How does one have the C# designer know the default property for a Padding or other object/struct in C#

Question

How does one tell the designer the default value of a Property when it is not one of the types supported by DefaultValue()? For instance, a Padding, or

Answer 1

Try this:

[DefaultValue( typeof( Padding ), "2, 2, 2, 2" )]
public Padding LabelPadding
{
    get { return _labelPadding; }
    set { _labelPadding = value; }
}

Answer 2

Try this:

private static Padding DefaultLabelPadding = new Padding(2);
private internalLabelPadding = DefaultLabelPadding;
public Padding LabelPadding { get { return internalLabelPadding; } set { internalLabelPadding = value; LayoutNow(); } }

// next comes the magic
bool ShouldSerializeLabelPadding() { return LabelPadding != DefaultLabelPadding; }

The property browser looks for a function named ShouldSerializeXYZ for each property XYZ. Whenever ShouldSerializeXYZ returns false, it doesn't write anything during code generation.

EDIT: documentation:

• [1]: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms973818.aspx
• [2]: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/53b8022e.aspx