DbAltGrid - multi-line layout and RTF text in a DBGrid descendant

DbAltGrid by Quasidata

Did you ever wish of having a grid that lets you display and edit data not as rows and columns, but rather as records? A grid that would allow you to build unique user interface solutions? We offer you a new approach to the data grid interface. We offer you DbAltGrid.

DbAltGrid is equipped with most features that are standard among data grid controls and has some rather distinguished features.

Multiple cell lines per record and multiple text lines per cell. DbAltGrid allows the user to customize free-form layout. The user can adjust height of each line in rows separately. Row height and width of each column can be fine-tuned with a double-click.
Hierarchical columns. Now you can sort your columns into logical categories, consolidate them and assign to a shared parent column. Parent columns are expandable and collapsible, so this way you can imitate a tree-like column structure. You can merge several columns and display them in a RTF summary column.
Two-way data transfer through the clipboard and drag-and-drop using most popular formats, including ones native to MS Office. Ctrl-Click and Shift-Click selection.*
Inplace editors for common field types, including numeric, Boolean, date, time, memo, RTF memo, lookup, graphic, and MS Access graphic.
Display graphic in most popular formats (JPEG, GIF, bitmap, metafile, and icon). Icons in data cells and headers.
Hyperlinks in cells.
Footer panel to display summary for every column.
Auto-width mode. Columns are resized proportionally to fill entire client width.
Hint window customizable for each cell, including title and footer cells.
Title arrows indicate the column the dataset is sorted against as well as sorting possibility for any column.
Flicker-free painting. Off-screen painting even by custom drawing in a OnDrawColumnCell event handler.
Alternate row coloring. Background of odd and even rows can be painted with alternate colors like in ledger books.
Mouse wheel support. The user can scroll records line-by-line or, when holding down the Ctrl key, page-by-page.*
Vertical scrolling is improved. Records are scrolled line-by-line when the user clicks a scroll arrow on the vertical scroll bar. The indicator stays on the same row when the user scrolls records page-by-page with scroll bar. Thumb tracking with sequenced datasets.*
Save and load the grid properties to and from a text file, a stream, a resource file/compiled resource, or the system registry at design-time as well as at runtime. This way you can transfer settings from a DBGrid to a DbAltGrid and vice versa.
Smart key mapping. Optional Enter to Tab key automatic conversion. If you want, pressing the Down arrow key when the current record is the last record in the dataset does not result in appending a new empty record. It is possible with a hot key use.
Short learning curve. DbAltGrid is fully compatible with the common DBGrid that comes with the VCL. The TDbAltGrid class is a TCustomDBGrid descendant, as TDBGrid is. By migration to DbAltGrid, you will not get any code conflicts. There is an auxiliary component to assist with such a migration.

* With the taoDbGrid component which is a part of Transfer@once and provides extra functionality for DbAltGrid. Registered users of DbAltGrid Suite can obtain Transfer@once free of charge.

The latest release of DbAltGrid Suite is the version 1.5. It supports Borland Delphi 4, 5, 6 and Borland C++ Builder 4, 5, 6 and includes the following components with full source code: TDbAltGrid, TdagCalendar, TdagClock, TdagNumPad, TdagCalculator, TdagBoolean, TdagMemo, TdagRichMemo, TdagGraphic, TdagPicture, TdagHyperlink, TdagParent, and TdagBackup.

Please visit www.quasidata.com for additional information.