Inform user why an element is disabled on mouse hover

[Mihajlo]

In my ribbon bar I can disable some elements on various occasions, and I would like to inform the user about the reason an element is disabled. Usually I would use a tooltip (and some extra code to enable tooltips even for disabled WinForms Controls). But ribbon bar elements are not WinForms controls, and also I don't know how to find a ribbon bar element at cursor's location. Do you have an idea how to inform the user about why the element is disabled when the user hovers the mouse over it?

[Dimitar]

Hello Mihajlo,

It is possible to show a custom tooltip when hovering over a disabled button. Here is an example that shows this:

RadToolTip toolTip = new RadToolTip();
RadButtonElement prevElement = null;
private void RadRibbonBar1_MouseMove(object sender, MouseEventArgs e)
{
    var element = radRibbonBar1.ElementTree.GetElementAtPoint(e.Location) as RadButtonElement;
    if (e.Button == MouseButtons.None && element != null && !element.Enabled)
    {
        if (prevElement != element)
        {
            toolTip.Show("Disabled because...", Cursor.Position, 2000);
        }
        prevElement = element;
    }
}

I hope this will be useful. Let me know if you have additional questions.

Regards,
Dimitar
Progress Telerik