new instance like so:

Private Sub ShowNewForm(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs) Handles NewToolStripMenuItem.Click, NewToolStripButton.Click, NewWindowToolStripMenuItem.Click
        ' Create a new instance of the child form.
        Dim ChildForm As New System.Windows.Forms.Form
        ' Make it a child of this MDI form before showing it.
        ChildForm.MdiParent = Me
 
        m_ChildFormNumber += 1
        ChildForm.Text = "Untitled " & m_ChildFormNumber
 
        ChildForm.Controls.Add(New UserControl)
        ChildForm.Show()
    End Sub

I want to get the control collection to harvest the data inputed by the user in each textbox. I had created read only properties in the user control so it would be easier, but, for some reason, when reading it comes back empty.

[jmcilhinney]

Why create Form instances like that? Why not design a form that already has the UC on it and then just create instances of that? You can then add properties to that form that will expose the data from the UC.

[tassa]

If I understand correctly you mean create a Form2 with the user control and use that form as a child of Form1 (or main form) and then get the data how? (I'm sorry, I'm really lost with getting the data).

[jmcilhinney]

No you're not. You've already done it. You said yourself that you declared ReadOnly properties in the UserControl so you could get the data. If you get the data from the UC from properties, how do you suppose you get it from the form? You guessed it: properties. Whatever properties you have on the UC, you declare the same properties on the form. The form properties then simply pass through the UC properties, just as the UC is probably passing through the properties of its children.

[tassa]

So all I have to do is get the property of the active window and voilà ! THANKS!

[tassa]

This how I've set the property of the UC and the second form: (In the UC, would be 'Me' instead of UC)

Public Class Form2
    Public ReadOnly Property Author() As String
        Get
            Return UC.TextBox1.Text
        End Get
    End Property
 
    Public ReadOnly Property Title() As String
        Get
            Return UC.TextBox2.Text
        End Get
    End Property
 
    Public ReadOnly Property Notes() As String
        Get
            Return UC.TextBox3.Text
        End Get
    End Property
End Class

How would I access these in the parent form? Like so?

Private Sub SaveToolStripMenuItem_Click(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs) Handles SaveToolStripButton.Click, SaveToolStripMenuItem.Click
        Dim _author As String = Form2.Author
        Dim _title As String = Form2.Title
        Dim _notes As String = Form2.Notes
 
        'Do something with them
    End Sub

[tassa]

Thanks! I've got it now!