TStyledDbNavigator Demo

Overview

This demo showcases TStyledDbNavigator and TStyledBindNavigator, comparing them with the standard VCL TDBNavigator and TBindNavigator. It demonstrates how to add modern styling to database navigation controls.

What You'll Learn

• How to use TStyledDbNavigator with datasets
• How to use TStyledBindNavigator with LiveBindings
• Comparison with standard navigators
• Configuring navigator appearance
• Custom button images
• Enabling/disabling buttons conditionally
• Horizontal and vertical layouts

Navigator Types

The demo compares three navigator types:

1. TDBNavigator (Standard VCL)

Classic database navigator for comparison.

2. TStyledDbNavigator

Styled version of TDBNavigator:

• Modern appearance
• Customizable styling
• Same functionality as TDBNavigator
• Compatible with all TDataSource datasets

3. TStyledBindNavigator

Styled navigator for LiveBindings:

• Works with TBindSourceDB
• Modern appearance
• LiveBindings integration

Dynamic Navigator Creation

Creating TStyledDbNavigator

procedure TfmStyledDbNavigator.CreateStyledDbNavigator;
begin
  FStyledDbNavigator := TStyledDbNavigator.Create(Self);
  FStyledDbNavigator.Flat := FLAT_BUTTONS;
  FStyledDbNavigator.ShowCaptions := SHOW_CAPTIONS;
  FStyledDbNavigator.Align := DBNAV_ALIGN;
  FStyledDbNavigator.Kind := DBNAV_KIND;  // dbnHorizontal or dbnVertical
  FStyledDbNavigator.Height := DBNAV_HEIGHT;
  FStyledDbNavigator.Width := DBNAV_WIDTH;
  FStyledDbNavigator.VisibleButtons := [nbFirst, nbPrior, nbNext, nbLast];
  FStyledDbNavigator.DataSource := DataSource;
  FStyledDbNavigator.Parent := Self;
end;

Creating TStyledBindNavigator

procedure TfmStyledDbNavigator.CreateStyledBindNavigator;
begin
  FStyledBindNavigator := TStyledBindNavigator.Create(Self);
  FStyledBindNavigator.Flat := FLAT_BUTTONS;
  FStyledBindNavigator.ShowCaptions := SHOW_CAPTIONS;
  FStyledBindNavigator.Align := DBNAV_ALIGN;
  FStyledBindNavigator.Kind := DBNAV_KIND;
  FStyledBindNavigator.VisibleButtons := [nbFirst, nbPrior, nbNext, nbLast];
  FStyledBindNavigator.DataSource := BindSourceDB;
  FStyledBindNavigator.Parent := Self;
end;

Navigator Buttons

Standard navigator buttons:

Button	TNavigateBtn	Action
First	nbFirst	Go to first record
Prior	nbPrior	Previous record
Next	nbNext	Next record
Last	nbLast	Go to last record
Insert	nbInsert	Insert new record
Delete	nbDelete	Delete current record
Edit	nbEdit	Edit current record
Post	nbPost	Save changes
Cancel	nbCancel	Cancel edits
Refresh	nbRefresh	Refresh dataset

Visible Buttons

Control which buttons appear:

Navigator.VisibleButtons := [nbFirst, nbPrior, nbNext, nbLast];
// Only show navigation buttons, hide edit buttons

Layout Modes

Horizontal Layout (dbnHorizontal)

Navigator.Kind := dbnHorizontal;
Navigator.Align := alTop;
Navigator.Height := 50;

Buttons arranged left-to-right.

Vertical Layout (dbnVertical)

Navigator.Kind := dbnVertical;
Navigator.Align := alLeft;
Navigator.Width := 50;

Buttons stacked top-to-bottom.

Appearance Options

Show Captions

Display text labels on buttons:

Navigator.ShowCaptions := True;

Flat Mode

Flat appearance without borders:

Navigator.Flat := True;

Button Sizing

Navigator.Width := 60;   // For vertical layout
Navigator.Height := 60;  // For horizontal layout

Custom Images

Replace default button images:

Navigator.Images := VirtualImageList1;

The demo includes a checkbox to toggle between default and custom images.

Conditional Button Enabling

The demo shows how to enable/disable buttons based on data:

procedure TfmStyledDbNavigator.StyledDBNavigatorEnableNavBtn(
  const ADbNavigator: TCustomStyledDBNavigator;
  const ABtn: TStyledNavButton;
  var AEnabled: Boolean);
begin
  // Disable Delete button always
  if (ABtn.Index = TNavigateBtn.nbDelete) then
    AEnabled := False;

  // Disable all buttons when Quantity = 3
  if AEnabled and (ClientDataSetQuantity.Value = 3) then
    AEnabled := False;
end;

This event fires for each button, allowing fine-grained control.

Sample Dataset

The demo uses a ClientDataSet with sample data:

• Fields: ID, CustomerID, ProductID, PurchaseDate, Time, PaymentType, PaymentAmount, Description, Quantity
• Display: DBGrid shows all records
• Navigation: Navigators control current record

Interactive Controls

Control	Function
Width Trackbar	Adjust navigator width
Height Trackbar	Adjust navigator height
Show Captions	Toggle button labels
Flat	Toggle flat appearance
Custom Images	Switch between default and custom icons

Comparison Grid

The demo displays navigators in a grid:

┌─────────────────┬─────────────────┐
│  TDBNavigator   │ TStyledDbNav    │
│   (Standard)    │   (Styled)      │
├─────────────────┼─────────────────┤
│  TBindNavigator │ TStyledBindNav  │
│   (Standard)    │   (Styled)      │
└─────────────────┴─────────────────┘

All navigators connect to the same dataset, showing synchronized navigation.

Event Handling

OnClick Event

Fires when user clicks a navigation button:

procedure NavigatorClick(Sender: TObject; Button: TNavigateBtn);
begin
  case Button of
    nbFirst: ShowMessage('First record');
    nbLast: ShowMessage('Last record');
    // ... handle other buttons
  end;
end;

BeforeAction Event

Fires before the action executes (can be cancelled):

procedure NavigatorBeforeAction(
  Sender: TObject; Button: TNavigateBtn);
begin
  if (Button = nbDelete) and not Confirm then
    Abort;  // Cancel the delete
end;

Key Differences from Standard Navigators

TStyledDbNavigator adds:

1. Modern Styling: Bootstrap, Angular, or custom styles
2. Consistent Appearance: Same look across Windows versions
3. Better Customization: Individual button styling
4. ShowCaptions Support: Built-in caption display
5. DPI Awareness: Automatic scaling
6. Extended Events: More control over button behavior

Styling Navigation Buttons

Apply styles to entire navigator:

Navigator.StyleFamily := BOOTSTRAP_FAMILY;
Navigator.StyleAppearance := BOOTSTRAP_OUTLINE;

Or style individual buttons in code.

Technical Details

Source Location

Demos/source/StyledDbNavigatorForm.pas

Supported Versions

All Delphi versions (XE6+)

Required Components

• TStyledDbNavigator - For TDataSet navigation
• TStyledBindNavigator - For LiveBindings navigation
• TDataSource or TBindSourceDB - Data connection

Key Properties

Property	Description
DataSource	TDataSource or TBindSourceDB link
Kind	dbnHorizontal or dbnVertical
VisibleButtons	Set of visible buttons
ShowCaptions	Display button labels
Flat	Flat appearance
Images	Custom button images
StyleFamily	Button style family
StyleClass	Button style class

See Also

• TStyledDbNavigator Reference - Complete DbNavigator documentation
• TStyledBindNavigator Reference - Complete BindNavigator documentation
• TStyledButton Reference - Base button component