The dbicExplorerBar control is capable of persisting and restoring its property and collection information to and from an XML file both at design time and at run time. To store the property and collection settings in design time click on the XMLWrite property in the property inspector, type at least one character in the field and press the Enter key. The Save As dialog will appear to allow the creation of the XML file in a specified location. To restore the control’s settings and collections in design time, type at least three characters into the XMLRead property and press the Enter Key. The Open File dialog is displayed to allow for the selection of an XML file created using the XMLWrile functionality in the control.
NOTE: Certain items such as images and tag property objects cannot be saved or restored through XML. Also note that properties assigned to the control that reference the object’s host (i.e. Anchor, Size, Position, Dock, etc.) are not included in the XML.
Styling XML
Styling allows the developer to change the look of the dbicExplorerBar control without having to go back and re-compile the code. Styling involves designing the control with the desired look and feel inside the design surface and then persisting the property settings to an XML file using the XMLWrite property in the Property Inspector. The name of the XML file is then placed in the StyleFile property of the control. When the control is first instantiated in its host, it will attempt to load the file named in the StyleFile property (if a value exists) and load only those properties that affect the appearance of the control. List and Item collections are ignored when loading XML in the StyleFile property. NOTE: If the StyleFile file is not found the control will not report an error or exception.