BBCode.WPF

Lightweight BBCode rendering control for WPF (.NET Framework 4.6.2, .NET 8/9 Windows). Provides a BBCodeBlock control that parses a practical subset of BBCode into WPF inline elements.

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Installation

Add the package (once published) via NuGet:

Install-Package BBCode.WPF

Or reference the project directly.

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XAML Namespace

Using XmlnsDefinition (recommended):

xmlns:bbcode="https://github.com/ChrisPulman/BBCode.WPF"

Fallback (direct CLR):

xmlns:bbcode="clr-namespace:CP.BBCode.WPF;assembly=BBCode.WPF"

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Basic Usage

<bbcode:BBCodeBlock BBCode="Hello [b]World[/b][br]Visit [url=https://example.com]Example[/url]" />

The text is parsed on load and whenever the BBCode property changes.

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Supported Tags

Tag	Syntax	Description
Line Break	[br]	Inserts a line break.
Bold	[b]text[/b]	Bold text.
Italic	[i]text[/i]	Italic text.
Underline	[u]text[/u]	Underlined text.
Strikethrough	[s]text[/s]	Strikethrough.
Font Size	[size=18]text[/size]	Sets font size (double).
Font Family	[font=Consolas]text[/font]	Sets font family.
Color	[color=Red]text[/color] or [color=#FF336699]text[/color]	Sets foreground color.
Link (named)	[url=https://site]caption[/url]	Clickable hyperlink.
Link (auto)	[url]https://site[/url]	URL used as text + target.
Command Link	[url=cmd:Parameter]Execute[/url]	Executes bound ICommand with Parameter.
Email	[email][email protected][/email] or [[email protected]]Mail me[/email]	Creates mailto: link.
Image	[img=https://host/image.png]caption[/img]	Displays image (caption optional).
Image (sized)	[img=https://img,width=200,height=120]caption[/img]	Width/Height optional (any order).
Quote	[quote]text[/quote]	Italic, gray quoted block.
Quote (with author)	[quote=Alice]text[/quote]	Adds an “Alice wrote:” header.
Code	[code]var x = 42;[/code]	Monospaced with light background.
List	[list][*]Item 1[*]Item 2[/list]	Bullet list (simple).

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Lists

Minimal bullet support (no nesting / numbering):

[list]
[*] First item
[*] Second item
[*] Third item
[/list]

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Images

[img=https://domain/image.png]Optional caption[/img]
[img=https://domain/image.png,width=150,height=90]Scaled image[/img]

Order of width / height does not matter. Omit either to leave it unset.

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Links & Commands

Hyperlinks open via Process.Start (shell execute). Suppress failures silently.

Command links:

<bbcode:BBCodeBlock BBCode="Click [url=cmd:Refresh]here[/url] to refresh" Command="{Binding RefreshCommand}"/>

When clicked: parameter = Refresh (substring after cmd:). Command receives string via CommandParameter.

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Email

[email][email protected][/email]
[[email protected]]Contact us[/email]

Generates mailto: links.

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Quotes

Generic quote:

[quote]This is a quoted text.[/quote]

Quote with author:

[quote=Author]This is a quoted text with an author.[/quote]

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Code

[code]
for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++)
{
    Console.WriteLine(i);
}
[/code]

Renders in Consolas (if available) with light gray background.

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MVVM Example

<bbcode:BBCodeBlock
    BBCode="Reload data: [url=cmd:Reload]Reload[/url]"
    Command="{Binding ReloadCommand}" />

public ICommand ReloadCommand => new RelayCommand(p => Reload(p));
private void Reload(object? parameter)
{
    // parameter == "Reload"
}

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Dynamic Updates

Bind BBCode to a view model property; control re-parses on change.

<bbcode:BBCodeBlock BBCode="{Binding PreviewText}" />

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Error Handling

If parsing fails, the raw BBCode string is displayed as plain text.

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Limitations / Notes

• No nested lists or ordered lists yet.
• Quote / code blocks are inline-based (no full block layout containers).
• Color names and hex codes rely on ColorConverter (system-defined names only).
• Parsing is lightweight; not a full spec implementation.
• Silent failures for invalid tags / images that cannot load.

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Roadmap Ideas

• Numbered lists [list=1].
• Nested list support.
• Table tags.
• Spoiler / collapse blocks.
• Custom tag extensibility.

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Contributing

PRs / issues welcome. Keep additions lightweight and safe for partial trust UI scenarios.

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License

MIT License. See LICENSE file.

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Quick Reference (Cheat Sheet)

[b]bold[/b] [i]italic[/i] [u]underline[/u] [s]strike[/s]
[size=20]big[/size] [font=Consolas]mono[/font]
[color=#FF8800]orange[/color]
[url=https://example.com]Example[/url]
[url]https://example.com[/url]
[email][email protected][/email]
[img=https://host/x.png,width=100,height=60]caption[/img]
[quote=Alice]Hi[/quote]
[code]int x = 1;[/code]
[list][*]One[*]Two[*]Three[/list]

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**BBCode.Wpf** - By Chris Pulman - Empowering Industrial Automation with Reactive Technology ⚡🏭