How to retrieve vars from QML components

[KevinSharp]

I seem to be missing a basic construct here: how to I access a value created in a QML component from a QML file that embeds it? For example, the Qt SDK includes the search box example where the SearchBox.qml component is used in main.qml.

SearchBox.qml includes:

TextInput {
        id: textInput
        anchors { left: parent.left; leftMargin: 8; right: clear.left; rightMargin: 8; verticalCenter: parent.verticalCenter }
        focus: true
        selectByMouse: true
    }

and main.qml includes:

     SearchBox { id: search1; KeyNavigation.tab: search2; KeyNavigation.backtab: search3; focus: true }
        SearchBox { id: search2; KeyNavigation.tab: search3; KeyNavigation.backtab: search1 }
        SearchBox { id: search3; KeyNavigation.tab: search1; KeyNavigation.backtab: search2 }

but when I try something simple like:

Text {
        id: text1
        x: 56
        y: 78
        width: 80
        height: 20
        text: "contents of search box 1" + search1.textInput
        font.pixelSize: 12
    }

in my main.qml file I get an undefined error.

How do I get at the contents of the search box from my main.qml?

[tliljend]

You don't need to use elements internal id from outside. Point directly to text property:

Text {
        id: text1
        x: 56
        y: 78
        width: 80
        height: 20
        text: "contents of search box 1" + search1.text
        font.pixelSize: 12
    }

[KevinSharp]

You don't need to use elements internal id from outside. Point directly to text property:

@tliljend: thanks for the reply, but I'm still getting an undefined error. There must be something about scoping in QML that I'm not understanding.

When I type "search1." Qt Creator presents me with a code completion list that seems to apply to the visual container, but not the data content. Under the hope that it was just a code completion bug, I tried manually forcing search1.textInput (undefined), search1.textInput.text (my initial guess, still undefined) search1.text (ur suggestion, still undefined). I even tried search1.data and search1.data.text (gives me object placeholder and undefined respectively) because code completion told me search1.data at least was a valid option.
I need to dig into the documentation and get a better understanding of scope.

[KevinSharp]

When I type "search1." Qt Creator presents me with a code completion list that seems to apply to the visual container, but not the data content.

That's by design. The SearchBox.qml component that came with the SDK has a FocusScope as the root element, with the TextInput element as a sub element. Subelements are private, but you can explicitly expose properties. See http://doc.qt.nokia.com/4.7-snapshot...ing-types.html

[Seikeau]

I think the problem is that SearchBox.qml itself does not have a text variable, one of its children (the TextInput) does. Try to add:

property string text: textInput.text

to the main parent of TextInput.

Alternatively you can add a simple getText() function to the parent:

function getText(){
   return textInput.text;
}

And then just refer to that in the Text element:

Text {
        id: text1
        x: 56
        y: 78
        width: 80
        height: 20
        text: "contents of search box 1" + search1.getText()
        font.pixelSize: 12
    }