IDE Development

This page contains notes for lazarus core developers about ongoing development.

Multi form properties / using DataModules from other forms in the designer

Short Description

This feature allows to use components of other designer forms. A common example is to use the TDataSource on a DataModule for the DataSource property of a db control. Designer forms can only reference each other if they have a CreateForm statement in the lpr file (Project Options / Forms).

Working

Manual referencing via source code works.

Some features are only enabled via -dEnableMultiFormProperties.

• TPersistentPropertyEditor.GetValues - List all possible values. Check for class compatibility and if the target form is listed in the CreateForm statements of the lpr file and if the target unit does not belong to a package that will conflict if used.
• TPersistentPropertyEditor.GetValue - Show component path
• TPersistentPropertyEditor.SetValue - search the component via the given path
• When component is deleted, the property must be set to nil - This is not the job of the IDE, but should be achieved by the normal TComponent FreeNotification feature. Maybe eventually a check could be added, if this is implemented properly and force a nil on error.
• When a component is renamed the property does not need to be updated, because the form is open and use the pointer not the name. But the designer must be flagged 'modified', because the lfm has changed. See below.
• When reference form is opened, then target forms are opened too.
• When target form is closed, then only the designer is closed. The component is kept hidden.
• When all referring forms are closed/hidden, the hidden component will be automatically freed.
• Circle dependencies are allowed.
• When referenced component is renamed, the using units must be set modified.
• When referenced component is deleted, the using units must be set modified.

ToDo

• Warn if a reference is found, that has no CreateForm statement in the lpr.

Translations, i18n, lrt files, po files

Short Description

This feature automatically creates and updates .po files for packages and projects.

Working

• Dialog options for project/package to enable i18n
• Collect TTranslateStrings from RTTI while designer form writing and writing them to lrt file.
• Copying new strings from rst and lrt files to a single .po file for each package/project
• load the .po files

ToDo

• Delete unused strings from the .po file of package/projects
• Update translated .po files, similar to the updatepofiles tool.
• Collect all .po files of project and all used packages into a directory. This directory can then be used by the project to load the strings at runtime. And installers can copy the content.
• standardize filenames and path, so that loading the translations at runtime is possible without writing code.

Frames

Short Description

Frames are special child forms. The goal is to edit them like forms in the IDE designer, and to use them as components on designer forms.

Working

• Manually creating via source

ToDo

• Open a frame in the designer
• Create a new frame
• many more ...

UTF-8 Sources

Short Description

The IDE should open sources in various encodings, convert them on the fly during loading to UTF-8 and convert them back on saving. The IDE should help to convert sources of whole projects and packages to UTF-8.

Working

• Simple and slow test conversion functions for some encodings.

ToDo

• menu items to change the encoding of a file
• IDE tools to convert source files to UTF-8. The IDE should be so clever to convert only files, which encodings it recognizes.