How can I edit the default navigation style

Question

This is my first application with a GUI that I'm building so I might be doing things wrong.

I want to implement some navigation into my app but I don't seem to understand how to do it properly.

Here's the code:

.xaml

<Window x:Class="introducereDAC.MainWindow"
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
        xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
        mc:Ignorable="d"
        Title="Divide et Impera" Height="450" Width="800" Background="#FF00000F">
    <Grid>
        <Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*"></ColumnDefinition>
        </Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
        <Grid.RowDefinitions>
            <RowDefinition Height="0.5*"></RowDefinition>
            <RowDefinition Height="1*"></RowDefinition>
            <RowDefinition Height="1*"></RowDefinition>
            <RowDefinition Height="5*"></RowDefinition>
        </Grid.RowDefinitions>
        <TextBlock Grid.Column="0" Grid.Row="0" Grid.ColumnSpan="2" HorizontalAlignment="Left" VerticalAlignment="Center" TextWrapping="NoWrap" Text="  
←Introducere DEI (curent)" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" Foreground="#505054" Margin="45,0,0,0"/>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="0" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="1" VerticalAlignment="Top" Grid.ColumnSpan="2">
            <Button Content="Introducere DEI" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="5,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="2" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="1" VerticalAlignment="Top" Grid.ColumnSpan="2">
            <Button Content="DEI Iterativ" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="5,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="4" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="1" VerticalAlignment="Top" Grid.ColumnSpan="2">
            <Button Content="Probleme DEI" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="5,0" Click="NavigareProbleme">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="0" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Teorie" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="1" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Avantaje + Dezavantaje" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="2" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Comparatii cu alte metode" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="3" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Cod" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="4" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Complexitate" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <Viewbox Stretch="Uniform" StretchDirection="Both" Grid.Column="5" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Grid.Row="2" VerticalAlignment="Top">
            <Button Content="Executie" Width="200" Height="30" VerticalAlignment="Center" HorizontalAlignment="Center" FontFamily="./#Roboto Condensed" FontWeight="Bold" Margin="10,0">
                <Button.Style>
                    <Style TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                        <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
                        <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                        <Setter Property="Template">
                            <Setter.Value>
                                <ControlTemplate TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
                                    <Border Background="{TemplateBinding Background}" BorderBrush="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" BorderThickness="{TemplateBinding BorderThickness}">
                                        <ContentPresenter HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
                                    </Border>
                                </ControlTemplate>
                            </Setter.Value>
                        </Setter>
                        <Style.Triggers>
                            <Trigger Property="IsMouseOver" Value="True">
                                <Setter Property="Background" Value="#77dff1"/>
                                <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#FFFFFF" />
                                <Setter Property="BorderBrush" Value="#77dff1"/>
                            </Trigger>
                        </Style.Triggers>
                    </Style>
                </Button.Style>
            </Button>
        </Viewbox>
        <DockPanel Grid.Row="3" Grid.ColumnSpan="6">
            <Frame x:Name="_mainFrame" />
        </DockPanel>
    </Grid>
</Window>

.xaml.cs

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Controls;
using System.Windows.Data;
using System.Windows.Documents;
using System.Windows.Input;
using System.Windows.Media;
using System.Windows.Media.Imaging;
using System.Windows.Navigation;
using System.Windows.Shapes;

namespace introducereDAC
{
    /// <summary>
    /// Interaction logic for MainWindow.xaml
    /// </summary>
    public partial class MainWindow : Window
    {
        public MainWindow()
        {
            InitializeComponent();
        }

        private void NavigareProbleme(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
        {
            _mainFrame.Navigate(new Page1());
        }
    }
}

As an experiment, I've been trying to do it on the button "Probleme DEI", using Click="NavigareProbleme".

After I double click on the button, my app looks like this:

My goal is to edit that white bar and its buttons however I want, but I don't know how to do it (and I didn't find anything useful on Google), and move it at the top, above the other buttons.

Also, is there any way to make it always be there? (not only after I double click on "Probleme DEI")

Thanks.

Answer 1

I don't recommend to use a Frame. Instead implement a simple custom page/view navigation using data templates. You can follow this examples, if you are interested: C# WPF Page Navigation Class, How do I toggle between pages in a WPF application?.

Do not wrap each control you want to display.
Using a Viewbox to wrap a Button does not make sense. A Button inside a Grid will always stretch to occupy all available space by default. Use a Viewbox to stretch and scale elements that don't have their own resize behavior implemented and require on absolute layout properties, like Path. I doubt that you really want you buttons to stretch freely as this would look very odd.
Wrapping the lonely Frame into a DockPanel also does not make any sense. A DockPanel is a container, that arranges it's child elements relative to each other. It only makes sense to use it with more than a single child. Just add the Frame directly to the Grid. Every redundant Panel and UIElement will cost a unnecessary performance penalty as they have to be measured, arranged and maybe rendered individually (recursively).

Create a style for a control (WPF .NET) - Do not copy and paste styles to reuse them. Define a single Style, assign it a x:Key and add it to a ResourceDictionary e.g, App.xaml. Then reference it using the StaticResource markup (or define the Style as implicit to make it apply to all buttons implicitly):

App.xaml

<ResourceDictionary>
  <Style x:Key="ButtonStyle" TargetType="{x:Type Button}">
    <Setter Property="Background" Value="#00000f"/>
    <Setter Property="Foreground" Value="#77dff1"/>
   
    ...

  </Style>
</ResourceDictionary>

Then reference it using StaticResource and the defined key:

<Button Style="{StaticResource ButtonStyle}" />

1. To customize the navigation bar of the Frame you would have to override the default template. You can visit Frame Styles and Templates to find an example of the original Frame style.
   Alternatively hide the original navigation bar (by setting Frame.NavigationUIVisibility) and implement a custom one and use the frame's NavigationService to navigate between its content.

2. Moving the navigation bar without moving the Frame is not possible. Taking a look at the default template will show you that it is part of the Frame control. You can only move the buttons into a the Page, to make them part of the frame's content.
   At this point I have to recommend to implement a custom navigation logic again. It will give you all the flexibility to layout your view you want, as navigation buttons and the actual content host are not part of the same template.
   Or hide the original navigation UI and implement your own and locate it where ever you want.