ComboBox (VB.NET)

• Combines TextBox features with a short drop down list.  
  
• ComboBox has three different styles:
• ComboBoxStyle.DropDown – the default style that allow the user to type data directly into the ComboBox as well as select items from the drop down list.  
  
• ComboBoxStyle.Simple – appears as a TextBox with no drop down list.  
  
• ComboBoxStyle.DropDownList – requires the user to select items from the drop down list.  Does not allow the user to enter data directly.

• Some ComboBox Properties:
• Items.Count– number of drop-down list items.
• SelectedIndex– The index of the selected item.  If no item is selected, SelectedIndex is -1.
• The index of the last item added to the ComboBox.  
  • Dim newIndex As Integer
    newIndex = List1.Items.Add("Hello")
    

  
  

• To add item to a ComboBox: 
• Items.Insert or
• Items.Add  
  
• To remove item from a ComboBox:
• Items.Remove  
  
• To clear all items in a ComboBox:
• Items.Clear  
  
• To display an item in the ComboBox:
• cmbCombo.Text = txtInput.Text  
  
• To retrieve an item from a ComboBox:
  • item = cmbCombo.Text

To reset a combo box so that entries are no longer highlighted, first set the list index to 0 and then reset it to -1.

cmbCombo.SelectedIndex = 0
cmbCombo.SelectedIndex = -1

See also List Box Clues for help populating a combo box, etc.

ComboBox Control Changes in Visual Basic .NET