Interface creation
Introduction
Power users have the possibility of creating interfaces to help them produce complex tools for their custom addons, such as macros or full workbenches.
Interfaces are created using PySide, which is a library for using Qt with Python.
Description
There are typically two ways of creating interfaces with PySide.
Interface in a .ui file
In this method the interface is defined in a .ui file (an XML document that defines the structure of the interface), which is then imported into Python code that uses it. This is the recommended approach.
- It allows the programmer to work with the graphical interface separately from the logic that will use it.
- It allows anybody to look at the interface alone, that is, the
.uifile, without having to run Python code. - The
.uifile may be designed by anybody without programming knowledge. - Since the
.uifile just describes the "appearance" of the interface, it does not need to be tied to a particular programming language; it may be used both in Python and C++ code.
For examples on this method see Interface creation with UI files.
Interface completely in Python code
In this method the entire interface is defined by several Python calls.
- This is an older way of working with interfaces.
- This method produces very verbose code because many details of the interface need to be specified by hand.
- It is not simple to separate the interface from the logic that uses that code, meaning that a user would need to run the Python file in the correct context in order to see how the interface would look.
- This method has the advantage that several interfaces may be contained within a single document, at the expense of making the file very large.
- This method is recommended only for small interfaces that don't define more than a few widgets, for example in macros.
For examples on this method see Interface creation completely in Python.
Power user documentation
- FreeCAD scripting: Python, Introduction to Python, Python scripting tutorial, FreeCAD Scripting Basics
- Modules: Builtin modules, Units, Quantity
- Workbenches: Workbench creation, Gui Commands, Commands, Installing more workbenches
- Meshes and Parts: Mesh Scripting, Topological data scripting, Mesh to Part, PythonOCC
- Parametric objects: Scripted objects, Viewproviders (Custom icon in tree view)
- Scenegraph: Coin (Inventor) scenegraph, Pivy
- Graphical interface: Interface creation, Interface creation completely in Python (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), PySide, PySide examples beginner, intermediate, advanced
- Macros: Macros, How to install macros
- Embedding: Embedding FreeCAD, Embedding FreeCADGui
- Other: Expressions, Code snippets, Line drawing function, FreeCAD vector math library (deprecated)
- Hubs: User hub, Power users hub, Developer hub