Date Picker

What it is for

The control is a text box and a drop-down button. The text is free text written in Format (the long date by default) or CustomFormat, and is read back as the user types. It also understands today, yesterday, tomorrow, one week from now and one week before now, and names of your own from an XML file (CustomDateXMLFeed).

Keyboard and menu

In the text: Enter commits what was typed, Up and Down move the date a month, Page Up and Page Down a year, Ctrl+A and Ctrl+S a day forward and back, and Ctrl+L (with the menu on) opens the calendar. In the calendar: the arrows move a day or a week, Page Up and Page Down a month, Home and End to the ends of the month, Enter chooses and Escape closes. The right-click menu (ShowCustomMenu) adds clipboard commands and quick dates.

The value

Value is an object: a DateTime, or – with no date (ValueIsNull) – NullDateString, or DBNull when the control is data bound. MinValue and MaxValue limit it. BinaryDateChanged reports each change.

Appearance

The text box's border is set by EditControlStyleIsExtended, BorderColor and DrawBorderAs; the button by UseDropDownImageStyle; the calendar by the Calendar..., Selection... and Today... colours, SpecialDates and Font, from which it is sized.

using System;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using Binarymission.WinForms.Controls.DateTimeControls;

var dueDate = new BinaryDatePicker
{
    Location = new Point(16, 16),
    Width = 220,
    Format = BinaryDatePickerFormat.Custom,
    CustomFormat = "ddd dd MMM yyyy",
    MinValue = DateTime.Today,
    NullDateString = "No due date",
    SpecialDates = new[] { new DateTime(2026, 12, 25), new DateTime(2026, 12, 26) }
};

dueDate.Value = DateTime.Today.AddDays(30);
dueDate.BinaryDateChanged += (sender, e) =>
    invoice.DueDate = dueDate.ValueIsNull ? (DateTime?)null : (DateTime)dueDate.Value;

invoiceForm.Controls.Add(dueDate);