[Solved] RowDetails not size constrained?

[Daniel Billingsley]

I would think that the visual tree for the RowDetails would ultimately be width constrained to the width of the grid, but that doesn't seem to be the case.  In the RowDetails demo you are explicitly declaring a width in the grid in the details template, but then you lose flexibility for resizing of course.

As it is, when I put a textbox in the details, it just expands off the right into invisible space rather than wrapping.

So, am I correct that you're not using a constriaining parent container, like a grid, in the details section, and shouldn't this be changed?

[Kalin Milanov]

Hi Daniel Billingsley,

What we are using if fact are two nested borders outside of the content you provide in the details. Their HorizontalAlignment is set to Stretch and as such you get the current behavior. As we are completely unaware of the content the users will place in the details we leave layout, styling and content to you. That being said we do not think there is any need to change this at the current time.

Thank you for the feedback.

Kind regards,
Kalin Milanov
the Telerik team

[Daniel Billingsley]

I ask you to read carefully what I said again, and reconsider your response.

I would bet money that exactly 0% of the users of this control ever want their content to disappear off the right.  If the only way to keep that from happening is set a fixed or maximum width, that really limits the usefullness of the RowDetails functionality.

You aren't really leaving styling of the content up to me, because there's no way for me to have it simply fill the available area without retemplating the whole control.  You're limiting my options, not opening them up!

What is wrong with you using a grid, which is a naturally constraining control, in addition to or in place of the inner border?

[Kalin Milanov]

Hello Daniel Billingsley,

Our initial implementation of the control was done in a way to natively support the wrapping you mentioned. However there were more issues with this implementation than benefits it provided. Our initial tests of this feature showed that different users place different information in the details and preferred to control it manually. Not to mention that this implementation lead to some performance degradation. Furthermore as many customers are migrating from Microsoft's DataGrid we are ensuring a smooth transition by providing similar experience and behavior. 

Bottom line is we have decided against implementing any additional functionality apart from an empty container for users to place whatever they feel needed.

I am sorry if this fees like we are limiting your option and we will discuss this once again and decide on whether and how to improve on this feature. 

Kind regards,
Kalin Milanov
the Telerik team

[Raghava]

I agree with Daniel. Row details behavior is annoying. Do you have any alternative other than fixed width? With fixed width my UI looks unreasonable. Only option I have now is "Don't use RowDetails".

[Petr]

Hi everyone,
I have to agree, too. The current layout behavior of the RowDetails is really limiting...

[Daniel Billingsley]

I hope this gets revisited by Telerik.  The explanation given previously isn't logical, except for the "performance degradation" part.  Telerik has had big problems with it on the grid.  The latest version supposedly performs much better, so maybe there's hope to fix this now.

All the so-called benefits of the current behavior could be achieved with a size-limiting container, as you can always override the auto-sizing by setting a fixed value, but there's no way to go the other way around.