[FLEX-33685] Using keyboard selection in combobox ignores custom text

• Type: Bug
• Status: Open
• Priority: Major
• Resolution: Unresolved
• Affects Version/s: Apache Flex 4.9.0, Apache Flex 4.10.0
• Fix Version/s: Apache Flex 4.10.0
• Component/s: Spark: ComboBox
• Environment: Windows 7, Intel i5, 4GB RAM
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: david bel
• Created: 27/Aug/13 15:49
• Updated: 27/Aug/13 16:33

Description

When using keyboard navigation and selection the spark ComboBox control ignores custom text entered by the user.
Steps to reproduce:
Compile and run the following simple application:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<s:WindowedApplication xmlns:fx="http://ns.adobe.com/mxml/2009"
xmlns:s="library://ns.adobe.com/flex/spark"
xmlns:mx="library://ns.adobe.com/flex/mx">
<s:Group>
<s:layout><s:HorizontalLayout /></s:layout>
<s:ComboBox id="myCombo" width="200" >
<s:dataProvider>
<mx:ArrayList>
<fx:String>test1</fx:String>
<fx:String>test2</fx:String>
<fx:String>test3</fx:String>
</mx:ArrayList>
</s:dataProvider>
</s:ComboBox>
<s:TextInput id="myText" width="200" />
</s:Group>
</s:WindowedApplication>

Click in the combo box and type "abc"
Press shift + home

Actual: The selected text is "test1"
Expected: The selected text should be "abc"

I wrote a quick patch for this:
public class TestComboOverride extends ComboBox
{
public function TestComboOverride()

{ super(); }

override mx_internal function keyDownHandlerHelper(event:KeyboardEvent):void
{
if ((event.keyCode == Keyboard.LEFT) || (event.keyCode == Keyboard.RIGHT)

(event.keyCode == Keyboard.HOME)

(event.keyCode == Keyboard.END)) { _proposedSelectedIndex = CUSTOM_SELECTED_ITEM; } super.keyDownHandlerHelper(event); } } The problem appears to be that the _proposedSelectedIndex property remains set to -2 [NO_PROPOSED_SELECTION] while entering the text, where it really should have been -3 [CUSTOM_SELECTED_ITEM] unless the user happened to type a label from the data provider in which case it should have the index of that item. The DropDownListBase class maintains a "userProposedSelectedIndex" property which appears to overlap in purpose with the proposedSelectedIndex property, but does contain the correct value.

Unfortunately I have not yet been able to identify the exact place where the value of _proposedSelectedIndex affects the selected item in the given scenario.