Pro WPF in C# 2008: Windows Presentation Foundation with .NET 3.5, Second Edition

Coordinate-Based Layout with the Canvas

The only layout container you haven't considered yet is the Canvas. It allows you to place elements using exact coordinates, which is a poor choice for designing rich data-driven forms and standard dialog boxes, but a valuable tool if you need to build something a little different (such as a drawing surface for a diagramming tool). The Canvas is also the most lightweight of the layout containers. That's because it doesn't include any complex layout logic to negotiate the sizing preferences of its children. Instead, it simply lays them all out at the position they specify, with the exact size they want.

To position an element on the Canvas, you set the attached Canvas.Left and Canvas.Top properties. Canvas.Left ...