wxPython custom SplashScreen with progress gauge - python

How do I create a custom splash screen in wxPython that has a loading bar and begins automatically on startup?
My answer with a code sample is below.

I'd been trying to create a custom splash screen that incorporated a progress gauge (loading bar) using wxPython that loaded automatically on start up. After some tweaking, I was finally able to create one. In order to do this, I had to override the application's MainLoop() method. Below is the Application module I used.
class Application(wx.App):
"""Inherits from wx.App and serves as the entry point for the wxPython application.
To run the program, an instance of this class is created and its method "MainLoop" is called.
"""
def __init__(self):
"""Initializes our wx.App by calling its super method. It also instantiates a new
ApplicationManager which manages the different components of the project session.
"""
wx.App.__init__(self, redirect = False)
def OnInit(self):
"""Instantiates the main frame. The OnInit method is only available for classes that derive
wx.App. Override this method to do application initialization.
"""
self.appManager = ApplicationManager()
self.appManager.applicationFrame = ApplicationFrame(self)
self.appManager.splashScreen = SplashScreenDialog()
self.keepRunning = True
return True
def MainLoop(self):
"""This function is overridden to allow the splash screen to load properly at the start
of the application. On the first loop, the method displays the splash screen and loads
the necessary files. When the application is closed, the keepRunning variable is set
to false (see ApplicationFrame) and the while loop is ended.
"""
self.loadedSplashScreen = False
# Create an event loop and make it active. If you are only going to temporarily have a nested
# event loop then you should get a reference to the old one and set it as the active event
# loop when you are done with this one...
eventLoop = wx.GUIEventLoop()
oldEventLoop = wx.EventLoop.GetActive()
wx.EventLoop.SetActive(eventLoop)
# This outer loop determines when to exit the application, for this example we let the main
# frame reset this flag when it closes.
while self.keepRunning:
# At this point in the outer loop you could do whatever you implemented your own MainLoop
# for. It should be quick and non-blocking, otherwise your GUI will freeze.
# Place splash screen events on the stack
if (not self.loadedSplashScreen):
self.appManager.splashScreen.Show(True)
# This inner loop will process any GUI events until there are no more waiting.
while eventLoop.Pending():
eventLoop.Dispatch()
if (not self.loadedSplashScreen):
for i in range(0,10000000):
# Do loading stuff here
j = float(i/100000.0)
self.appManager.splashScreen.gauge.SetValue(j)
self.appManager.splashScreen.Close()
self.appManager.applicationFrame.Show(True)
self.SetTopWindow(self.appManager.applicationFrame)
self.loadedSplashScreen = True
# Send idle events to idle handlers. This may need to be throttle back so
# there is not too much CPU time spent in the idle handlers.
time.sleep(0.10) # Throttling back
eventLoop.ProcessIdle()
wx.EventLoop.SetActive(oldEventLoop)
When you close the application, you need to set self.keepRunning to false in order for the MainLoop() method to finish. Hope this helps!

Related

wxPython: frame class loads several commands AFTER it is called

I have a function that runs a few intensive commands, so I made a Spinner class, which is just a simple window that appears with a wx.Gauge widget that pulses during loading.
The problem is that, when called in Run, the window doesn't appear until several seconds after it was initialized - self.TriangulatePoints() actually finishes before the window appears. Indeed, if I don't comment out load.End() (which closes the window), the Spinner instance will appear and immediately disappear.
I assume this has something to do with threading, and the program continues to run while Spinner initiates. Is this the case? And if so, can you pause progression of Run() until the Spinner window appears?
It should also be noted that running time.sleep(n) after calling Spinner(...) does not change when in the program sequence it appears on screen.
def Run(self, event):
gis.points_packed = False
gis.triangulated = False
load = Spinner(self, style=wx.DEFAULT_FRAME_STYLE & (~wx.CLOSE_BOX) & (~wx.MAXIMIZE_BOX) ^ (wx.RESIZE_BORDER) & (~wx.MINIMIZE_BOX))
load.Update('Circle packing points...')
gis.boundary(infile=gis.loaded_boundary)
load.Pulse()
self.GetPoints(None, show=False)
load.Update("Triangulating nodes...")
self.TriangulatePoints(None, show=True)
load.End()
########################################################
class Spinner(wx.Frame):
def __init__(self, *args, **kwds):
super(Spinner, self).__init__(*args, **kwds)
self.SetSize((300,80))
self.SetTitle('Loading')
process = "Loading..."
self.font = wx.Font(pointSize = 12, family = wx.DEFAULT,
style = wx.NORMAL, weight = wx.BOLD,
faceName = 'Arial')
self.process_txt = wx.StaticText(self, -1, process)
self.process_txt.SetFont(self.font)
self.progress = wx.Gauge(self, id=-1, range=100, pos=(10,30), size=(280,15), name="Loading")
self.Update(process)
self.Centre()
self.Show(True)
def End(self):
self.Close(True)
def Update(self,txt):
dc = wx.ScreenDC()
dc.SetFont(self.font)
tsize = dc.GetTextExtent(txt)
self.process_txt.SetPosition((300/2-tsize[0]/2,10))
self.process_txt.SetLabel(txt)
self.progress.Pulse()
def Pulse(self):
self.progress.Pulse()
There doesn't seem to be any threads in the code you show, so it's really not clear why do you think this has anything to do with threading. Quite the contrary, in fact: AFAICS this is due to not using threads. You should run your long running ("intensive") code in a worker thread, then things would work and display correctly in the UI.
You can't block the main, UI thread for any non-trivial amount of time and still expect the UI to update correctly.
By adding wx.Yield() immediately after load.Update('...'), I was able to fix the problem.
I found the solution through a post that Robin Dunn (#RobinDunn), one of the original authors of wxPython, wrote in a Google group:
As Micah mentioned the various yield functions are essentially a
nested event loop that reads and dispatches pending events from the
event queue. When the queue is empty then the yield function returns.
The reason [wx.Yield()] fixes the problem you are seeing is that your long
running tasks are preventing control from returning to the main event
loop and so the paint event for your custom widget will just sit in
the queue until the long running task completes and control is
allowed to return to the main loop. Adding the yield allows those
events to be processed sooner, but you may still have problems when
the long running task does finally run because any new events that
need to be processed during that time (for example, the user clicks a
Cancel button) will still have to wait until the LRT is finished.
Another issue to watch out for when using a yield function is that it
could lead to an unexpected recursion. For example you have a LRT
that periodically calls yield so events can be processed, but one of
the events that happens is one whose event handler starts the LRT
again.
So usually it is better to use some other way to prevent blocking of
events while running a the LRT, such as breaking it up into chunks
that are run from EVT_IDLE handlers, or using a thread.

Runtime progress status (like statusbar) in python

I'm trying to create simple progress status label for my Pyqt5 Python code and update it after every iteration of a loop in which a function does a bunch of stuff. The label I want to be updated is "status_label_counter". The below code only shows the part for creating labels and the exact place where I want to use the functionality I've mentioned.
#initialisation code, etc...
self.status_label_counter = QLabel()
self.status_label_from = QLabel(' from: ')
self.status_label_total = QLabel()
status_hbox = QHBoxLayout()
status_hbox.addStretch()
status_hbox.addWidget(self.status_label_counter)
status_hbox.addWidget(self.status_label_from)
status_hbox.addWidget(self.status_label_total)
status_hbox.addStretch()
#bunch of other code...
def create_ics(self):
counter = 0
self.status_label_total.setText(str(len(self.groups)))
for group in self.groups:
#does a bunch of stuff inside
group_manager.create_calendar_for(self.rows, group, self.term)
counter += 1
#for console output
print('iteration: ', counter)
#trying to update status counter
self.status_label_counter.setText(str(counter))
The problem is that I only see the update of both labels when the loop is done with the nested function. When I click a button that calls for "create_ics" function window becomes inactive for about 5 seconds, I see logs on console with count of iterations, but nothing happens in view.
The view (Qt) is locked in your main thread and never gets its chance to process its event loop and thus redraw itself. If you really want to do it this way, call:
self.status_label_counter.repaint()
After you set the text (and if you have some complex layout measuring call QApplication.processEvents() instead).
However, much better option would be to run your create_ics() function in a separate thread leaving your main thread to deal with the view and Qt's event processing. You can do it either through standard Python's threading module, or using Qt's own QThread: https://nikolak.com/pyqt-threading-tutorial/ .

How to make QtGui window process events whenever it is brought forward on the screen?

I'm using PyQt for Python, and am building a gui. I had a problem a few weeks ago where I had a function outside of the gui module modifying widgets within the gui (advanced progress bar, updating strings, etc.), and those modifications were not reflected in the gui until the function that had made the changes finished running.
The solution to this was to simply call app.processEvents() after doing whatever modifications I wanted, which would immediately update the graphics of the window.
But now I am wondering, is there a way to do this everytime the window is brought forward?
Let's say I have called a function that will be modifying the progress bar, but this function takes quite a while to run. Inbetween calling the function, and the progress bar modification, the app processes no events. So, it during this time, I pull up a Chrome window (or anything else), and then close it, my gui window is blank, just gray, until app.processEvents() is called again.
Is ther functionality in PyQt that allows me to detect whenever the window is brought to the front of all current windows?
You should look into QThread.
Threads allow you to run long, complicated tasks in a worker thread while a background thread keeps the GUI responsive, such as updating a QProgressBar, ensuring it responds to motion events.
The basic idea is this:
# load modules
import time
from PySide import QtCore, QtGui
# APPLICATION STUFF
# -----------------
APP = QtGui.QApplication([])
# THREADS
# -------
class WorkerThread(QtCore.QThread):
'''Does the work'''
def __init__(self):
super(WorkerThread, self).__init__()
self.running = True
def run(self):
'''This starts the thread on the start() call'''
# this goes over 1000 numbers, at 10 a second, will take
# 100 seconds to complete, over a minute
for i in range(1000):
print(i)
time.sleep(0.1)
self.running = False
class BackgroundThread(QtCore.QThread):
'''Keeps the main loop responsive'''
def __init__(self, worker):
super(BackgroundThread, self).__init__()
self.worker = worker
def run(self):
'''This starts the thread on the start() call'''
while self.worker.running:
APP.processEvents()
print("Updating the main loop")
time.sleep(0.1)
# MAIN
# ----
def main():
# make threads
worker = WorkerThread()
background = BackgroundThread(worker)
# start the threads
worker.start()
background.start()
# wait until done
worker.wait()
if __name__ == '__main__':
main()
The output you get is something like this, showing how it takes turns at doing the long calculation and updating the main loop:
0
Updating the main loop
1
Updating the main loop
2
Updating the main loop
3
Updating the main loop
4
Updating the main loop
5
Updating the main loop
6
Updating the main loop
Updating the main loop7
8
Updating the main loop
9
This along with a QFocusEvent override should allow you to do whatever you wish. But it's better to separate updating the GUI and running your desired long thread.
As for overriding the QFocusEvent you can do something as follows:
def focusInEvent(self, event):
event.accept()
# insert your code here
And if you choose to implement threads to avoid GUI blocking, you should read about the basics of threading (as threads have a lot of nuances unless you know about their potential pitfalls).

Create a python tkinter window with no X (close) button

I'm writing a 'wizard' type Python Tkinter GUI that collects information from the user and then performs several actions based on the user's entries: file copying, DB updates, etc. The processing normally takes 30-60 seconds and during that time, I want to:
Provide the user with text updates on the activity and progress
Prevent the user from closing the app until it's finished what it's doing
I started on the route of having the text updates appear in a child window that's configured to be trainsient and using wait_window to pause the main loop until the activities are done. This worked fine for other custom dialog boxes I created which have OK/cancel buttons that call the window's destroy method. The basic approach is:
def myCustomDialog(parent,*args):
winCDLG = _cdlgWin(parent,*args)
winCDLG.showWin()
winCDLG.dlgWin.focus_set()
winCDLG.dlgWin.grab_set()
winCDLG.dlgWin.transient(parent)
winCDLG.dlgWin.wait_window(winCDLG.dlgWin)
return winCDLG.userResponse
class _cdlgWin():
def __init__(self,parent,*args):
self.parent = parent
self.dlgWin = tk.Toplevel()
self.userResponse = ''
def showWin(self):
#Tkinter widgets and geometry defined here
def _btnOKClick(self):
#self.userResponse assigned from user entry/entries on dialog
self.dlgWin.destroy()
def _btnCancelClick(self):
self.dlgWin.destroy()
However this approach isn't working for the new monitor-and-update dialog I want to create.
First, because there's no user-initiated action to trigger the copy/update activities and then the destroy, I have to put them either in showWin, or in another method. I've tried both ways but I'm stuck between a race condition (the code completes the copy/update stuff but then tries to destroy the window before it's there), and never executing the copy/update stuff in the first place because it hits the wait_window before I can activate the other method.
If I could figure out a way past that, then the secondary problem (preventing the user from closing the child window before the work's done) is covered by the answers below.
So... is there any kind of bandaid I could apply to make this approach work the way I want? Or do I need to just scrap this because it can't work? (And if it's the latter, is there any way I can accomplish the original goal?)
self.dlgWin.overrideredirect(1) will remove all of the buttons (make a borderless window). Is that what you're looking for?
As far as I know, window control buttons are implemented by the window manager, so I think it is not possible to just remove one of them with Tkinter (I am not 100% sure though). The common solution for this problem is to set a callback to the protocol WM_DELETE_WINDOW and use it to control the behaviour of the window:
class _cdlgWin():
def __init__(self,parent,*args):
self.parent = parent
self.dlgWin = tk.Toplevel()
self.dlgWin.protocol('WM_DELETE_WINDOW', self.close)
self.userResponse = ''
def close(self):
tkMessageBox.showwarning('Warning!',
'The pending action has not finished yet')
# ...

wxPython: Threading GUI --> Using Custom Event Handler

I am trying to learn how to run a thread off the main GUI app to do my serial port sending/receiving while keeping my GUI alive. My best Googling attempts have landed me at the wxpython wiki on: http://wiki.wxpython.org/LongRunningTasks which provides several examples. I have settled on learning the first example, involving starting a worker thread when the particular button is selected.
I am having trouble understanding the custom-event-definition:
def EVT_RESULT(win, func):
"""Define Result Event."""
win.Connect(-1, -1, EVT_RESULT_ID, func)
class ResultEvent(wx.PyEvent):
"""Simple event to carry arbitrary result data."""
def __init__(self, data):
"""Init Result Event."""
wx.PyEvent.__init__(self)
self.SetEventType(EVT_RESULT_ID)
self.data = data
Primarily the
def EVT_RESULT(win, func):
"""Define Result Event."""
win.Connect(-1, -1, EVT_RESULT_ID, func)
I think EVT_RESULT is placed outside the classes so as to make it call-able by both classes (making it global?)
And.. the main GUI app monitors the thread's progress via:
# Set up event handler for any worker thread results
EVT_RESULT(self,self.OnResult)
I also notice that in a lot of examples, when the writer uses
from wx import *
they simply bind things by
EVT_SOME_NEW_EVENT(self, self.handler)
as opposed to
wx.Bind(EVT_SOME_NEW_EVENT, self.handler)
Which doesn't help me understand it any faster.
Thanks,
That's the old style of defining custom events. See the migration guide for more information.
Taken from the migration guide:
If you create your own custom event
types and EVT_* functions, and you
want to be able to use them with the
Bind method above then you should
change your EVT_* to be an instance of wx.PyEventBinder instead of a
function. For example, if you used to
have something like this:
myCustomEventType = wxNewEventType()
def EVT_MY_CUSTOM_EVENT(win, id, func):
win.Connect(id, -1, myCustomEventType, func)
Change it like so:
myCustomEventType = wx.NewEventType()
EVT_MY_CUSTOM_EVENT = wx.PyEventBinder(myCustomEventType, 1)
Here is another post that I made with a couple of example programs that do exactly what you are looking for.
You can define events like this:
from wx.lib.newevent import NewEvent
ResultEvent, EVT_RESULT = NewEvent()
You post the event like this:
wx.PostEvent(handler, ResultEvent(data=data))
Bind it like this:
def OnResult(event):
event.data
handler.Bind(EVT_RESULT, OnResult)
But if you just need to make a call from a non-main thread in the main thread you can use wx.CallAfter, here is an example.
Custom events are useful when you don't want to hard code who is responsible for what (see the observer design pattern). For example, lets say you have a main window and a couple of child windows. Suppose that some of the child windows need to be refreshed when a certain change occurs in the main window. The main window could directly refresh those child windows in such a case but a more elegant approach would be to define a custom event and have the main window post it to itself (and not bother who needs to react to it). Then the children that need to react to that event can do it them selves by binding to it (and if there is more than one it is important that they call event.Skip() so that all of the bound methods get called).
You may want to use Python threads and queues and not custom events. I have a wxPython program (OpenSTV) that loads large files that caused the gui to freeze during the loading. To prevent the freezing, I dispatch a thread to load the file and use a queue to communicate between the gui and the thread (e.g., to communicate an exception to the GUI).
def loadBallots(self):
self.dirtyBallots = Ballots()
self.dirtyBallots.exceptionQueue = Queue(1)
loadThread = Thread(target=self.dirtyBallots.loadUnknown, args=(self.filename,))
loadThread.start()
# Display a progress dialog
dlg = wx.ProgressDialog(\
"Loading ballots",
"Loading ballots from %s\nNumber of ballots: %d" %
(os.path.basename(self.filename), self.dirtyBallots.numBallots),
parent=self.frame, style = wx.PD_APP_MODAL | wx.PD_ELAPSED_TIME
)
while loadThread.isAlive():
sleep(0.1)
dlg.Pulse("Loading ballots from %s\nNumber of ballots: %d" %
(os.path.basename(self.filename), self.dirtyBallots.numBallots))
dlg.Destroy()
if not self.dirtyBallots.exceptionQueue.empty():
raise RuntimeError(self.dirtyBallots.exceptionQueue.get())

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