Binaryworld - Map an enumerated value to a set of OptionButton controls ... [ VB.net -> WinForms ]

In VB6 and previous version, displaying an enumerated value in a group of option buttons is quite simple, provided that the option buttons be grouped in a control array. VB.NET doesn't support control arrays, so you can't reuse the same simple coding techniques. However, you can prepare a couple of helper procedure to make your job as easy as possible:

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' set the RadioButton corresponding to the specified value
' sets the first RadioButton if the value is out of the valid range

Sub SetRadioButton(ByVal value As Integer, ByVal ParamArray ctrls() As _
  RadioButton)
  ' keep the value in correct range
  If value < 0 Or value >= ctrls.Length Then value = 0
  ctrls(value).Checked = True
End Sub

' return the index of the only selected RadioButton in a group
' returns -1 if no RadioButton is checked

Function GetRadioButton(ByVal ParamArray ctrls() As RadioButton) As Integer
  Dim value As Integer
  For value = 0 To ctrls.Length - 1
    If ctrls(value).Checked Then Return value
  Next
  Return -1
End Function

Here's how you can use these routines. Say that you have three RadioButton controls named rbuBlack, rbuGray, and rbuWhite and you want to use them to display a value from a variable that can be 0 (black), 1 (gray), or 2 (white).

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' set the RadioButton corresponding to a color
Dim color As Integer = 1
SetRadioButton(color, rbuBlack, rbuGray, rbuWhite)
' ...

' retrieve the color set by the user
color = GetRadioButton(rbuBlack, rbuGray, rbuWhite)