Timebox update: -command option

Sun Mar 30 13:34:12 CDT 2008

I added a -command option to [timebox]. The argument to -command is a script to which the new time is appended. The time is expressed as seconds since the epoch. This script is executed whenever the timebox is used to change the time. Notice in the demo that the printout only occurs when the bottom timebox is used.

This feature is by request of Peter Turner. Thanks! I don't know why I didn't think of this myself.

Timebox, a Tcl/Tk time entry widget

Sun Jul 01 19:00:35 CDT 2007

Timebox is a time entry "megawidget" for Tcl/Tk. It's a bit different from the average megawidget in that it is in fact just a spinbox, rather than a bunch of widgets packed into a frame. At any rate, it facilitates entry of time and date, and it supports many of the same field format codes as [clock].

Timebox requires Tcl/Tk 8.5a6. You may need to download and build the latest CVS.

Neat features:

• Text entry. Typing in a time value works fairly naturally. Typing is destructive, overwriting text already present. Backspace works like the left arrow key.
• Spinner entry. The up and down arrows and the spinner buttons increment and decrement the currently selected field, so you can easily advance through days, months, and years.
• Linked variables. A timebox can be linked to procedures or other widgets via linked variables. Linked variables can be numeric (seconds since 1970) or textual (formatted time string). This linkage works both ways; setting the linked variable will update the timebox as well.
• Copy and paste. Copy and paste work. Pasted text replaces text already in the timebox widget.
• Validation. The time is constantly validated. No keypress which would result in an invalid time is allowed. Somehow timebox manages to do this without being annoying, and anyone who has had experience with key validation knows that's an impressive feat.

The most important feature is timebox supports date entry as well as time-of-day entry.