gtk2/docs/reference/gtk/tmpl/gtktooltips.sgml

<!-- ##### SECTION Title ##### -->
GtkTooltips

<!-- ##### SECTION Short_Description ##### -->
Add tips to your widgets.

<!-- ##### SECTION Long_Description ##### -->
<para>
Tooltips are the messages that appear next to a widget when the mouse pointer is held over it for a short amount of time. They are especially helpful for adding more verbose descriptions of things such as buttons in a toolbar.
</para>
<para>
An individual tooltip belongs to a group of tooltips. A group is created with a call to gtk_tooltips_new(). Every tooltip in the group can then be turned off with a call to gtk_tooltips_disable() and enabled with gtk_tooltips_enable().
</para>
<para>
The length of time the user must keep the mouse over a widget before the tip is shown, can be altered with gtk_tooltips_set_delay(). This is set on a 'per group of tooltips' basis.
</para>
<para>
To assign a tip to a particular #GtkWidget, gtk_tooltips_set_tip() is used.
</para>
<note>
<para>
Tooltips can only be set on widgets which have their own X window.
To check if a widget has its own window use 'GTK_WIDGET_NO_WINDOW (widget)'.
To add a tooltip to a widget that doesn't have its own window, place the
widget inside a #GtkEventBox and add a tooltip to that instead.
</para>
</note>
<para>
The default appearance of all tooltips in a program is determined by the current gtk theme that the user has selected.
</para>
<para>
Information about the tooltip (if any) associated with an arbitrary widget can be retrieved using gtk_tooltips_data_get().
</para>
<para>
<example>
<title>Adding tooltips to buttons.</title>
<programlisting>
   GtkWidget *load_button, *save_button, *hbox;
   GtkTooltips *button_bar_tips;
   
   button_bar_tips = gtk_tooltips_new();
   
   /* Create the buttons and pack them into a #GtkHBox */
   hbox = gtk_hbox_new(TRUE, 2);
   
   load_button = gtk_button_new_with_label("Load a file");
   gtk_box_pack_start(GTK_BOX (hbox), load_button, TRUE, TRUE, 2);
   gtk_widget_show(load_button);
   
   save_button = gtk_button_new_with_label("Save a file");
   gtk_box_pack_start(GTK_BOX (hbox), save_button, TRUE, TRUE, 2);
   gtk_widget_show(save_button);
   gtk_widget_show(hbox);
   
   /* Add the tips */
   gtk_tooltips_set_tip(GTK_TOOLTIPS (button_bar_tips), load_button,
				 "Load a new document into this window",
				 "Requests the filename of a document.
				  This will then be loaded into the current
				  window, replacing the contents of whatever
				  is already loaded.");
   gtk_tooltips_set_tip(GTK_TOOLTIPS (button_bar_tips), save_button,
				 "Saves the current document to a file",
				 "If you have saved the document previously,
				  then the new version will be saved over the
				  old one. Otherwise, you will be prompted for
				  a filename."); 
</programlisting></example>
</para>

<!-- ##### SECTION See_Also ##### -->
<para>
<variablelist>
<varlistentry>
<term>#GtkToolbar</term>
<listitem><para>Create groups of widgets with their own tooltips.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term>#GtkTipsQuery</term>
<listitem><para>Query tooltips to create context-sensitive help.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
</para>

<!-- ##### STRUCT GtkTooltips ##### -->
<para>Holds information about a group of tooltips. Fields should be changed using the functions provided, rather than directly accessing the struct's members.
</para>


<!-- ##### STRUCT GtkTooltipsData ##### -->
<para>
<structfield>tooltips</structfield> is the #GtkTooltips group that this tooltip belongs to. <structfield>widget</structfield> is the #GtkWidget that this tooltip data is associated with. <structfield>tip_text</structfield> is a string containing the tooltip message itself.</para>
<para>
<structfield>tip_private</structfield> is a string that is not shown as the default tooltip. Instead, this message may be more informative and go towards forming a context-sensitive help system for your application. (FIXME: how to actually "switch on" private tips?)
</para>

@tooltips: 
@widget: 
@tip_text: 
@tip_private: 

<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_new ##### -->
<para>
Creates an empty group of tooltips. This function initialises a #GtkTooltips structure. Without at least one such structure, you can not add tips to your application.
</para>

@Returns: a new #GtkTooltips group for you to use.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_enable ##### -->
<para>
Allows the user to see your tooltips as they navigate your application.
</para>

@tooltips: a #GtkTooltips.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_disable ##### -->
<para>
Causes all tooltips in @tooltips to become inactive. Any widgets that have tips associated with that group will no longer display their tips until they are enabled again with gtk_tooltips_enable().
</para>

@tooltips: a #GtkTooltips.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_set_delay ##### -->
<para>
Sets the time between the user moving the mouse over a widget and the widget's tooltip appearing.
</para>

@tooltips: a #GtkTooltips.
@delay: an integer value representing seconds (FIXME: double-check this).


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_set_tip ##### -->
<para>
Adds a tooltip containing the message @tip_text to the specified #GtkWidget. 
</para>

@tooltips: a #GtkTooltips.
@widget: the #GtkWidget you wish to associate the tip with.
@tip_text: a string containing the tip itself.
@tip_private: a string of any further information that may be useful if the user gets stuck.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_set_colors ##### -->
<para>
This function is unimplemented because tooltip colors are instead
determined by the theme.
</para>

@tooltips: a #GtkTooltip
@background: a #GdkColor that your tooltip text will be shown in.
@foreground: a #GdkColor that your tooltip backgrounds will be shown in.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_data_get ##### -->
<para>
Retrieves any #GtkTooltipsData previously associated with the given widget.
</para>

@widget: a #GtkWidget.
@Returns: a #GtkTooltipsData struct, or NULL if the widget has no tooltip.


<!-- ##### FUNCTION gtk_tooltips_force_window ##### -->
<para>
Soon as I play with this, I'll report what it does.
</para>

@tooltips: