Overview

Skin xml files may contain <define> nodes to define skin properties which can then be used in GUI control attributes.  <define> nodes may be used in any skin xml file including any file that describes a window, an <include> skin xml file, and the skin's references.xml file.

The general format for a skin <define> node is as follows:

<define>#name:value</define>

where,

• #name is the user defined name which references a value; a variable name.  The name must begin with a hash character ('#'); e.g. #smallFont.
• value is the assigned value

The <define> nodes typically appear before the first <control> element (not required but likely a good standard) and at the same position in the hierarchy as the <control> elements (<define> and <control> are siblings).  Regardless of where <define> nodes appear in a skin xml file, all <define> nodes are loaded before any controls are loaded.

The value of a <define> node may be any of the following types of expressions:

A Literal Expression

The final value of the <define>.  Literal expressions are useful as global values that are more easly maintained from a single declaration point; e.g., font names, color names, shared geometry (x, y, width, height, ...)

Examples:

<define>#_name_:123</define>
<define>_#name_:This is my value</define>

Additional Information and References