uitk 1.1.14

A comprehensive UI toolkit extending Qt Designer workflows with dynamic loading, custom widgets, and automatic signal-slot management.

UITK

Name it, and it connects. UITK is a convention-driven Qt framework that eliminates boilerplate. Design in Qt Designer, name your widgets, write matching Python methods—everything else is automatic. While conventions handle the common cases, you retain full control to customize anything.

Installation

pip install uitk

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Quick Start

from uitk import Switchboard

class MySlots:
    def __init__(self, **kwargs):
        self.sb = kwargs.get("switchboard")
        self.ui = self.sb.loaded_ui.my_app
    
    def btn_save_init(self, widget):
        """Called once when widget registers."""
        widget.setText("Save")
    
    def btn_save(self):
        """Called on every click."""
        print("Saved!")

sb = Switchboard(ui_source="./", slot_source=MySlots)
sb.loaded_ui.my_app.show(app_exec=True)

That's it. No connect() calls. No widget lookups. No manual state management.

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Where Convention Applies

UITK uses naming conventions to automatically wire your application. Understanding where convention applies helps you work with the framework effectively.

What Gets Auto-Wired

Convention	Pattern	What Happens
UI → Slot Class	my_app.ui → MyAppSlots	Slot class discovered and instantiated
Widget → Slot	btn_save → def btn_save()	Widget's default signal connected to method
Widget → Init	btn_save → def btn_save_init(widget)	Method called once when widget registers
UI Hierarchy	menu.file.ui	Child of menu.ui, accessed via get_ui_relatives()
Tags	panel#floating.ui	Tags extracted to ui.tags set

What You Still Control

Conventions provide sensible defaults, but you can always override:

from uitk import Signals

# Override default signal
@Signals("textChanged")  # Instead of editingFinished
def txt_search(self, text):
    self.filter_results(text)

# Connect additional signals manually
widget.clicked.connect(my_handler)

# Use any Qt API directly
widget.setStyleSheet("background: red;")

---

Naming Conventions

UI File → Slot Class

UI Filename	Slot Class Name
editor.ui	EditorSlots
file_browser.ui	FileBrowserSlots
export-dialog.ui	ExportDialogSlots

Widget → Methods

Widget objectName	Slot Method	Init Method
btn_save	def btn_save(self)	def btn_save_init(self, widget)
txt_name	def txt_name(self)	def txt_name_init(self, widget)
cmb_type	def cmb_type(self, index)	def cmb_type_init(self, widget)
chk_active	def chk_active(self, state)	def chk_active_init(self, widget)

Default Signals

Widget Type	Default Signal	Slot Receives
QPushButton	clicked	—
QCheckBox	stateChanged	state
QRadioButton	toggled	checked
QComboBox	currentIndexChanged	index
QLineEdit	editingFinished	—
QTextEdit	textChanged	—
QSpinBox	valueChanged	value
QDoubleSpinBox	valueChanged	value
QSlider	valueChanged	value
QListWidget	itemSelectionChanged	—
QTreeWidget	itemClicked	item, column
QTableWidget	cellClicked	row, column

Slot Parameter Injection

Slots can request any combination of these parameters:

def btn_action(self):                           # No params
def btn_action(self, widget):                   # Widget only
def btn_action(self, widget, ui):               # Widget + UI
def btn_action(self, widget, ui, sb):           # All three
def cmb_option(self, index, widget, ui, sb):    # Signal arg + all three

---

Widget Enhancements

Every widget automatically gains these capabilities:

.menu — Popup Menu

def btn_options_init(self, widget):
    menu = widget.menu
    menu.setTitle("Settings")
    menu.add("QCheckBox", setText="Auto-save", setObjectName="chk_auto")
    menu.add("QSpinBox", setPrefix="Interval: ", setObjectName="spn_int")
    menu.add("QSeparator")
    menu.add("QPushButton", setText="Apply", setObjectName="btn_apply")

def btn_options(self):
    menu = self.ui.btn_options.menu
    auto = menu.chk_auto.isChecked()
    interval = menu.spn_int.value()

.option_box — Action Panel

def txt_path_init(self, widget):
    menu = widget.option_box.menu
    menu.add(
        "QPushButton",
        setText="Browse...",
        setObjectName="btn_browse"
    )
    menu.btn_browse.clicked.connect(self.browse)

menu.add() Flexibility

# Widget type as string
menu.add("QDoubleSpinBox", setValue=1.0, setObjectName="spn")

# Batch add from list
menu.add(["Option A", "Option B", "Option C"])

# Dict with data
menu.add({"Save": save_data, "Load": load_data})

# Separator
menu.add("QSeparator")

# Access added widgets by objectName
value = menu.spn.value()

---

Automatic State Persistence

Widget values save on change and restore on next show:

# User sets spinbox to 5, closes app
# Next launch: spinbox is 5 again

# Disable per widget
widget.restore_state = False

# Disable for entire UI
ui.restore_widget_states = False

# Window geometry also persists automatically
ui.restore_window_size = False  # Disable if needed

---

Theming

# Apply theme
ui.style.set(theme="dark", style_class="translucentBgWithBorder")

# Icons are monochrome and auto-colored to match the theme
icon = sb.get_icon("save")

---

UI Hierarchy & Tags

Hierarchy via Naming

menu.ui              # Parent
menu.file.ui         # Child of menu
menu.file.recent.ui  # Grandchild

ancestors = sb.get_ui_relatives(ui, upstream=True)
children = sb.get_ui_relatives(ui, downstream=True)

Tags via #

panel#floating.ui       # tags: {"floating"}
dialog#modal#dark.ui    # tags: {"modal", "dark"}

if ui.has_tags("modal"):
    ui.edit_tags(add="active")

---

MainWindow

Every UI is wrapped in MainWindow, providing these properties and methods:

Properties

Property	Type	Description
ui.sb	Switchboard	Reference to switchboard
ui.widgets	set	All registered child widgets
ui.slots	object	Slot class instance
ui.settings	SettingsManager	Persistent settings
ui.state	StateManager	Widget state persistence
ui.style	StyleSheet	Theme manager
ui.tags	set	Tags from UI name
ui.path	str	Path to .ui file
ui.is_initialized	bool	True after first show
ui.is_current_ui	bool	True if active UI
ui.is_pinned	bool	True if pinned (won't auto-hide)
ui.header	Header	Header widget (if present)
ui.footer	Footer	Footer widget (if present)

Signals

Signal	Emitted When
on_show	Window shown
on_hide	Window hidden
on_close	Window closed
on_focus_in	Window gains focus
on_focus_out	Window loses focus
on_child_registered	Widget registered
on_child_changed	Widget value changes

Methods

# Window configuration
ui.set_attributes(WA_TranslucentBackground=True)
ui.set_flags(FramelessWindowHint=True, WindowStaysOnTopHint=True)

# Show with positioning
ui.show()                    # Default position
ui.show(pos="screen")        # Center on screen
ui.show(pos="cursor")        # At cursor
ui.show(app_exec=True)       # Start event loop

# Tag management
ui.has_tags("submenu")
ui.edit_tags(add="active", remove="inactive")

---

Widget Attributes Added by Registration

When widgets register, they gain these attributes:

Attribute	Description
widget.ui	Parent MainWindow
widget.base_name()	Name without tags/suffixes
widget.legal_name()	Name with special chars replaced
widget.type	Widget class
widget.derived_type	Qt base type
widget.default_signals()	Default signal names
widget.get_slot()	Get connected slot method
widget.call_slot()	Manually invoke slot
widget.init_slot()	Trigger init method
widget.connect_slot()	Connect to slot
widget.is_initialized	True after init called
widget.restore_state	Enable/disable persistence

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Switchboard Utilities

The switchboard provides many helper methods:

Dialogs

sb.message_box("Operation complete!")
sb.message_box("Choose:", "Yes", "No", "Cancel")

path = sb.file_dialog(file_types="Images (*.png *.jpg)")
folder = sb.dir_dialog()

Widget Helpers

sb.center_widget(widget)                    # Center on screen
sb.center_widget(widget, relative=other)    # Size relative to another widget

sb.toggle_multi(ui, setDisabled="btn_a,btn_b")  # Batch property toggle
sb.connect_multi(ui, widgets, signals, slots)   # Batch connect

sb.create_button_groups(ui, "chk_001-3")    # Radio group from range

UI Navigation

sb.current_ui                  # Active UI
sb.prev_ui                     # Previous UI
sb.ui_history()                # Full UI history
sb.ui_history(-1)              # Previous UI by index
sb.get_ui("editor")            # Get by name
sb.get_ui_relatives(ui, upstream=True)

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Custom Widgets Included

UITK provides enhanced versions of common widgets:

Widget	Enhancements
PushButton	Menu, option box, rich text
CheckBox	Menu, option box
ComboBox	Header text, alignment, menu
LineEdit	Action colors (valid/invalid/warning), menu
TextEdit	Enhanced text handling
Label	Rich text, text overlay
TreeWidget	Hierarchy icons, item helpers
TableWidget	Enhanced cell handling
Menu	Dynamic add(), grid layout, positioning
Header	Draggable, pin/minimize/close buttons
Footer	Status text, size grip
CollapsableGroup	Expandable/collapsible sections
ColorSwatch	Color picker widget
ProgressBar	Enhanced progress display
MessageBox	Styled message dialogs

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Package Structure

uitk/
├── __init__.py
├── switchboard.py              # Core: UI loading, slot wiring, registries
├── signals.py                  # @Signals decorator
├── events.py                   # EventFactoryFilter, MouseTracking
├── file_manager.py             # FileContainer, FileManager
│
├── widgets/
│   ├── mainWindow.py           # MainWindow wrapper
│   ├── menu.py                 # Dynamic Menu
│   ├── header.py               # Draggable header bar
│   ├── footer.py               # Status bar with size grip
│   ├── pushButton.py           # Enhanced button
│   ├── checkBox.py             # Enhanced checkbox
│   ├── comboBox.py             # ComboBox with header
│   ├── lineEdit.py             # Input with action colors
│   ├── textEdit.py             # Enhanced text editor
│   ├── label.py                # Rich text label
│   ├── treeWidget.py           # Tree with icons
│   ├── tableWidget.py          # Enhanced table
│   ├── progressBar.py          # Progress display
│   ├── messageBox.py           # Styled dialogs
│   ├── collapsableGroup.py     # Expandable sections
│   ├── colorSwatch.py          # Color picker
│   ├── separator.py            # Visual separator
│   ├── region.py               # Layout region
│   │
│   ├── optionBox/              # Option box system
│   │   ├── _optionBox.py       # OptionBox, OptionBoxContainer
│   │   ├── utils.py            # OptionBoxManager
│   │   └── options/            # ClearOption, PinOption, etc.
│   │
│   └── mixins/
│       ├── attributes.py       # set_attributes(), set_flags()
│       ├── menu_mixin.py       # .menu property
│       ├── option_box_mixin.py # .option_box property
│       ├── state_manager.py    # Widget state persistence
│       ├── settings_manager.py # QSettings wrapper
│       ├── style_sheet.py      # Theme management
│       ├── value_manager.py    # Widget value get/set
│       ├── icon_manager.py     # Icon loading and theming
│       ├── text.py             # RichText, TextOverlay
│       ├── convert.py          # Type conversions
│       ├── shortcuts.py        # Keyboard shortcuts
│       ├── tasks.py            # Background tasks
│       ├── docking.py          # Docking behavior
│       ├── switchboard_slots.py    # Slot connection logic
│       ├── switchboard_widgets.py  # Widget registration
│       ├── switchboard_utils.py    # Helper utilities
│       └── switchboard_names.py    # Name/tag handling
│
├── icons/                      # Monochrome icons (auto-colored by theme)
└── examples/                   # Example application

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Complete Example

from uitk import Switchboard

class EditorSlots:
    def __init__(self, **kwargs):
        self.sb = kwargs.get("switchboard")
        self.ui = self.sb.loaded_ui.editor

    # Button initialization
    def btn_open_init(self, widget):
        menu = widget.menu
        menu.add("QPushButton", setText="Recent...", setObjectName="btn_recent")
        menu.btn_recent.clicked.connect(self.show_recent)

    def btn_open(self):
        path = self.sb.file_dialog(file_types="Text (*.txt)")
        if path:
            self.ui.txt_content.setText(open(path).read())
            self.ui.lbl_status.setText(f"Opened: {path}")

    def btn_save(self):
        self.sb.message_box("Saved!")

    # ComboBox with index parameter
    def cmb_font_init(self, widget):
        widget.addItems(["Arial", "Helvetica", "Courier"])

    def cmb_font(self, index):
        font_name = self.ui.cmb_font.currentText()
        self.ui.txt_content.setFont(self.sb.QtGui.QFont(font_name))

    # Checkbox with state parameter
    def chk_wrap(self, state):
        QTextEdit = self.sb.QtWidgets.QTextEdit
        mode = QTextEdit.WidgetWidth if state else QTextEdit.NoWrap
        self.ui.txt_content.setLineWrapMode(mode)

    def show_recent(self):
        self.sb.message_box("Recent files...")

sb = Switchboard(ui_source="./", slot_source=EditorSlots)
ui = sb.loaded_ui.editor
ui.style.set(theme="dark")
ui.show(pos="screen", app_exec=True)

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Feature Summary

Core Architecture

• Convention-based UI loading and slot connection
• Automatic widget registration with attribute injection
• Lazy loading of UIs on first access
• UI hierarchy via filename patterns
• Tag system for UI categorization

Signal/Slot System

• Auto-connection via naming convention
• Default signal mappings for all widget types
• @Signals decorator for custom signals
• Parameter injection (widget, ui, sb)
• Slot history tracking

State Management

• Automatic widget value persistence
• Window geometry save/restore
• Cross-UI widget sync
• Per-widget and per-UI control
• QSettings-based storage

Widget Enhancements

• .menu popup on any widget
• .option_box action panels
• Rich text support
• Action colors for validation
• Menu with dynamic add()

Theming

• Light/dark themes with custom theme support
• Monochrome icons auto-colored by theme
• StyleSheet manager
• Translucent window styles

Utilities

• Message box dialogs
• File/directory dialogs
• Widget centering
• Batch operations
• Button group creation
• Deferred execution

Custom Widgets

• Enhanced versions of all common widgets
• Draggable header with controls
• Collapsable groups
• Color swatches
• Tree with hierarchy icons

Event Handling

• EventFactoryFilter for custom events
• MouseTracking for hover detection
• Focus tracking
• Window lifecycle signals

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Contributing

python -m pytest test/ -v

License

LGPL v3 — See LICENSE