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Dundas Chart - how to check if a Chart Series exists before manipulating it?

I'm creating a reusable sub to add formatting to 2 chart series within a Dundas Chart. Occasionally however, the second series doesn't actually exist (based on the data returned from a datatable), so I am getting an Invalid Argument exception when I try the following code. Can any help show me how to avoid this error?

<DCWC:Chart ID="Chart1" runat="server">
<Series>
      <DCWC:Series Name="Default" />
      <DCWC:Series Name="Totals" />
</Series>
<ChartAreas>
      <DCWC:ChartArea Name="Default" />
</ChartAreas>
</DCWC:Chart>

If Chart1.Series("Totals") IsNot Nothing Then ' <-- error here: Data series with name "Totals" was not found in the series collection
' perform chart colouring functions
End If

Bob Learned

Instead of defining the series in the HTML, you need to define it in the code-behind.

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

The problem is however that the 2nd series is not always required, and therefore isn't added each time. It just add it using the HTML approach as and when it's required. Even if I add it in code-behind, my problem is the same:

Chart1.Series.Add("Default") ' always needed
Chart1.Series.Add("Totals") ' sometimes needed

If Chart1.Series("Default") IsNot Nothing Then
' format "Default" series here
End If

If Chart1.Series.Add("Totals") IsNot Nothing Then ' Fails when Totals hasn't been manually added

End If

If I use a TRY CATCH statement then I can get it to work, but it seems an unreliable approach...

Bob Learned

I don't have access to Dundas here, so you need to check if there is a Chart1.Series.Contains("Totals") method.

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

Okay yes there is a Contains method:

Public Functions Contains(value as Object) As Boolean

but I can't get it to work correctly. Here are the 2 approaches I tried:

Chart1.Series.Contains("Totals") ' always evaluates to FALSE, so I suspect this is not the correct way to use the method

Chart1.Series.Contains(Chart1.Series("Totals")) ' evaluates to TRUE when the Series exists, but causes Invalid Argument exception when it doesn't exist!

Rouchie

ASKER

Here's another angle of attack. We must be close now...

Dim s As New Dundas.Charting.WebControl.Series
s.Name = "TestSeries"
Chart1.Series.Add(s)
Chart1.Series.Contains(s) ' = TRUE

Given the above, is it possible to declare a new Series variable and CTYPE it against the chart, then check the variable isNot Nothing???

Rouchie

ASKER

Don't suppose you have any more ideas? I'm totally out of luck and Dundas are obviously charging to use their support desk!

Bob Learned

I wonder if IndexOf would be any better?

Bob

Bob Learned

Another possibility is the brute-force method of looping through the data series, and trying to find a Series with that name.

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

IndexOf breaks it too!

Ages ago I read a book that very briefly covered Object Identity VS Object Equivalence in arrays. Reading that back it seems that Dundas is using Object Identity in the Series array, when I need it to be using Equivalence. Does that seem logical, and more importantly is there anything I can craft that would overcome this problem?

Failing that, looping through the series array is all I've got left...

Bob Learned

Question is, how can you tell when you don't need to add the Total data series?

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

The charts show data from SQL Procedures that I've written, so I know what data needs to be shown by the chart when it is dataBound.
I simply then hard-code each Series into the Page to match the data I'm retrieving. The reusable sub then formats the chart (so each page's chart has a very similar appearance), plus each series in the chart.

I think reading this back, that the brute force approach is the wisest choice - loop through then SELECT CASE each Series("Name"). That way I can apply specific formatting based on the name of the data series.

I'll have a go...

Bob Learned

So, you have some Stored Procedures that don't return a Total series?

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

Yes, also, 1 page uses 1 stored procedure.
So, some pages have "Totals" as well as "Default". So when I know the procedure will be using 2 series, I just add the second series to the control in the page.

Bob Learned

From the Stored Procedure results, can you tell that the data doesn't include Totals?

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

The business object returns a datatable with the results of the procedure, which is then bound to a gridView, then the Dundas Chart. I guess you could check to see if the dataTable contained a column called "Totals", if that's possible, unless you're thinking of something more sophisticated?

I tried out the brute force method and it works really well, although I'm still sure there's a better way!

Bob Learned

DataTable.Contains takes a column name:

If dtDataTable.Contains("Totals") Then
' Add the Totals data series
End If

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

Right okay, so Dundas really doesn't behave like the code above does. Do you know why this might be? Surely Contains is just a built in method that is inherited by the Dundas chart, right??

Here's my test, with no errors thrown:

Trace.Warn(myDT.Columns.Contains("Totals").ToString) ' TRUE
Trace.Warn(myDT.Columns.Contains("someRandomName").ToString) ' FALSE - Dundas would have crashed here

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Bob Learned

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Rouchie

ASKER

Where are you looking to find that information? In my copy of VSWD 2005 in Class View I can only see a description of Contains. Same story when online.

If I can 'see' inside their method we might be able to bring some sense to the world!

Bob Learned

Here is some magic from Lutz Roeder, a Micro$oftie extraordinaire:

Lutz Roeder's Reflector:
http://www.aisto.com/roeder/DotNet/

Download it for free and have fun.

A companion add-in is also extremely useful:

Denis Bauer's Reflector.FileDisassembler:
http://www.denisbauer.com/NETTools/FileDisassembler.aspx

This tool can create files from disassembled code. It is not 100% guaranteed syntax, and a lot of the naming is generic, but you can really get a sense for the whole picture of a class.

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

Ahh, nice!

Okay here's what they've put in their Contains method:

Public Function Contains(ByVal value As Object) As Boolean
Return Me.a.Contains(value)
End Function

Does it make any sense to you?

Bob Learned

Yep, it looks for references, not keys in a Hashtable. It is not going to help you any, so we came up with a way of checking a DataTable to see if it contains a particular column name before adding a data series to the chart.

Bob

Rouchie

ASKER

Okay, thanks for help me out today!