Adding Icon Next To Custom Command

By Madhukar Moogala

The motivation behind bringing this blog is a query from a Forum user.

We can add any desired Icon next to our custom command.

• First, load our custom command to AutoCAD domain.
• Next create a CUI ribbon command button.
• Create ribbon button macro with necessary image files and other data, image file that we wish to see across our custom command.
• Associate macro with custom command.

When association is made between custom command and CUI ribbon macro, application can retrieve image data from command macro and displayed across command in command line or editor.

Image:

Or from Command Line:

Source code sample:

I created a sample cuix which associated macro with custom command.

To play around, configure following code into your enviroment,compile and run CreatTestCuix and load generated .cuix file to AutoCAD using CUILOAD.

See the magic

namespace IconToCustomCommand
    {
    /*Helper Methods*/
    public static class CustomizationExtensions
        {
        public static RibbonTabSource AddNewTab(
        this CustomizationSection instance,
        string name,
        string text = null)
            {
            if (text == null)
                text = name;
 
            var ribbonRoot = instance.MenuGroup.RibbonRoot;
            var id = "tab" + name;
            var ribbonTabSource = new RibbonTabSource(ribbonRoot);
 
            ribbonTabSource.Name = name;
            ribbonTabSource.Text = text;
            ribbonTabSource.Id = id;
            ribbonTabSource.ElementID = id;
 
            ribbonRoot.RibbonTabSources.Add(ribbonTabSource);
 
            return ribbonTabSource;
            }
 
        public static RibbonPanelSource AddNewPanel(
        this RibbonTabSource instance,
        string name,
        string text = null)
            {
            if (text == null)
                text = name;
 
            var ribbonRoot = instance.CustomizationSection.MenuGroup.RibbonRoot;
            var panels = ribbonRoot.RibbonPanelSources;
            var id = "pnl" + name;
            var ribbonPanelSource = new RibbonPanelSource(ribbonRoot);
 
            ribbonPanelSource.Name = name;
            ribbonPanelSource.Text = text;
            ribbonPanelSource.Id = id;
            ribbonPanelSource.ElementID = id;
 
            panels.Add(ribbonPanelSource);
 
            var ribbonPanelSourceReference = new RibbonPanelSourceReference(instance);
 
            ribbonPanelSourceReference.PanelId = ribbonPanelSource.ElementID;
 
            instance.Items.Add(ribbonPanelSourceReference);
 
            return ribbonPanelSource;
            }
 
        public static RibbonRow AddNewRibbonRow(this RibbonPanelSource instance)
            {
            var row = new RibbonRow(instance);
 
            instance.Items.Add(row);
 
            return row;
            }
 
        public static RibbonRow AddNewRibbonRow(this RibbonRowPanel instance)
            {
            var row = new RibbonRow(instance);
 
            instance.Items.Add(row);
 
            return row;
            }
 
        public static RibbonRowPanel AddNewPanel(this RibbonRow instance)
            {
            var row = new RibbonRowPanel(instance);
 
            instance.Items.Add(row);
 
            return row;
            }
 
        public static RibbonCommandButton AddNewButton(
        this RibbonRow instance,
        string text,
        string commandFriendlyName,
        string command,
        string commandDescription,
        string smallImagePath,
        string largeImagePath,
        RibbonButtonStyle style)
            {
 
            var customizationSection = instance.CustomizationSection;
            var macroGroups = customizationSection.MenuGroup.MacroGroups;
 
            MacroGroup macroGroup;
 
            if (macroGroups.Count == 0)
                macroGroup = new MacroGroup("MacroGroup", customizationSection.MenuGroup);
            else
                macroGroup = macroGroups[0];
 
            var button = new RibbonCommandButton(instance);
            button.Text = text;
 
            var commandMacro = "^C^C_" + command;
            var commandId = "ID_" + command;
            var buttonId = "btn" + command;
            var labelId = "lbl" + command;
 
            var menuMacro = macroGroup.CreateMenuMacro(commandFriendlyName,
            commandMacro,
            commandId,
            commandDescription,
            MacroType.Any,
            smallImagePath,
            largeImagePath,
            labelId);
            var macro = menuMacro.macro;
            /*Associate custom command to ribbonbutton macro*/
            macro.CLICommand = command;
 
            button.MacroID = menuMacro.ElementID;
            button.ButtonStyle = style;
            instance.Items.Add(button);
 
            return button;
            }
 
 
 
 
        }
    public class CreateTestCuix
        {
        [CommandMethod("CreateTestCuix1")]
        public static void CreateTestCuix1()
            {
            var editor = Application.DocumentManager.MdiActiveDocument.Editor;
 
            try
                {
                var debugFolder = Path.GetDirectoryName(Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().Location);
                var customizationSection = new CustomizationSection();
                var menuGroup = customizationSection.MenuGroup;
                var tab = customizationSection.AddNewTab("CuiTestTab");
                var panel = tab.AddNewPanel("Panel");
                var row = panel.AddNewRibbonRow();
 
                menuGroup.Name = "CuiTest1";
 
                row.AddNewButton(
                "Smile",
                "Smile",
                "KeepSmiling",
                "How to add BMP icon to Custom Command",
                debugFolder + "\smile_16.bmp",
                debugFolder + "\smile_32.bmp",
                RibbonButtonStyle.LargeWithText);
 
 
                var fileName = Path.Combine(debugFolder, "CuiTest1.cuix");
 
                File.Delete(fileName);
 
                customizationSection.SaveAs(fileName);
                }
            catch (System.Exception ex)
                {
                editor.WriteMessage(Environment.NewLine + ex.Message);
                }
            }
        [CommandMethod("KeepSmiling")]
        public void KeepSmiling()
            {
            Application.ShowAlertDialog("KeepSmiling :D");
            }
 
        }
    }

Sample Transparent Images:

Project Source