OpenNETCF.IoC Framework

Closed Issue: Feature Request: Add non-XML-based (preferrably fluent) Dynamic Registration interface [2758]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:45:10 GMT

We need to add some mechanism to make programmatic registration of modules easier. One that doesn't require XML, and preferrably fluent (since that seems to be the way everyone else is migrating).
Comments: Change set 71475 added GetModuleAssemblies to the IModuleInfoStore interface. You can now return an array of assemblies here and they will get inspected for modules and loaded. It's not fluent, but it's an alternative to XML.

Closed Feature: Feature Request: IModule loading without UI [6870]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:43:16 GMT

Right now the ModuleInfoStoreService (the thing that loads IModules - which are essentially plug-ins) is tied to the SmartClientApplication, which in turn required WinForms. IModules shouldn't be tied to UI requirements first, becasue it's bad form, but also becasue it makes it so you can't reasonably use the IModule loading feature on platforms like Mono where WinForms don't exist.

Extract the IModule loading system out of the UI assembly and down into IoC. Make it no UI dependent. Keep it performant, or better yet, make it faster. Maintain existing compatibility.
Comments: This is fixed, though I don't recall exactly when I fixed it. The latest change set (71475) definitely has it.

Closed Issue: Feature: Allow loading module assemblies without XML [7372]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:41:47 GMT

In some cases I'd like to be able to load assemblies with my own logic, rather than from XML. Being able to just load the Assemblies myself and passing them into the IoC framework for Module inspection would be useful.
Comments: Implemented in change set 71475

Closed Feature: Feature: Access to the Shell Form in SmartClientApplication [7371]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:41:23 GMT

If I create a typical IoC.UI SmartClientApplication, the shell form is created for me based on a generic type reference. That's great. But it's causing me a problem with app shutdown.

Right now I have an app that hides the OS taskbar (CE) on startup. On shutdown, I'd like it to show it again. My Form shell form hides the Task Bar in the constructor and there's code to re-show it in the Dispose method, but Dispose is never getting called - I think the runtime exits before that can happen.

What I need is access to the shell form's instance up in the SmartClientApplication so I can call in and re-show the task bar after Start method exits.
Comments: Implemented in change set 71475

Source code checked in, #71475

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:40:04 GMT

- Added explicit call to shell form's Dispose in SmartClientApplication shutdown - Added virtual OnApplicationClose method to SmartClientApplication<T> - Added GetModuleAssemblies method to the IModuleInfoStore interface

Created Issue: Feature: Allow loading module assemblies without XML [7372]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:38:02 GMT

Commented Feature: Feature: Access to the Shell Form in SmartClientApplication [7371]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:30:38 GMT

Oh, and maybe explicitly Disposing the shell for before exiting would be a good thing as well.

Created Feature: Feature: Access to the Shell Form in SmartClientApplication [7371]

ctacke — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:29:59 GMT

Created Feature: Feature Request: Load Modules by Assembly [7326]

ctacke — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 02:17:45 GMT

Currently the IModuleInfoStore uses XML to define what Modules get loaded. This isn't terribly friendly, especially for platforms like Android. It would be nice if I could just pass back an array of Assemblies that my InfoStore loaded and have IoC scan that for IModules to load.

Created Feature: Feature Request: Add usage analytics/metrics [7267]

ctacke — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 14:31:11 GMT

If your app is using IoC, then a lot of calls get funneled through some very discrete points in the code. It might be useful and interesting to add at least some basic counters to help developers profile application usage. For example, keeping a running count of SmartPart activations could tell a developer the relative "popularity" of a given View. keeping a count of service resolutions by type could likewise indicate which services are most used. This wouldn't take the place of full app instrumentation, but it could provide some simple, easy data to help developers decide where efforts are best spent.

Closed Issue: Automatic textbox focus on loading [7137]

ctacke — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:10:19 GMT

I would like for my SmartPart to have it's first textbox focused on when it loads. I have the below code in the OnActivated() method of my SmartPart:

public override void OnActivated()
{
base.OnActivated();
txtUserName.Focus();
}

However, after the workspace.Show method is called by the DeckWorkspace, the textbox is not focused.

I can make a sub-classes of the DeckWorkspace and SmartPart with auto-focus methods added, but is there a way that doesn't use new classes?
Comments: Fixed with latest change set

Commented Issue: Automatic textbox focus on loading [7137]

ctacke — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:09:55 GMT

It turns out that the CF has a different behavior than the desktop. A Form's Visibility doesn't change until after the ctor has run. Well a control's visibility cannot be set to true if it's containers are not visible, and things like SetFocus are ignored if a control is not visible. The end result is that on the first creation of the Form, SetFocus was failing - for every time after that (when just showing and hiding) it was working fine.

The net result is that I've fixed the issue, though if you try to start a Form hidden, it now might interrupt that process. We'll see if anyone flags that as a problem.

Source code checked in, #71035

ctacke — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:04:52 GMT

Workaround for CF-specific visibility on startup issue

Commented Issue: Automatic textbox focus on loading [7137]

pbond — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 21:22:20 GMT

I would like for my SmartPart to have it's first textbox focused on when it loads. I have the below code in the OnActivated() method of my SmartPart:
 
public override void OnActivated()
{
 base.OnActivated();
 txtUserName.Focus();
}
 
However, after the workspace.Show method is called by the DeckWorkspace, the textbox is not focused.
 
I can make a sub-classes of the DeckWorkspace and SmartPart with auto-focus methods added, but is there a way that doesn't use new classes?
Comments: ** Comment from web user: pbond **

I can reproduce issue on WorkspaceDisposal sample (Compact Framework on Pocket PC 2003 emulator)

Issue also reproducible on real Windows CE devices

```
//Constructor
deckWorkspace1.Add(view); //
view.Show(); // OnActivated event occurs , but textbox control is not focused

// Button event handler
view.Hide(); //
view.Show(); // text box control is focused

```

Commented Issue: Automatic textbox focus on loading [7137]

pbond — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 11:55:30 GMT

I can reproduce issue on OpennetCF.IOC.CF

Updated Wiki: Home

ctacke — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 14:47:49 GMT

The OpenNETCF.IoC Framework it is a public-domain-licensed (you can't get any more free and unencumbered than that) framework written in C# (framework version 3.5) that provides both inversion of control and dependency injection for applications running on any or all of the following platforms:

.NET Compact Framework 2.0 or 3.5
.NET Framework 3.5 or 4.0
Windows Phone 7
Mono for Android (MonoDroid)
iPhone/MonoTouch

It's roughly modelled after Microsoft's SCSF and CAB frameworks, but it's scaled down and optimized for running on mobile and embedded devices, plus I "fixed" stuff that I think the SCSF got wrong (like having a static, globally available RootWorkItem and the ability to insert IMessageFilters into the application's message pump).

This framework is in use in several commercial applications (both desktop and CF) already, so it's been pretty heavily tested and vetted. I still want to add a few more features as well and go back through it looking for performance optimizations, but it certainly has enough features to be used in applications today.

This release also ships with a full-blown, real-world sample application, not just the typical "Northwind" type of application. The sample is called WiFiSurvey and it can be used to survey WiFi AP coverage of a site and to monitor associated AP changes as well as network addressability of a device.

WiFiSurvey has a Configuration service, a SQL CE 3.5-backed Data Access Layer, an Infrastructure module and a an application shell all of which are fully decoupled from one another and that are all loaded dynamically using an XML definition file. The shell makes use of both a DeckWorkspace and a TabWorkspace, showing you not just how to use them, but also how to create your own workspaces if need be.

The WiFiSurvey application has a single source base for all target platforms and has been tested on the following platforms:

ARM-based CE 6.0 with a 320x240 (landscape) display.
Pocket PC 2003 240x320 (portrait)
WinMo 5.0 240x320 (portrait and landscape)
The IoC framework has additionally been tested on x86-based CE 5.0 and CE 6.0 devices.

As a side note, the WiFiSurvey sample application is also a good example of using the OpenNETCF Smart Device Framework for getting wireless information.

The Basics

Dependency Injection
Event Aggregation
Model-View-Presenter/Controller Features

Tutorials

Performance

The OpenNETCF IoC Framework, for Singleton registration and resolution anyway, outperforms other popular IoC frameworks such as Ninject, Unity, Castle Windsor, Structure Map and AutoFac. For a brief overview of the performance differences, see the following blog entry:

Benchmarking OpenNETCF's IoC Framework

Common Service Locator Adapter

As of version 1.0.9280, we also support an adapter for the Microsoft Patterns and Practices team's CommonServiceLocator project.
Download the adapter and tests for it over on the Downloads page.

Usage examples

We understand that we need to document the library better. One of the pitfalls of creating open source projects is that there are often more questions than the developers can answer and we have to decide whether time is better spent adding features or documenting. As an attempt to provide some developer help, below are links to real-world applications (where the source code is available) that use IoC that may be useful as implementation examples.

OpenNETCF MTConnect VirtualAgent
OpenNETCF ORM - the desktop source includes an Entity Generator which is a wizard-based application that uses IoC

Source code checked in, #70819

ctacke — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 00:10:18 GMT

Support added for CF 2.0

New Post: At Workspace Add method, SmartPart added to RootWorkItem.SmartParts already exist

ctacke — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 18:50:08 GMT

Thanks for the report. I've included this fix in my latest check-in (earlier today).

Source code checked in, #70599

ctacke — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 16:11:50 GMT

- Bug fix in Workspace (re-adding controls caused collision) - ShellReplacement is no longer abstract (broke Forms designer)

New Post: At Workspace Add method, SmartPart added to RootWorkItem.SmartParts already exist

fduzceker — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:37:35 GMT

public void ShowControl()
{
// get smartpart from container
var existingPart = RootWorkItem.SmartParts["MySmartPart"];

// if we called "Close" on the SmartPart, it will no longer be in the collection
if (existingPart == null)
{
Debug.WriteLine("Recreating 'MySmartPart'...");

// Addnew smartpart and ObjectFactory.DoInjections working
existingPart = RootWorkItem.SmartParts.AddNew<UserControl1>("MySmartPart");
existingPart.Name = "MySmartPart";
}

// Show it

// WorkSpace Show ->OnShow -> Add -> RootWorkItem.SmartParts.Add and twice ObjectFactory.DoInjections working

// if there is a EventSubcription. Event invoke twice.
RootWorkItem.Workspaces[WorkspaceNames.Main].Show(existingPart);
}

I Changed WorkSpace.cs

/// <summary>
/// Adds a SmartPart to the Workspace without showing it
/// </summary>
/// <param name="smartPart"></param>
public virtual void Add(ISmartPart smartPart)
{
if (smartPart == null) throw new ArgumentNullException("smartPart");

this.InvokeIfRequired(d =>
{
var control = smartPart as Control;
if (control == null) throw new ArgumentException("smartPart must be a Control");

if (!SmartParts.Contains(smartPart))
{
smartPart.Workspace = this;
m_smartParts.Add(smartPart);

// I added if statement
if (!RootWorkItem.SmartParts.ContainsObject(smartPart))
RootWorkItem.SmartParts.Add(smartPart, Guid.NewGuid().ToString());
this.Controls.Add(control);
}
});
}