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Tkinter: reference document of possible cursor names #76607
Description
| BPO | 32426 |
|---|---|
| Nosy | @terryjreedy, @serhiy-storchaka, @patthoyts |
Note: these values reflect the state of the issue at the time it was migrated and might not reflect the current state.
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GitHub fields:
assignee = None
closed_at = None
created_at = <Date 2017-12-25.22:37:11.302>
labels = ['expert-tkinter', '3.10', 'docs']
title = 'Tkinter: reference document of possible cursor names'
updated_at = <Date 2020-11-12.21:14:46.044>
user = 'https://bugs.python.org/alex75'bugs.python.org fields:
activity = <Date 2020-11-12.21:14:46.044>
actor = 'terry.reedy'
assignee = 'docs@python'
closed = False
closed_date = None
closer = None
components = ['Documentation', 'Tkinter']
creation = <Date 2017-12-25.22:37:11.302>
creator = 'alex.75'
dependencies = []
files = []
hgrepos = []
issue_num = 32426
keywords = []
message_count = 5.0
messages = ['309045', '309210', '380813', '380815', '380849']
nosy_count = 5.0
nosy_names = ['terry.reedy', 'docs@python', 'serhiy.storchaka', 'alex.75', 'patthoyts']
pr_nums = []
priority = 'normal'
resolution = None
stage = 'needs patch'
status = 'open'
superseder = None
type = None
url = 'https://bugs.python.org/issue32426'
versions = ['Python 3.10']Linked PRs
- gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option #152481
- [3.15] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (GH-152481) #153110
- [3.14] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (GH-152481) #153111
- [3.13] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (GH-152481) #153112
Activity
alex75 commentedon Dec 25, 2017
In the documentation of Tkinter.ttk Widget it is defined the "cursor" parameter. It is:
cursor
Specifies the mouse cursor to be used for the widget. If set to the empty string (the default), the cursor is inherited for the parent widget.
There is not ANY way to knok wich value this parameter accept.
Searching "cursor" in the documentation does not find nothing, apart database cursor and this page (Tkinter.ttk.Widget).
Thanks,
Alessandro
terryjreedy commentedon Dec 30, 2017
The tkinter docs currently omit much, but refer one to, among other places, http://infohost.nmt.edu/tcc/help/pubs/tkinter/web/index.html, which has a page with images and names.
http://infohost.nmt.edu/tcc/help/pubs/tkinter/web/cursors.html
patthoyts commentedon Nov 12, 2020
The Tk documentation for the acceptable cursor names is the cursors manual page. https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl/TkCmd/cursors.htm
Tk does not provide a way to get all these names in script.
This should probably be closed.
alex75 commentedon Nov 12, 2020
As suggested the documentation for "cursor" is here: https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl/TkCmd/cursors.htm
Close [SOLVED]
terryjreedy commentedon Nov 12, 2020
A link here is not a patch. The current tkinter doc for the cursor option in https://docs.python.org/3/library/tkinter.html#tk-option-data-types badly needs updating.
"""
The standard X cursor names from cursorfont.h can be used, without the XC_ prefix. For example to get a hand cursor (XC_hand2), use the string "hand2". You can also specify a bitmap and mask file of your own. See page 179 of Ousterhout’s book.
"""
The ttk doc https://docs.python.org/3/library/tkinter.ttk.html#standard-options is, as noted, incomplete.
"Specifies the mouse cursor to be used for the widget. If set to the empty string (the default), the cursor is inherited for the parent widget."
I propose to replace the tkinter entry with a combined and updated entry.
"""
The name of the cursor to use when the mouse point is over the widget. An empty string, the default, means to inherit the cursor from the parent widget or the system. "none" means no cursor. Other names recognized by tk are listed at https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl/TkCmd/cursors.htm. Possible forms of the cross-platform cursors are illustrated at https://tkdocs.com/shipman/cursors.html. The cursor hot spot, the point reported for mouse clicks, depends on the cursor.
"""
I may try to reference this, rather than copy it, in the ttk doc.
[-]Tkinter.ttk Widget does not define wich option exists to set the cursor[/-][+]Tkinter: reference document of possible cursor names[/+]serhiy-storchaka commentedon Jun 28, 2026
PR #152481 updates the
cursoroption-type documentation to link to thecursors(3tk)manual page for the list of names and to note that the available names are platform-dependent, replacing the "page 179 of Ousterhout's book" reference.It also adds the cross-reference from the ttk standard
cursoroption that @terryjreedy asked for.That should cover both parts of this issue; it can be closed once the PR (and its 3.13–3.15 backports) land.
gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (GH-152481)
[3.13] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (G…
[3.15] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (G…
[3.14] gh-76607: Improve documentation of the tkinter cursor option (G…