windows

[Eric Brunel]

Peter Abel wrote:
> Ajay <abra9823 at mail.usyd.edu.au> wrote in message news:<mailman.4811.1097649067.5135.python-list at python.org>...
> 
>>hi!
>>
>>i have two tkinter windows on top of each other. i would like it so that
>>the user has to complete the fields in the top windows before they can
>>interact with the window below it. that is, i dont want the user to close
>>the top window or minimize it or send it into the background.
>>
>>how would i do it?
>>
>>thanks
>>
>>cheers
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>----------------------------------------------------------------
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> 
> 
> There are documentations which say that Tkinter.Toplevel has
> a methode .transient(root) which should make the Toplevel window
> transient to its root window.
> But I never managed to make it work.(W2K Python 2.2.2).

Read tk commands manual:

"""
wm transient window ?master?
     If master is specified, then the window manager is informed that window is 
a transient window (e.g. pull-down menu) working on behalf of master (where 
master is the path name for a top-level window). Some window managers will use 
this information to manage window specially.
"""

Nothing is said about which window should have the grab. And in fact, Windows 
actually does something when a window is made transient; try this in an 
interactive Python session:

 >>> from Tkinter import *
 >>> root = Tk()
 >>> wdw = Toplevel()
 >>> wdw.transient(root)

You can first notice that the minimize and maximize buttons have disappeared 
from the secondary window's title bar, and that the close button has shrinked a 
little. Then, if you try to put the main window above the secondary one, you'll 
see that you can't. But you can still make the main window active.

So transient is only part of the solution. You also want to set the grab on the 
secondary window, and then wait for the secondary window to close. Here is an 
example doing that:

--modal.py-------------------------------------------------
from Tkinter import *

root = Tk()

def go():
   wdw = Toplevel()
   Entry(wdw).pack()
   wdw.transient(root)
   wdw.grab_set()
   root.wait_window(wdw)
   print 'done!'

Button(root, text='Go', command=go).pack()
Button(root, text='Quit', command=root.quit).pack()

root.mainloop()
-----------------------------------------------------------

So this is the magical sequence to make a window modal in Tkinter: transient, 
grab_set, wait_window.

[snip]

HTH
-- 
- Eric Brunel <eric (underscore) brunel (at) despammed (dot) com> -
PragmaDev : Real Time Software Development Tools - http://www.pragmadev.com