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Please review the following information to ensure ** the GNU Free Documentation License version 1.3 requirements ** will be met: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.3.html. ** ****************************************************************************/ // ********************************************************************** // NOTE: the sections are not ordered by their logical order to avoid // reshuffling the file each time the index order changes (i.e., often). // Run the fixnavi.pl script to adjust the links to the index order. // ********************************************************************** /*! \contentspage {Qt Creator Manual} \previouspage creator-overview.html \page creator-quick-tour.html \nextpage creator-configuring.html \title User Interface When you start \QC, it opens to the \uicontrol Welcome mode, where you can: \list \li Open recent sessions and projects \li Create and open projects \li Open tutorials and example projects \li Read news from the online community and Qt blogs \li Create or manage a Qt Account \endlist \image qtcreator-breakdown.png You can use the mode selector (1) to change to another \QC mode. You can use the kit selector (2) to select the \l{glossary-buildandrun-kit}{kit} for running (3), debugging (4), or building (5) the application. Output from these actions is displayed in the output panes (7). You can use the locator (6) to to browse through projects, files, classes, functions, documentation, and file systems. \section1 Modes The mode selector allows you to quickly switch between tasks such as editing project and source files, designing application UIs, configuring how projects are built and executed, and debugging your applications. To change modes, click the icons, or use the \l{keyboard-shortcuts} {corresponding keyboard shortcut}. To hide the mode selector and to save space on the display, select \uicontrol Window > \uicontrol {Show Mode Selector}. The following image displays an example application in \uicontrol Edit mode (1) and \uicontrol Design mode (2). \image qtcreator-qt-quick-editors.png "Edit mode and Design mode" You can use \QC in the following modes: \list \li \uicontrol Welcome mode for opening projects. \li \uicontrol{\l{Coding}{Edit}} mode for editing project and source files. \li \uicontrol{\l{Designing User Interfaces}{Design}} mode for designing and developing application user interfaces. This mode is available for UI files. \li \uicontrol{\l{Debugging}{Debug}} mode for inspecting the state of your application while debugging and for using code analysis tools to detect memory leaks and profile C++ or QML code. \li \uicontrol{\l{Specifying Build Settings}{Projects}} mode for configuring project building and execution. This mode is available when a project is open. \li \uicontrol{\l{Getting Help}{Help}} mode for viewing Qt documentation. \endlist Certain actions in \QC trigger a mode change. Clicking on \uicontrol {Debug} > \uicontrol {Start Debugging} > \uicontrol {Start Debugging} automatically switches to \uicontrol {Debug} mode. \section1 Browsing Project Contents The sidebar is available in the \uicontrol Edit and \uicontrol Debug modes, and with a different set of views in the \uicontrol Design mode. Use the sidebar to browse projects, files, and bookmarks, and to view the class hierarchy. \image qtcreator-sidebar.png You can select the content of the sidebar in the sidebar menu (1): \list \li \uicontrol Projects shows a list of projects open in the current session. \li \uicontrol{Open Documents} shows currently open files. \li \uicontrol Bookmarks shows all bookmarks for the current session. \li \uicontrol{File System} shows all files in the currently selected directory. \li \uicontrol {Class View} shows the class hierarchy of the currently open projects. \li \uicontrol Outline shows the symbol hierarchy of a C++ file and the type hierarchy of a QML file. \li \uicontrol Tests lists autotests and Qt Quick tests in the project. \li \uicontrol {Type Hierarchy} shows the base classes of a class. \li \uicontrol {Include Hierarchy} shows which files are included in the current file and which files include the current file. \endlist For more information about the sidebar views that are only available in \QMLD, see \l{Using Qt Quick Designer}. You can change the view of the sidebar in the following ways: \list \li To toggle the sidebar, click \inlineimage qtcreator-togglebutton.png (\uicontrol {Hide Sidebar/Show Sidebar}) or press \key Alt+0 (\key Cmd+0 on OS X). \li To split the sidebar, click \inlineimage qtcreator-splitbar.png (\uicontrol {Split}). Select new content to view in the split view. \li To close a sidebar view, click \inlineimage qtcreator-remove-split-button.png (\uicontrol {Close}). \endlist The additional options in each view are described in the following sections. In some views, right-clicking opens a context menu that contains functions for managing the objects listed in the view. \section2 Viewing Project Files The sidebar displays projects in a project tree. The project tree contains a list of all projects open in the current session. The files for each project are grouped according to their file type. If the project is under version control, information from the version control system might be displayed in brackets after the project name. This is currently implemented for Git (the branch name or a tag is displayed) and ClearCase (the view name is displayed). You can use the project tree in the following ways: \list \li To open files that belong to a project, double-click them in the project tree. Files open in the appropriate editor, according to the file type. For example, code source files open in the code editor and image files in the \l{Viewing Images}{image viewer}. \li To bring up a context menu containing the actions most commonly needed right-click an item in the project tree. For example, through the menu of the project root directory you can, among other actions, build, re-build, clean and run the project. \li To hide the categories and sort project files alphabetically, click \inlineimage qtcreator-filter.png (\uicontrol {Filter Tree}) and select \uicontrol{Simplify Tree}. \li To hide source files which are automatically generated by the build system, select \uicontrol {Filter Tree > Hide Generated Files}. \li To keep the position in the project tree synchronized with the file currently opened in the editor, click \inlineimage qtcreator-synchronizefocus.png (\uicontrol {Synchronize with Editor}). \li To see the absolute path of a file, move the mouse pointer over the file name. \endlist Files that are not sources or data can be still included into a project's distribution tarball by adding their paths to the \c DISTFILES variable in the .pro file. This way they also become known to \QC, so that they are visible in the \uicontrol Projects view and are known to the locator and search. The \uicontrol Projects view contains context menus for managing projects, subprojects, folders, and files. The following functions are available for managing projects and subprojects: \list \li Set a project as the active project. \li Execute the \uicontrol Build menu commands. \li Add subprojects, libraries, directories, and files. \li Remove subprojects. \li Search from the selected directory. \li Close projects. \endlist For managing files and directories, the same functions are available as in the \uicontrol {File System} view. In addition, you can remove and rename files. \section2 Viewing the File System If you cannot see a file in the \uicontrol Projects view, switch to the \uicontrol {File System} view, which shows all the files in the file system. To also show hidden files, select \uicontrol {Filter Files} > \uicontrol {Show Hidden Files}. To keep the position in the tree synchronized with the file opened in the editor, select \uicontrol {Synchronize with Editor}. Use the context menu functions to: \list \li Open files with the default editor or some other editor. \li Show the file or directory in the file explorer. \li Open a terminal window in the selected directory or in the directory that contains the file. \li Search from the selected directory. \endlist \section2 Viewing the Class Hierarchy The \uicontrol {Class View} shows the class hierarchy of the currently open projects. To organize the view by subprojects, click \inlineimage qtcreator-show-subprojects.png (\uicontrol {Show Subprojects}). To visit all parts of a namespace, double-click on the namespace item multiple times. \section2 Viewing QML Types The \uicontrol Outline view shows the type hierarchy in a QML file. \list \li To see a complete list of all bindings, select \uicontrol {Filter Tree > Show All Bindings}. \li To keep the position in the view synchronized with the QML type selected in the editor, select \uicontrol {Synchronize with Editor}. \endlist \section2 Viewing Tests The \uicontrol Tests view shows the autotests and Qt Quick tests in the current project. Select the test cases to run. If a Qt Quick test case does not have a name, it is marked \uicontrol Unnamed in the list. Unnamed test cases are always executed when the application that contains them is run, and therefore you cannot select or deselect them. To show or hide init and cleanup or data functions, select \uicontrol {Filter Test Tree} > \uicontrol {Show Init and Cleanup Functions} or \uicontrol {Show Data Functions}. Double-click a function in the list to open its source code in the code editor. The test cases are listed in alphabetic order. To list them in the order in which they are defined in the source code, select \inlineimage qtcreator-autotests-sort-naturally.png (\uicontrol {Sort Naturally}). To run tests, select \uicontrol {Run All Tests} or \uicontrol {Run Selected Tests} in the context menu. To refresh the view, select \uicontrol {Rescan Tests} in the context menu. \section2 Viewing Type Hierarchy To view the base classes of a class, right-click the class and select \uicontrol {Open Type Hierarchy} or press \key {Ctrl+Shift+T}. \section2 Viewing Include Hierarchy To view which files are included in the current file and which files include the current file, right-click in the editor and select \uicontrol {Open Include Hierarchy} or press \key {Ctrl+Shift+I}. \section1 Viewing Output The task pane in \QC can display one of the following panes: \list \li \uicontrol{Issues} \li \uicontrol{Search Results} \li \uicontrol{Application Output} \li \uicontrol{Compile Output} \li \uicontrol {Debugger Console} \li \uicontrol {To-Do Entries} \li \uicontrol{Version Control} \li \uicontrol{General Messages} \li \uicontrol{Test Results} \endlist Output panes are available in all \l{Modes}{modes}. Click the name of an output pane to open the pane. To maximize an open output pane, click the \uicontrol {Maximize Output Pane} button or press \key {Alt+9}. To search within the \uicontrol{Application Output} and \uicontrol{Compile Output} panes, press \key {Ctrl+F} when the pane is active. Enter search criteria in the \uicontrol Find field and click the left and right arrows to search down and up in the pane. In these panes, you can also use the zoom buttons to increase and decrease the text size of the output. To open the \uicontrol{General Messages} and \l{Using Version Control Systems} {Version Control} panes, select \uicontrol {Window > Output Panes}. To display the \uicontrol {To-Do Entries} pane, enable the Todo plugin and to display the \l{Running Autotests} {Test Results} pane, enable the Auto Tests plugin. \section2 Issues The \uicontrol{Issues} pane provides lists of following types of issues: \list \li \uicontrol {Build System} - Errors and warnings encountered during a build. \li \uicontrol Compile - Selected output from the compiler. Open the \uicontrol {Compile Output} pane for more detailed information. \li \uicontrol{Debug Information} - Lists debug information packages that might be missing. \li \uicontrol Debugger - Errors encountered while running the \l{Analyzing Code}{Valgrind code analysis tools}. \li \uicontrol{Debugger Runtime} - Errors encountered when starting \QC. For example, information about missing DLLs. \li \uicontrol Deployment - Errors encountered between building an application successfully and starting it on a device. \li \uicontrol {My Tasks} - Entries from a task list file (.tasks) generated by \l{Showing Task List Files in Issues Pane} {code scanning and analysis tools}. \li \uicontrol QML - Errors in QML syntax. \li \uicontrol {QML Analysis} - Results of the JavaScript \l{Checking JavaScript and QML Syntax} {code syntax and validation checks} \endlist The pane filters out irrelevant output from the build tools and presents the issues in an organized way. To further filter the output by type, select \uicontrol {Filter Tree} and then select a filter. \image qtcreator-build-issues.png Right-clicking on a line brings up a context menu with actions that you can apply to the contents of the line. You can remove a line, copy its contents to the clipboard, or search the Internet for a solution using the contents of the line as search criteria. In addition, you can show a version control annotation view of the line that causes the error message. To navigate to the corresponding source code, click an issue or select \uicontrol {Show in Editor} in the context menu. The entry must contain the name of the file where the issue was found. To view more information about an issue in the \uicontrol {Compile Output} pane, select \uicontrol {Show Output} in the context menu. To jump from one issue to the next or previous one, press \key F6 and \key Shift+F6. \section2 Search Results In the \uicontrol{Search Results} pane, you can search through projects, files on a file system or the currently open file: \image qtcreator-search-results.png "Search Results output pane" The search results are stored in the search history (1) from which you can select earlier searches. The figure below shows an example search result for all occurrences of \c textfinder within the \c "/TextFinder" directory. \image qtcreator-search-pane.png \section2 Application Output The \uicontrol{Application Output} pane displays the status of a program when it is executed, and the debug output. \image qtcreator-application-output.png Select toolbar buttons to run applications, to attach the debugger to the running application, and to stop running or debugging. To specify settings for displaying application output, select \uicontrol Tools > \uicontrol Options > \uicontrol {Build & Run} > \uicontrol General. You can select whether to open the \uicontrol{Application Output} pane on output when running or debugging applications, to clear old output on a new run, to word-wrap output, and to limit output to the specified number of lines. \section2 Compile Output The \uicontrol{Compile Output} pane provides all output from the compiler. The \uicontrol{Compile Output} is a more detailed version of information displayed in the \uicontrol{Issues} pane. \image qtcreator-compile-pane.png Double-click on a file name in an error message to open the file in the code editor. Select the \uicontrol {Cancel Build} button to cancel the build. To specify whether to open the \uicontrol {Compile Output} pane on output when building applications, select \uicontrol Tools > \uicontrol Options > \uicontrol {Build & Run} > \uicontrol General, and then select the \uicontrol {Open Compile Output pane when building} check box. \section2 Debugger Console In the \uicontrol {Debugger Console}, you can type JavaScript expressions and use them to get information about the state of your application during debugging. You can change property values temporarily, without editing the source, and view the results in the running application. \image qml-script-console.png "Debugger Console" You can change the property values permanently in the code editor. \section2 To-Do List The \uicontrol {To-Do List Entries} pane lists the BUG, FIXME, NOTE, TODO, and WARNING keywords from the current file or from all project files. The keywords are organized into information, warning, and error categories. \image qtcreator-todo-pane.png To add keywords, select \uicontrol Tools > \uicontrol Options > \uicontrol {To-Do} > \uicontrol Add. Set an icon and a line background color for the keyword. To change the icons and colors set for an existing keyword, select \uicontrol Edit. To determine whether the keywords in the whole project or in the current file are displayed by default, select \uicontrol {Scanning scope}. To exclude files from scanning, select \uicontrol {To-Do} in the \uicontrol Projects mode. Select \uicontrol Add and enter a regular expression that matches the path to files to exclude. Use a forward slash (/) as a separator in the path also on Windows. The Todo plugin is disabled by default. To enable the plugin, select \uicontrol Help > \uicontrol {About Plugins} > \uicontrol Utilities > \uicontrol Todo and restart \QC. In addition, you can open task list files generated by code scanning and analysis tools in the \uicontrol Issues pane. For more information, see \l{Showing Task List Files in Issues Pane}. \section1 Changing Languages \QC has been localized into several languages. If the system language is one of the supported languages, it is automatically selected. To change the language, select \uicontrol {Tools > Options > Environment} and select a language in the \uicontrol Language field. The change takes effect after you restart \QC. \section1 Viewing Images \QC opens image files in the image viewer. \image qtcreator-image-viewer.png "Image viewer" Use the toolbar buttons (1) or \l{Keyboard Shortcuts}{keyboard shortcuts} to: \list \li Export SVG images to pixmaps \li Switch between background and outline modes \li Zoom in and out \li Fit images to screen \li Return to original size \li Play and pause animated GIF and MNG images \endlist \section2 Exporting SVG Images If you receive a freely scalable icon in the SVG format from an UI designer, you can export it to several images of different sizes to create a set of pixmaps. You can then use QIcon::addPixmap() to add the pixmaps to icons in different modes and states. \section1 Navigating with Keyboard \QC caters not only to developers who are used to using the mouse, but also to developers who are more comfortable with the keyboard. A wide range of \l{keyboard-shortcuts}{keyboard} and \l{Searching with the Locator}{navigation} shortcuts are available to help speed up the process of developing your application. \section1 Useful Features For a list of useful \QC features described in other parts of the documentation, see \l{Tips and Tricks}. \section1 Platform Notes \QC uses standard names and locations for standard features, such as \e options or \e preferences. In this manual, the names and locations on Windows and Linux are usually used to keep the instructions short. Here are some places to check if you cannot find a function, dialog, or keyboard shortcut on OS X when following the instructions: \table \header \li For \li Look In \row \li \uicontrol Tools > \uicontrol Options \li \uicontrol {Qt Creator} > \uicontrol Preferences \row \li \uicontrol Help > \uicontrol {About Plugins} \li \uicontrol {Qt Creator} > \uicontrol {About Plugins} \row \li Keyboard shortcuts \li \uicontrol {Qt Creator} > \uicontrol Preferences > \uicontrol Environment > \uicontrol Keyboard \endtable */