Textbox focus problem when detaching WPF element from an Excel task pane

Add-in Express™ Support Service
That's what is more important than anything else

Textbox focus problem when detaching WPF element from an Excel task pane
 
Florent Dugu?


Guest


Hello

Basically, I want to make the Excel task pane floatable.
As it is not supported out of the box, I create a WPF window, detach the taskpane content, attach it to the window, and I show the window.
The problem is when I input text into a textbox, the focus is given to Excel and it put the text in the active cell instead of my textbox.
I have a sample project ready to send if needed.

Regards.
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 03:36:38 Top
Andrei Smolin


Add-in Express team


Posts: 18825
 Joined: 2006-05-11
Hello Florent,

Excel intercepts all keyboard input from non-Excel child windows in its process. This is the actual reason of what you see. To bypass this, you'll need to use Windows API hooks. This is quite a lot of job.

You may try to use a custom task pane: it can be made floating.


Andrei Smolin
Add-in Express Team Leader
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 06:50:35 Top
Florent Dugu?


Guest


Ok, thanks for the explanation.
I'll see what I can do.
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 08:16:14 Top
Florent Dugu?


Guest


Just one thing, refering to this post I read before (
http://www.add-in-express.com/forum/read.php?FID=5&TID=10956) it is not as simple as it seems to make an advanced task pane floatable.
May Addin express team think about the possibility to implement it ?
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 08:29:49 Top
nwein




Posts: 577
 Joined: 2011-03-28
Advanced custom task panes are Addin-Express own task pane and are not floatable, however Microsoft has their own Custom task pane which you can use if you target Office 2007 or newer, these custom task panes do float quite easily. You can read about it in http://www.add-in-express.com/creating-addins-blog/2013/07/29/custom-word-task-panes/ and http://www.add-in-express.com/creating-addins-blog/2012/03/06/custom-office-task-panes/
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 10:50:35 Top
Florent Dugu?


Guest


Thanks for pointing me custom task panes, but that means no floatable pane below 2007 without windows api hook, which is a problem for me.
Posted 27 Aug, 2013 10:54:02 Top
Andrei Smolin


Add-in Express team


Posts: 18825
 Joined: 2006-05-11
Hello Florent,

As you've found out, Add-in Express advanced panes cannot be made floating. We don't plan to add this feature in the near future.


Andrei Smolin
Add-in Express Team Leader
Posted 28 Aug, 2013 04:05:48 Top