WoWInterface - Creating minimap buttons

Hmm this would make an excellent template. I'll flesh one out with a "push" effect and options for "FFA" movement for square minimaps to post later. But this is one style of minimap button. Instead of the slider in options you drag the button directly.

For the icon you can use any square image in place of Interface\Icons\INV_Misc_QuestionMark. Any of the Interface\Icon files in interface.mpq will work fine as the file of MyMod_MinimapButton_Icon.

Assuming your mod is named MyMod, and your SavedVariables settings is MyMod_Settings (feel free to change the convention and replace _ with . or use entirely different means):

In the xml, just before the closing </Ui> add a new Button (ordinarily you'd expect a <Frame> at this level but a Button is just fine):

Code:

        <Button name="MyMod_MinimapButton" parent="Minimap" enableMouse="true" movable="true" hidden="false">

                <Size>

                        <AbsDimension x="33" y="33"/>

                </Size>

                <Anchors>

                        <Anchor point="TOPLEFT"/>

                </Anchors>

                <Layers>

                        <Layer level="BACKGROUND">

                                <Texture name="MyMod_MinimapButton_Icon" file="Interface\Icons\INV_Misc_QuestionMark">

                                        <Size>

                                                <AbsDimension x="21" y="21"/>

                                        </Size>

                                        <Anchors>

                                                <Anchor point="TOPLEFT">

                                                        <Offset>

                                                                <AbsDimension x="7" y="-6"/>

                                                        </Offset>

                                                </Anchor>

                                        </Anchors>

                                </Texture>

                        </Layer>

                        <Layer level="OVERLAY">

                                <Texture file="Interface\Minimap\MiniMap-TrackingBorder">

                                        <Size>

                                                <AbsDimension x="56" y="56"/>

                                        </Size>

                                        <Anchors>

                                                <Anchor point="TOPLEFT"/>

                                        </Anchors>

                                </Texture>

                        </Layer>

                </Layers>

                <Frames>

                        <Frame name="MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame" hidden="true">

                                <Scripts>

                                        <OnUpdate>

                                                MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame_OnUpdate()

                                        </OnUpdate>

                                </Scripts>

                        </Frame>

                </Frames>

                <HighlightTexture alphaMode="ADD" file="Interface\Minimap\UI-Minimap-ZoomButton-Highlight"/>

                <Scripts>

                        <OnLoad>

                                this:RegisterForClicks("LeftButtonUp","RightButtonUp")

                                this:RegisterForDrag("LeftButton","RightButton")

                        </OnLoad>

                        <OnDragStart>

                                this:LockHighlight()

                                MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame:Show()

                        </OnDragStart>

                        <OnDragStop>

                                this:UnlockHighlight()

                                MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame:Hide()

                        </OnDragStop>

                        <OnClick>

                                MyMod_MinimapButton_OnClick() -- do your thing in here, arg1 is mouse button clicked

                        </OnClick>

                </Scripts>

        </Button>

In your lua:

Code:

-- add this to your SavedVariables or as a separate SavedVariable to store its position

MyMod_Settings = {

        MinimapPos = 45 -- default position of the minimap icon in degrees

}



-- Call this in a mod's initialization to move the minimap button to its saved position (also used in its movement)

-- ** do not call from the mod's OnLoad, VARIABLES_LOADED or later is fine. **

function MyMod_MinimapButton_Reposition()

        MyMod_MinimapButton:SetPoint("TOPLEFT","Minimap","TOPLEFT",52-(80*cos(MyMod_Settings.MinimapPos)),(80*sin(MyMod_Settings.MinimapPos))-52)

end



-- Only while the button is dragged this is called every frame

function MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame_OnUpdate()



        local xpos,ypos = GetCursorPosition()

        local xmin,ymin = Minimap:GetLeft(), Minimap:GetBottom()



        xpos = xmin-xpos/UIParent:GetScale()+70 -- get coordinates as differences from the center of the minimap

        ypos = ypos/UIParent:GetScale()-ymin-70



        MyMod_Settings.MinimapPos = math.deg(math.atan2(ypos,xpos)) -- save the degrees we are relative to the minimap center

        MyMod_MinimapButton_Reposition() -- move the button

end



-- Put your code that you want on a minimap button click here.  arg1="LeftButton", "RightButton", etc

function MyMod_MinimapButton_OnClick()

        DEFAULT_CHAT_FRAME:AddMessage(tostring(arg1).." was clicked.")

end

Basically the XML consists of three major elements:
- The icon texture in a BACKGROUND layer
- The minimap tracking border in an OVERLAY layer to put the circle around the icon
- A frame named MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame whose sole purpose is to contain an OnUpdate

Its events:
OnLoad: register the button for dragging and also for the "RightButtonUp" to register as a click (so you can use left and right clicks on the button)
OnDragStart: start the OnUpdate which continually updates its position relative to cursor
OnDragStop: stop the OnUpdate entirely
OnClick: this function is where you'd put your code

In the lua:
MyMod_Settings: the SavedVariable. Make sure all references to this are the same.
MyMod_MinimapButton_Reposition: Moves the minimap button. Use in VARIABLES_LOADED, PLAYER_LOGIN, PLAYER_ENTERING_WORLD, or any event after VARIABLES_LOADED and frames are rendered (which seems to be before VARIABLES_LOADED nowadays).
MyMod_MinimapButton_DraggingFrame_OnUpdate: This moves the button in relationship to the current mouse position and the center of the minimap. It *only* runs while the button is being dragged.
MyMod_MinimapButton_OnClick: This is where you put your code for when the button is clicked.

You can use OnMouseDown and OnMouseUp instead of OnDragStart/OnDragStop, but since the buttons are moved infrequently the latter seems a safer alternative so users don't accidentally move the button just by clicking it a little awkwardly. If you use OnMouseDown or OnMouseUp you may want to check IsShiftKeyDown() or something similar.