tessl/pypi-guizero
Python module to allow learners to easily create GUIs
—
Pending
menus.mddocs/
Menu System
The MenuBar widget provides application-level menus for organizing commands and actions. It creates standard menu bars with dropdown menus containing menu items that can execute commands when selected.
Capabilities
Menu Bar
The MenuBar widget creates a menu bar that can be attached to application windows, providing standard menu functionality.
class MenuBar:
def __init__(self, master, toplevel=[], options=[]):
"""
Create a menu bar widget.
Args:
master (App): Parent application window
toplevel (list): List of top-level menu names
options (list): List of menu item configurations
"""Menu Configuration
Menus are configured using a nested list structure that defines the menu hierarchy:
Basic Menu Structure
from guizero import App, MenuBar
app = App()
def file_new():
print("New file")
def file_open():
print("Open file")
def file_exit():
app.destroy()
def help_about():
print("About this application")
# Define menu structure
menubar = MenuBar(app,
toplevel=["File", "Help"],
options=[
[
["New", file_new],
["Open", file_open],
["---"], # Separator
["Exit", file_exit]
],
[
["About", help_about]
]
]
)
app.display()Menu Item Types
Menu items can be configured in several ways:
# Basic menu item with command
["Menu Text", callback_function]
# Menu separator
["---"]
# Menu with keyboard shortcut (display only)
["Copy\tCtrl+C", copy_function]
# Submenu (nested menu)
["Submenu", [
["Submenu Item 1", function1],
["Submenu Item 2", function2]
]]Complete Menu Example
from guizero import App, MenuBar, TextBox, select_file, select_color, info
class TextEditor:
def __init__(self):
self.app = App(title="Simple Text Editor", width=600, height=400)
# Text area
self.text_area = TextBox(
self.app,
multiline=True,
scrollbar=True,
width="fill",
height="fill"
)
# Create menu bar
self.create_menus()
def create_menus(self):
self.menubar = MenuBar(self.app,
toplevel=["File", "Edit", "Format", "Help"],
options=[
# File menu
[
["New\tCtrl+N", self.file_new],
["Open\tCtrl+O", self.file_open],
["Save\tCtrl+S", self.file_save],
["Save As", self.file_save_as],
["---"],
["Exit\tCtrl+Q", self.file_exit]
],
# Edit menu
[
["Cut\tCtrl+X", self.edit_cut],
["Copy\tCtrl+C", self.edit_copy],
["Paste\tCtrl+V", self.edit_paste],
["---"],
["Select All\tCtrl+A", self.edit_select_all],
["Clear", self.edit_clear]
],
# Format menu
[
["Font Size", [
["Small", lambda: self.set_font_size(10)],
["Medium", lambda: self.set_font_size(12)],
["Large", lambda: self.set_font_size(14)]
]],
["Text Color", self.format_color]
],
# Help menu
[
["About", self.help_about],
["Help", self.help_help]
]
]
)
# File menu methods
def file_new(self):
self.text_area.clear()
def file_open(self):
filepath = select_file(
title="Open File",
filetypes=[["Text files", "*.txt"], ["All files", "*.*"]],
master=self.app
)
if filepath:
try:
with open(filepath, 'r') as f:
content = f.read()
self.text_area.value = content
except IOError as e:
info("Error", f"Could not open file: {e}", self.app)
def file_save(self):
# Simplified save - in real app would track current file
self.file_save_as()
def file_save_as(self):
filepath = select_file(
title="Save File As",
filetypes=[["Text files", "*.txt"], ["All files", "*.*"]],
save=True,
master=self.app
)
if filepath:
try:
with open(filepath, 'w') as f:
f.write(self.text_area.value)
info("Success", "File saved successfully!", self.app)
except IOError as e:
info("Error", f"Could not save file: {e}", self.app)
def file_exit(self):
self.app.destroy()
# Edit menu methods
def edit_cut(self):
# Note: Actual cut/copy/paste would require tkinter clipboard access
print("Cut operation")
def edit_copy(self):
print("Copy operation")
def edit_paste(self):
print("Paste operation")
def edit_select_all(self):
print("Select all operation")
def edit_clear(self):
self.text_area.clear()
# Format menu methods
def set_font_size(self, size):
self.text_area.text_size = size
def format_color(self):
color = select_color(master=self.app)
if color:
self.text_area.text_color = color
# Help menu methods
def help_about(self):
info("About", "Simple Text Editor v1.0\nBuilt with guizero", self.app)
def help_help(self):
info("Help", "Use the File menu to open and save files.\nUse Edit menu for text operations.", self.app)
def run(self):
self.app.display()
# Create and run the application
editor = TextEditor()
editor.run()Menu Best Practices
Menu Organization
Follow standard menu conventions:
# Standard menu order
toplevel=["File", "Edit", "View", "Tools", "Help"]
# Common File menu items
file_menu = [
["New", new_function],
["Open", open_function],
["---"],
["Save", save_function],
["Save As", save_as_function],
["---"],
["Exit", exit_function]
]Keyboard Shortcuts
Display keyboard shortcuts in menu text (display only - actual keyboard handling requires additional implementation):
menu_items = [
["New\tCtrl+N", new_function],
["Open\tCtrl+O", open_function],
["Save\tCtrl+S", save_function]
]Menu Separators
Use separators to group related menu items:
menu_items = [
["New", new_function],
["Open", open_function],
["---"], # Separator
["Save", save_function],
["Save As", save_as_function],
["---"], # Separator
["Exit", exit_function]
]Submenus
Create submenus for related options:
format_menu = [
["Font", [
["Arial", lambda: set_font("Arial")],
["Times", lambda: set_font("Times")],
["Courier", lambda: set_font("Courier")]
]],
["Size", [
["10pt", lambda: set_size(10)],
["12pt", lambda: set_size(12)],
["14pt", lambda: set_size(14)]
]]
]Menu Limitations
The guizero MenuBar has some limitations compared to full-featured menu systems:
- No menu item states: Items cannot be enabled/disabled or checked/unchecked dynamically
- No icons: Menu items cannot display icons
- Limited styling: Menu appearance follows system defaults
- Keyboard shortcuts: Display only - requires separate keyboard event handling for functionality
For applications requiring advanced menu features, consider using the underlying Tkinter Menu widget directly through the .tk property.
Platform Behavior
Menu behavior follows platform conventions:
- Windows: Menu bar appears below title bar
- macOS: Menu bar may appear at top of screen (system menu bar)
- Linux: Menu bar appears below title bar, styling depends on desktop environment
Install with Tessl CLI
npx tessl i tessl/pypi-guizero