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All control widths are specified in columns in a 12-column grid. The width is selected by clicking on a grid in the style tab. When you drag and drop most controls from the palette on to the canvas, the control will be 12 columns wide. The trigger, link and panel controls are the exception - the default widths of the trigger and link controls is 3 columns while the panel is 6. To change the width, simply click the number of divisions on the grid to specify how wide you want the control to be. For example, a text control dropped on the canvas from the palette has a width of 12 columns as shown in the image:.
To make this control 6 columns wide, click on the 6th division of the grid. The results are shown in the image:
When you make a control N columns wide (e.g. 6), the entire control takes up 6 columns. As a result, if there is space, controls will float up next to other controls. You can prevent this using the New Line property.property.
Here are some important facts to know when working with control widths:
- The total width that fits into a single row is 12 columns - You can have any combination of controls widths on one line - (e.g. Three controls: 3, 4 and 5 grid columns wide respectively or four controls 2,2,4,and 4 grid columns wide.).
- The decorator does not affect the visible control width: a 6 column control is the same width (decorated or not).
- The visible width of controls which add up to the same width of another control is exactly the same. For example, a control that is 2 grid columns wide + a control that is 4 grid columns wide is the same width as a control that is 6 columns wide.
- When you drag a panel from the palette and drop it on the canvas, the default width is 6 grid columns. Panels can be made as wide as 12 columns. Each panel is itself divided into 12 columns irrespective of its width.
- Panels do not take up visible use mode space i.e. a 6 column control outside a panel and a 12-column control inside a 6-column panel take up exactly the same width. You can edit the Width property of controls you drag inside these controls.
- There is no Width property for sections or tables controls - they are always 12 columns wide. Each is itself divided into 12 columns. They are all exactly as wide as a regular 12 column control. An N-column control that is inside one of these will appear narrower than the corresponding N-column control outside.
- Repeats are also always 12 columns wide and each repeat is itself divided into 12 columns. Like panels, they take up no visible use mode space: a 12-column control outside a repeat and a 12-column control inside a repeat are exactly the same width.
- The total visible width of a date/time control with N columns is the same as the total visible width of any other control with N columns. The relative widths are constant so the space between the two reduces as the total number of columns reduces.
- For tab controls, you access the width property by clicking the unlabeled area to the right of the last tab in your tab group; the width you specify will be applied uniformly to each tab in group. (See Panels and Tabs for more details.) When setting a control’s width property you may use standard CSS-relative values; for example, 5%, 5em, 5ex or 5px.
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