29-12-2015 14:28:11 C# / WPF 0 Bookmark(s) 279 View(s)

 

The StackPanel in WPF is a simple and useful layout panel. It stacks its child elements below or beside each other, dependening on its orientation. This is very useful to create any kinds of lists. All WPF ItemsControls like ComboBox, ListBox or Menu use a StackPanel as their internal layout panel.

<StackPanel>
  <TextBlock Margin="10" FontSize="20">How do you like your coffee?</TextBlock>
  <Button Margin="10">Black</Button>
  <Button Margin="10">With milk</Button>
  <Button Margin="10">Latte machiato</Button>
  <Button Margin="10">Chappuchino</Button>
</StackPanel>

The default orientation of a StackPanel is vertical. But it can also be set to Orientation="Horizontal". This is useful for example for toolbars or buttons on the bottom of a window:

<StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal" HorizontalAlignment="Right">
    <Button Content="OK" Command="{Binding OkCommand}" />
    <Button Content="Cancel" Command="{Binding CancelCommand}" />
</StackPanel>

Layout issues Be aware that the StackPanel just stacks everything. It does not stop at the end of the screen. Many layout issues I have debugged are caused by StackPanels. The cause it that it provides infinite height to it's child elements. Most controls will default to auto but for example ScrollViewers will never scroll. Also virtualized lists will just expand to their full height.