Text Input in Tkinter - python

Goal
I am trying to write a basic file which I can import in all other programs that will have a simple function that will take entry from the user and then return it.
Code
For that I have the following code:
class takeInput(object):
def __init__(self,requestMessage,parent):
self.string = ''
self.frame = Frame(parent)
self.frame.pack()
self.acceptInput(requestMessage)
def acceptInput(self,requestMessage):
r = self.frame
k = Label(r,text=requestMessage)
k.pack(side='left')
self.e = Entry(r,text='Name')
self.e.pack(side='left')
self.e.focus_set()
b = Button(r,text='okay',command=self.gettext)
b.pack(side='right')
def gettext(self):
self.string = self.e.get()
self.frame.destroy()
print self.string
def getString(self):
return self.string
def getText(requestMessage,parent):
global a
a = takeInput(requestMessage,parent)
return a.getString()
And I also added some script level code so as to test this:
root = Tk()
getText('enter your name',root)
var = a.getString()
print var
root.mainloop()
And what is really baffling me is that:
var does not have the value that I entered it has the empty string ''
a.string variable has the value that I entered and I checked this from the shell.
Also When I tried to assign the string returned from a.getString() to var in the shell, then it worked.
note I am new to Tkinter programming and dont fully understand how the mainloop() works. So maybe this is were the problem is. But I am not sure.
Specs
OS:Linux Mint 14
Python IDLE 2.7
Please help me out with this issue.

As other answers tell, you print var before entering the mainloop, that is, before your window is actually running, and your program is waiting for user input.
You could rely on tkSimpleDialog family to get your input:
import Tkinter
import tkSimpleDialog
root = Tkinter.Tk()
var = tkSimpleDialog.askstring("Name prompt", "enter your name")
print var
If you want to pursue your way, you could perform your print from the "ok" button callback (gettext in your case). You could also generate a virtual event when "ok" is pressed and bind to this event in your main program (http://infohost.nmt.edu/tcc/help/pubs/tkinter/web/virtual-events.html)

The flow of your code goes like this:
the main scope calls getText.
getText creates a takeInput object a.
the takeInput object initializes itself, creating Labels & buttons etc.
getText returns a.getString(), which returns self.string, which still has its default value, the empty string.
the main scope prints var, which is empty.
So far, all of this has taken place within the span of a few nanoseconds. The user hasn't even seen the window yet.
the main scope then calls root.mainloop(), which finally gives the user the opportunity to interact with the window. But it's too late. var has already been printed.
If you want getText to not return until the user has submitted his text, then mainloop has to occur inside getText, not after it.
from Tkinter import *
class takeInput(object):
def __init__(self,requestMessage):
self.root = Tk()
self.string = ''
self.frame = Frame(self.root)
self.frame.pack()
self.acceptInput(requestMessage)
def acceptInput(self,requestMessage):
r = self.frame
k = Label(r,text=requestMessage)
k.pack(side='left')
self.e = Entry(r,text='Name')
self.e.pack(side='left')
self.e.focus_set()
b = Button(r,text='okay',command=self.gettext)
b.pack(side='right')
def gettext(self):
self.string = self.e.get()
self.root.destroy()
def getString(self):
return self.string
def waitForInput(self):
self.root.mainloop()
def getText(requestMessage):
msgBox = takeInput(requestMessage)
#loop until the user makes a decision and the window is destroyed
msgBox.waitForInput()
return msgBox.getString()
var = getText('enter your name')
print "Var:", var

The problem is that your test routine already prints out the value of var before the dialog has been shown, let alone text being entered. (You can easily validate this by adding some print statements to your test code.) This is because the call to mainloop() is at the very end. Instead, you should call mainloop after creating the frame, but before reading and returning the input, e.g. it might go to your getText method:
def getText(requestMessage,parent):
a = takeInput(requestMessage,parent)
parent.mainloop()
return a.getString()
This still does not work really well, as you have to close the dialog (click the [x]-button) even after clicking on 'okay', and I am not sure how to fix this.
However, note that there already is a module for this, tkSimpleDialog, providing methods such as askstring(title, prompt) that show just such an input dialog. So you might either use those, or look at the source code (found in /usr/lib/python2.7/lib-tk or the like) to find out how it's done.

Here's a quick snippet:
import tkinter
from tkinter import simpledialog
root = tkinter.Tk()
# withdraw() will make the parent window disappear.
root.withdraw()
# shows a dialogue with a string input field
youtube_url = simpledialog.askstring('YouTube URL', 'Enter the youtube URL of the video', parent=root)
if str(youtube_url).startswith('http'):
pass
else:
pass

Related

how to get tkinter input outside of function within class

How do I get access to variables (ifrequency and iperiod) outside of the class?
import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import ttk
root = tk.Tk()
class Parameters:
def __init__(self,master):
tk.Label(master,text='frequency').grid(row=0)
tk.Label(master,text='period').grid(row=1)
self.options1 = ['D1', 'D2']
self.options2 = ['daily', 'monthly']
self.mycombo1 = ttk.Combobox(master, value=self.options1)
self.mycombo1.bind("<<ComboboxSelected>>")
self.mycombo1.grid(row=0, column=1)
self.mycombo2 = ttk.Combobox(master, value=self.options2)
self.mycombo2.bind("<<ComboboxSelected>>")
self.mycombo2.grid(row=1, column=1)
self.myButton = tk.Button(master, text="Go", command=self.clicker).grid(row=3,column=1)
def clicker(self):
ifrequency = self.mycombo1.get()
iperiod = self.mycombo2.get()
return ifrequency, iperiod
p = Parameters(root)
root.mainloop()
print(p.ifrequency)
The code gives the error:
"AttributeError: 'Parameters' object has no attribute 'ifrequency'" when running the final line.
For a bit of context, I have built some code to get output from an API. I want the user to be able to pick the inputs (e.g. frequency, period) using a form and then have the main program call the API and using these inputs. My API code works but I need to get the user inputs assigned to a variable. I can do it but that variable is stuck in the function/class and I can't figure out the correct way to get it out.
This is my first question here (usually someone else has asked before me) so apologies if I have made any mistakes. Many thanks in advance for your help!
ifrequency and iperiod are not assigned to self and are just in the function's local scope so they disappear after clicker returns, and since it is called by the tkinter button, it's return value dosn't do anything. so try changing clicker so it assigns them to self
def clicker(self):
self.ifrequency = self.mycombo1.get()
self.iperiod = self.mycombo2.get()

The tk window won't show even though there is a mainloop

Even though there is a mainloop being called my tk window will not appear. The code used to work but as soon as I coded in the second function in the nums class there is no tk window. I would like for someone to point out the mistake instead of simply handing out the answer.
Can someone please help me fix this problem?
I use Python IDLE 3.8
Image: [1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/o65WI.png
Code:
from tkinter import *
from random import randint
import time
#number assignments
class nums:
def __init__(self):
self.value=randint(1,100)
def assignnewnums(oldnum1,oldnum2,lbltxt,lbl,answer):
getans = answer.get()
if(getans==str((oldnum1.value+oldnum2.value))):
del(oldnum1)
del(oldnum2)
oldnum1=nums()
oldnum2=nums()
lbltxt="Correct!"
lbl.config(text=lbltxt)
time.sleep(5)
lbltxt="What is {} + {}".format(oldnum2.value,oldnum1.value)
lbl.config(text=lbltxt)
else:
lbltxt="Wrong! Try Again!"
lbl.config(text=lbltxt)
time.sleep(3)
lbltxt="What is {} + {}".format(oldnum2.value,oldnum1.value)
lbl.config(text=lbltxt)
a = nums()
b = nums()
#GUI startup
root = Tk()
#Label
title = Label(root, text="AddPrac", fg="dark blue")
title.pack()
#Question
questxt = "What is {} + {}".format(a.value,b.value)
ques = Label(root,text=questxt,fg="red")
ques.pack()
#UserAnswer
ans = Entry(root)
ans.pack()
#SubmitButton
enter = Button(root,text="Submit Answer!",fg="yellow",command=nums.assignnewnums(a,b,questxt,ques,ans))
enter.pack()
#GUI continued startup
root.mainloop()
I tried your code and the window does appear if you wait a few seconds.
This is due to the following offending code snippet:
command=nums.assignnewnums(a,b,questxt,ques,ans)
This doesn't do what you think it does. You were thinking of:
command=lambda: nums.assignnewnums(a, b, questxt, ques, ans)
The way your code is written now, it does not bind a callback to the button, but rather, calls- and executes the function (since you are invoking it explicitly), and attempts to bind the return value as a callback, which makes no sense. As a side effect of calling the function, the main thread sleeps (since assignnewnums uses time.sleep) for a bit before you reach root.mainloop.
Anytime you are binding a callback to a button, you want to provide a callable object - either just a function object, or if arguments are critical, a lambda or functools.partial.

Tkinter - returning print of imported modules when button clicked to perform function

I have written some code primarily to be used with the console, but was asked to create a simple GUI for it for ease of use. In it, I am setting up the main frame with widgets, and using the widget command to call upon the function that I import. However, the imported functions and modules all write to the output console. Is there a means of returning the output string/console output to be updated in the GUI as the subprocess runs?
Example script:
import Tkinter as *
import myModule1
class MyGUI(Frame):
def __init__(self):
# Initialization stuff.
self.initGUI()
def initGUI(self):
self.downloadButton = Button(text="Download data.")
self.downloadButton["command"] = myModule1.function
# This function from myModule1 will constantly print to the console as the process is performed - is there any way to have this displayed in the GUI as a ScrollBar?
.....
Alternatively, is there a way to make a dialog window show up while the process is running? I ask because I have embedded a lot of print statements in the myModule1 and its submodules that return what is going on to the console. It would be nice to display those for the users one the GUI is working and I convert it to a .exe for ease of use of those who will be using it.
Thank you.
EDIT: An example of what myModule1.function can look like:
import otherModule
def function1():
log = otherModule.function2():
if log == True:
print "Function 2 worked."
elif log == False:
print "Function 2 did not work."
However, function2 in otherModule prints to console as it performs its calculations. That is not explicitly shown here, but the console output would essentially be a series of calculations followed by the example if/elif clause shown above.
It won't be extremely simple, but one way to do this is create a method or function in your GUI that writes to a text widget or some other widget whose content can be updated easily. I'll call it outputMethod. Then, pass this function or method to myModule1.function(outputMethod). Within the module1.function, replace print statements with the outputMethod call, providing the appropriate parameters to it. Without seeing module1.function, it's difficult to provide a complete example that would work. Added the following example once the OP posted myModule1 sample code.
from Tkinter import *
import myModule1
class MyGUI(Frame):
def __init__(self, parent):
# Initialization stuff.
self.initGUI(parent)
def initGUI(self, parent):
Frame.__init__(self, parent)
self.grid_rowconfigure(1, weight=1)
self.grid_columnconfigure(1, weight=1)
self.pack(expand='yes', fill='both')
self.downloadButton = Button(self, text="Download data.")
self.downloadButton["command"] = lambda m=self.outputMethod: myModule1.function(m)
self.text = Text(self)
self.downloadButton.grid(row=0, column=0)
self.text.grid(row=1, column=0, sticky='news')
self.sy = Scrollbar(self, command=self.text.yview)
self.text['yscrollcommand'] = self.sy.set
self.sy.grid(row=1, column=1, sticky='nsw')
def outputMethod(self, the_output):
self.text.insert('end', the_output + '\n')
# Scroll to the last line in the text widget.
self.text.see('end')
if __name__ == '__main__':
# Makes the module runable from the command line.
# At the command prompt type python gui_module_name.py
root = Tk()
app = MyGUI(root)
# Cause the GUI to display and enter event loop
root.mainloop()
Now for module1...
def function(log):
# Note that log is merely a pointer to 'outputMethod' in the GUI module.
log("Here is a string you should see in the GUI")
log("And this should appear after it.")
# Now demonstrate the autoscrolling set up in outputMethod...
for i in range(50):
log("Inserted another row at line" + str(i + 2))

tkinter Entry updates once only via StringVar and only with manual key press afterwards

I have an Entry that updates once via a textvariable set to a StringVar, but then only via manual keypress from user after that.
I'm writing a GUI using model-view-controller pattern.
I have a controller class, that owns the main tk object.
It also owns a StringVar(). I've set up a callback to fire when the StringVar is written to.
from Tkinter import *
from tkFileDialog import askopenfilename
class Controller:
def __init__(self):
self.root = Tk()
self.fname = StringVar()
self.fname.trace('w', self.file_name_updated)
self.view = View(self.root, self.fname)
def file_name_updated(self, name, index, mode):
varValue = self.root.globalgetvar(name)
print ('filename updated!!! %s' % varValue)
self.root.globalsetvar(name, 'changing it again!')
def run(self):
self.root.mainloop()
class View:
def __init__(self, tk, fname_var):
self.form = tk
self.fileNameVar = fname_var
self.inFileTxt = Entry(self.form, textvariable=fname_var)
self.inFileTxt.grid(row=1)
self.inFileBtn = Button(self.form, text="Browse ...", command=self.open_file)
self.inFileBtn.grid(row=1, column=8)
def open_file(self):
fname = askopenfilename()
self.fileNameVar.set(fname) # update the updateable text
if __name__ == '__main__':
c = Controller()
c.run()
The controller creates a View instance. The View object, draws an Entry box which assigns the StringVar to its textvariable attribute.
The View object also has a Button. When clicked, this sets the value of the StringVar(), and fires the callback.
So far so good. The StringVar has been set to the chosen filename, the callback fires, I see my debug. But then, in my callback, I update the value of the StringVar again. It's just a test, ultimately I want to clear the value of the StringVar if the filename chosen has errors (but that wasn't working, so I'm trying to narrow it down).
Anyway, I'm expecting the text in the entry box to say 'changing it again!'. But I don't see that. It stays the same.
Debug shows that the value of the variable is 'changing it again!', but the Entry box has not updated.
However, when I place the cursor inside the Entry box and press SPACE, then my text gets updated.
How can I update the text without user having to enter anything?
possibly related - event processing, StringVar is always 1 event behind.
Tkinter: set StringVar after <Key> event, including the key pressed
When the insert method of the Entry is used instead of the set method of the StringVar in the open_file function, it works as expected (the text is replaced by "changing it again!"):
def open_file(self):
fname = askopenfilename()
self.inFileTxt.delete(0, 'end')
self.inFileTxt.insert(0, fname)
instead of
def open_file(self):
fname = askopenfilename()
self.fileNameVar.set(fname) # update the updateable text
But I don't understand why because in both cases file_name_updated is executed. So if someone can explain this, please edit this answer.

How to pause a script with a Tkinter event?

I'm creating a simple class named Dialog. I only want it to return when init method is already finished.
from tkinter import *
class Dialog:
def __set_data(self):
self.data = self.entry_.get()
self.top.destroy()
def __init__(self, prompt_text = "Prompt:", submit_text = "OK", text_size = 5, button_size = 5, main_window = Tk()):
main_window.withdraw()
top = self.top = Toplevel(main_window)
Label(top, text=prompt_text).pack()
self.entry_ = Entry(top)
self.entry_.pack(padx = text_size)
button = Button(top, text = submit_text, command = self.__set_data)
button.pack(pady=button_size)
def get_data(self):
return self.data
data = 0
a = Dialog();
print (a.get_data())
If you run this code, you will get the output 0. I want to the output only show up after the user input. How can I do this?
Firstly, I don't think that you really want to postpone the __init__ method returning. If you do that, your code will never get to tk.mainloop(), and will never actually appear on screen.
Instead, what you want to do is be notified when the data in the Entry widget changes. This is a pretty common thing to do in GUI toolkits; the way tkinter handles it is with Events and Bindings. You can read about them generally here.
One way of performing your particular task (showing the data in self.entry once it has been changed by the user) might be to use the method shown in this question.
Alternatively, you could add a command to your submit button (see here) and read the value of the entry in that method.

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