WPF Wonders: Using DataTemplates

y article WPF Wonders: Building Control Templates explains how to use templates to tell a control what components it should use to do its work. For example, you can use a template to make a Button use a polygon for its surface instead of the usual rectangle. The template can also determine how the Button reacts to state-changing events such as being under the mouse, being defaulted, being pressed, and so forth. This kind of template can change a control's fundamental structure and behavior.

This article describes another kind of template: a DataTemplate. A DataTemplate tells controls that display a series of items (such as ListBox, ComboBox, and TreeView) how to display their data items. Just as a control template tells a control what pieces to use to display itself, a DataTemplate tells a control what pieces to use to display each of its data items.