- Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Finder
- Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Example
- Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameters
- Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Chart
From Qt 5.0 onwards, Qt offers two different ways to write signal-slot connections in C++: The string-based connection syntax and the functor-based connection syntax. There are pros and cons to both syntaxes. The table below summarizes their differences.
QObject has also non-static versions of connect so you can connect signal to slot as follows: receiver-connect(sender,signal,slot); Of course, receiver must be an object of some class derived of QObject. Things go pretty much well until the introduction of lambda expression in recent Qt versions. Now you can connect a signal to a lambda. Here, I want to briefly discuss how the same effect can be achieved with Qt itself. C is not as dynamic as Python, so Python's approaches of using lambda or functools.partial won't work 1. Fortunately, the Qt folks provided a solution that can make passing extra arguments to slots relatively simple.
String-based | Functor-based | |
---|---|---|
Type checking is done at.. | Run-time | Compile-time |
Can perform implicit type conversions | Y | |
Can connect signals to lambda expressions | Y | |
Can connect signals to slots which have more arguments than the signal (using default parameters) | Y | |
Can connect C++ functions to QML functions | Y |
The following sections explain these differences in detail and demonstrate how to use the features unique to each connection syntax. Casino montreal restaurant reviews yelp.
- A lambda is essentially a call to an anonymous function, with nasty syntax. If you wrote your slot as a function, you would pass a parameter for the string (received from the signal) to it, wouldn't you?
- How to connect a signal with int parameter to a slot with enum parameter WITHOUT using lambdas in QT5? 3 How does Qt handle call-by-reference for signals and slots?
Type Checking and Implicit Type Conversions
String-based connections type-check by comparing strings at run-time. There are three limitations with this approach:
- Connection errors can only be detected after the program has started running.
- Implicit conversions cannot be done between signals and slots.
- Typedefs and namespaces cannot be resolved.
Limitations 2 and 3 exist because the string comparator does not have access to C++ type information, so it relies on exact string matching.
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Finder
In contrast, functor-based connections are checked by the compiler. The compiler catches errors at compile-time, enables implicit conversions between compatible types, and recognizes different names of the same type.
For example, only the functor-based syntax can be used to connect a signal that carries an int
to a slot that accepts a double
. A QSlider holds an int
value while a QDoubleSpinBox holds a double
value. The following snippet shows how to keep them in sync:
The following example illustrates the lack of name resolution. QAudioInput::stateChanged() is declared with an argument of type 'QAudio::State'. Thus, string-based connections must also specify 'QAudio::State', even if 'State'
is already visible. This issue does not apply to functor-based connections because argument types are not part of the connection.
Making Connections to Lambda Expressions
The functor-based connection syntax can connect signals to C++11 lambda expressions, which are effectively inline slots. This feature is not available with the string-based syntax.
In the following example, the TextSender class emits a textCompleted()
signal which carries a QString parameter. Here is the class declaration:
Here is the connection which emits TextSender::textCompleted()
when the user clicks the button:
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Example
In this example, the lambda function made the connection simple even though QPushButton::clicked() and TextSender::textCompleted()
have incompatible parameters. In contrast, a string-based implementation would require extra boilerplate code.
Note: The functor-based connection syntax accepts pointers to all functions, including standalone functions and regular member functions. However, for the sake of readability, signals should only be connected to slots, lambda expressions, and other signals.
Connecting C++ Objects to QML Objects
The string-based syntax can connect C++ objects to QML objects, but the functor-based syntax cannot. This is because QML types are resolved at run-time, so they are not available to the C++ compiler.
In the following example, clicking on the QML object makes the C++ object print a message, and vice-versa. Here is the QML type (in QmlGui.qml
):
Here is the C++ class:
Here is the code that makes the signal-slot connections:
Note: All JavaScript functions in QML take parameters of var
type, which maps to the QVariant type in C++.
When the QPushButton is clicked, the console prints, 'QML received: 'Hello from C++!'. Likewise, when the Rectangle is clicked, the console prints, 'C++ received: 'Hello from QML!'.
See Interacting with QML Objects from C++ for other ways to let C++ objects interact with QML objects.
Using Default Parameters in Slots to Connect to Signals with Fewer Parameters
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameters
Usually, a connection can only be made if the slot has the same number of arguments as the signal (or less), and if all the argument types are compatible.
The string-based connection syntax provides a workaround for this rule: If the slot has default parameters, those parameters can be omitted from the signal. When the signal is emitted with fewer arguments than the slot, Qt runs the slot using default parameter values.
Functor-based connections do not support this feature.
Checking is what one does if they wish to pass the action to the next player, but keep their cards. Checking gives one the option to raise, call, fold or even check again later on in the betting. What do check and call mean in poker.
Suppose there is a class called DemoWidget
with a slot printNumber()
that has a default argument:
Using a string-based connection, DemoWidget::printNumber()
can be connected to QApplication::aboutToQuit(), even though the latter has no arguments. The functor-based connection will produce a compile-time error:
To work around this limitation with the functor-based syntax, connect the signal to a lambda function that calls the slot. See the section above, Making Connections to Lambda Expressions.
Selecting Overloaded Signals and Slots
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Chart
Making Connections to Lambda Expressions
The functor-based connection syntax can connect signals to C++11 lambda expressions, which are effectively inline slots. This feature is not available with the string-based syntax.
In the following example, the TextSender class emits a textCompleted()
signal which carries a QString parameter. Here is the class declaration:
Here is the connection which emits TextSender::textCompleted()
when the user clicks the button:
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Example
In this example, the lambda function made the connection simple even though QPushButton::clicked() and TextSender::textCompleted()
have incompatible parameters. In contrast, a string-based implementation would require extra boilerplate code.
Note: The functor-based connection syntax accepts pointers to all functions, including standalone functions and regular member functions. However, for the sake of readability, signals should only be connected to slots, lambda expressions, and other signals.
Connecting C++ Objects to QML Objects
The string-based syntax can connect C++ objects to QML objects, but the functor-based syntax cannot. This is because QML types are resolved at run-time, so they are not available to the C++ compiler.
In the following example, clicking on the QML object makes the C++ object print a message, and vice-versa. Here is the QML type (in QmlGui.qml
):
Here is the C++ class:
Here is the code that makes the signal-slot connections:
Note: All JavaScript functions in QML take parameters of var
type, which maps to the QVariant type in C++.
When the QPushButton is clicked, the console prints, 'QML received: 'Hello from C++!'. Likewise, when the Rectangle is clicked, the console prints, 'C++ received: 'Hello from QML!'.
See Interacting with QML Objects from C++ for other ways to let C++ objects interact with QML objects.
Using Default Parameters in Slots to Connect to Signals with Fewer Parameters
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameters
Usually, a connection can only be made if the slot has the same number of arguments as the signal (or less), and if all the argument types are compatible.
The string-based connection syntax provides a workaround for this rule: If the slot has default parameters, those parameters can be omitted from the signal. When the signal is emitted with fewer arguments than the slot, Qt runs the slot using default parameter values.
Functor-based connections do not support this feature.
Checking is what one does if they wish to pass the action to the next player, but keep their cards. Checking gives one the option to raise, call, fold or even check again later on in the betting. What do check and call mean in poker.
Suppose there is a class called DemoWidget
with a slot printNumber()
that has a default argument:
Using a string-based connection, DemoWidget::printNumber()
can be connected to QApplication::aboutToQuit(), even though the latter has no arguments. The functor-based connection will produce a compile-time error:
To work around this limitation with the functor-based syntax, connect the signal to a lambda function that calls the slot. See the section above, Making Connections to Lambda Expressions.
Selecting Overloaded Signals and Slots
Qt Signal Slot Lambda Parameter Chart
With the string-based syntax, parameter types are explicitly specified. As a result, the desired instance of an overloaded signal or slot is unambiguous.
In contrast, with the functor-based syntax, an overloaded signal or slot must be casted to tell the compiler which instance to use.
For example, QLCDNumber has three versions of the display()
slot:
QLCDNumber::display(int)
QLCDNumber::display(double)
QLCDNumber::display(QString)
To connect the int
version to QSlider::valueChanged(), the two syntaxes are:
See also qOverload().
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