You can simplify the definition of button areas with many buttons by creating and re-using button area components. Creating such components does not differ from creating regular button area objects. Every button area can also be a button area component. A component is used in a superordinate button area with the help of a component placeholder. As a result the superordinate button area is extended by the buttons of the component. For the different kinds of buttons this means:
Note! In top button areas (toolbars) only push button components are useful. In mask button areas only components with push buttons and/or index cards and in radio button areas only components with radio buttons are useful.
Note! The nesting depth of button area components is limited to ten levels in order to prevent infinite loops.
How to define and use button area components:
In order to simplify the positioning of objects in the superordinate button area you should assign the row- and column position 0 to the reference button (upper left button) - e.g. for a block of push buttons.
The row and column position of a block of push buttons for instance now results from adding the button positions in the component itself (0 as an ideal case) and the position defined in the menu-item relation.
If you reconfigure a button area component in local memory, DataView will automatically update all button areas in main memory which the component is assigned to (also indirectly). Thus, superordinate objects already loaded into main memory will not have to be explicitly reconfigured.