How do I set a click event for a form?

Question

I have a c# form (let\'s call it MainForm) with a number of custom controls on it. I\'d like to have the MainForm.OnClick() method fire anytime someone clicks on the form re

Answer 1

I recommend creating a base form for the other forms in your application to inherit. Add this code to your base form to create a new event called GlobalMouseClickEventHandler:

namespace Temp
{
    public delegate void GlobalMouseClickEventHander(object sender, MouseEventArgs e);

    public partial class TestForm : Form
    {
        [Category("Action")]
        [Description("Fires when any control on the form is clicked.")]
        public event GlobalMouseClickEventHander GlobalMouseClick;

        public TestForm()
        {
            InitializeComponent();
            BindControlMouseClicks(this);
        }

        private void BindControlMouseClicks(Control con)
        {
            con.MouseClick += delegate(object sender, MouseEventArgs e)
            {
                TriggerMouseClicked(sender, e);
            };
            // bind to controls already added
            foreach (Control i in con.Controls)
            {
                BindControlMouseClicks(i);
            }
            // bind to controls added in the future
            con.ControlAdded += delegate(object sender, ControlEventArgs e)
            {
                BindControlMouseClicks(e.Control);
            };            
        }

        private void TriggerMouseClicked(object sender, MouseEventArgs e)
        {
            if (GlobalMouseClick != null)
            {
                GlobalMouseClick(sender, e);
            }
        }
    }
}

This solution will work not only for top-level controls, but also nested controls such as controls placed inside of panels.