GUI Resolution

#1 I did search this site and TDN wiki, but unfortunately there isn't any documentation on the horizSizing and vertSizing fields of which is what you're looking for manipulating the control's size and position depending on parent control's size.

The example script GameBrowserGui.gui provided with my GuiModernTextListCtrl resource is a good example of proper use of such fields.

#2 This (old) post does a decent job of explaining the basics: http://www.garagegames.com/community/blogs/view/1892

In most cases you'll want to create a GuiControl object (with its extent set to your design resolution (640 x 480, 800 x 600, etc.) and horiz/vertSizing fields set to 'relative'). This will create a blank/invisible GUI control to act as a parent container for other controls. It will fill the entire window and resize to fit the resolution.

From there you can create new controls as children and set their respective horiz/vertSizing fields to whatever is appropriate.

As the screen resolution changes, the parent GuiControl will resize to fill the screen and this change will be propagated to all of the child controls. How the child controls handle this change will depend on what their horiz/vertSizing fields are set to. If they're set to 'relative', for example, then the child controls will scale upwards/downwards and adjust position to keep the same relative size/location within their parent (GuiControl).

#3 Yes. This can be annoying when integrating changes to existing GUIs. When doing this it's best to work with the original GUI in its original size. Otherwise the relative positioning will result in your new elements scaling to odd sizes that don't match the preexisting elements when you change resolutions.

#4 I am trying to create dynamically GUI elements. How to make them a child of an already existing GUIControl? I need this to preserve size (needed when changing resolution to have them well positioned and sized)

I looked for appropriate method but couldn't find a console method to make my dynamically created gui a child of the GUIcontrol.

#5 Aren't GUIs simsets/simgroups? Maybe it is something like:

%parentgui.add(%childgui);

Edit:
www.garagegames.com/community/forums/viewthread/50830

#6 In fact I tried out exactly this. I also used addGuiControl() console method, but it doesn't do the job.

This is what my code look like:

new GuiControl(parentGui) {
      Profile = "GuiDefaultProfile";
      HorizSizing = "relative";
      VertSizing = "relative";
      position = "0 0";
      Extent = "1024 768";
      MinExtent = "8 2";
      Visible = "1";
};

Then I create dynamically the child Gui:

%newcontainer = new GuiControl(childContainer) {
      Profile = "GuiDefaultProfile";
      HorizSizing = "relative";
      VertSizing = "relative";
      position = "0 0";
      Extent = "1024 768";
      MinExtent = "8 2";
      Visible = "1";
      
      new GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl() {
      profile = "GuiDefaultProfile";
      HorizSizing = "relative";
      VertSizing = "relative";
      position = "0 300";
      extent = "1024 120";
      minExtent = "8 8";
      visible = "1";
      helpTag = "0";
      lockMouse = "0";
      wrap = "0";
      is3d = "0";
      Interval = "30";
      DML = "art/gui/example.dml";
      angle = "0.0";
      };
    };
    parentGui.addGuiControl(%newcontainer);

I also tried with add(). On resolution change the parentGui resizes itself the right way, while the childContainer Gui doesn't.

#7 I just am looking through the default menu control which is a chunkedbitmapcontrol. It has this: isContainer = "1";

Perhaps that will fix it.

The other controls say: isContainer = "0";

#8 Actually I found a way to fix this.

What I wanted to do with this dynamically created GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl is to delete an older one and create at its place the new GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl. Therefore before I delete the old Control I get its position with getPosition() and extent with getExtent() and give it to the new GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl.

I didn't want to go this way, seems very poor as solution, but it does do the job. Thanks!

#9 @Lyudomir, can't you just change the properties of your existing GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl to match your new GuiAnimatedBitmapCtrl? That way you don't have to delete and create a new one.