64) How can I center a widget in a form?

Answer: One of Motif's trickier questions.  The problems are that: Form gives
no support for centering, only for edge attachments, and the widget must stay
in the center if the form or the widget is resized.  Just looking at
horizontal centering (vertical is similar) some solutions are:

 a.  Use the table widget instead of Form.

 b.  A hack free solution is from Dan Heller:




     /* Written by Dan Heller.  Copyright 1991, O'Reilly && Associates.
      * This program is freely distributable without licensing fees and
      * is provided without guarantee or warranty expressed or implied.
      * This program is -not- in the public domain.  This program is
      * taken from the Motif Programming Manual, O'Reilly Volume 6.
      */

     /* corners.c -- demonstrate widget layout management for a
      * BulletinBoard widget.  There are four widgets each labeled
      * top-left, top-right, bottom-left and bottom-right.  Their
      * positions in the bulletin board correspond to their names.
      * Only when the widget is resized does the geometry management
      * kick in and position the children in their correct locations.
      */
     #include <Xm/BulletinB.h>
     #include <Xm/PushBG.h>

     char *corners[] = {
         "Top-Left", "Top-Right", "Bottom-Left", "Bottom-Right",
     };

     static void resize();

     main(argc, argv)
     int argc;
     char *argv[];
     {
         Widget toplevel, bboard;
         XtAppContext app;
         XtActionsRec rec;
         int i;

         /* Initialize toolkit and create toplevel shell */
         toplevel = XtVaAppInitialize(&app, "Demos", NULL, 0,
             &argc, argv, NULL, NULL);

         /* Create your standard BulletinBoard widget */
         bboard = XtVaCreateManagedWidget("bboard",
             xmBulletinBoardWidgetClass, toplevel, NULL);

         /* Set up a translation table that captures "Resize" events
          * (also called ConfigureNotify or Configure events).  If the
          * event is generated, call the function resize().
          */
         rec.string = "resize";
         rec.proc = resize;
         XtAppAddActions(app, &rec, 1);
         XtOverrideTranslations(bboard,
             XtParseTranslationTable("<Configure>: resize()"));

         /* Create children of the dialog -- a PushButton in each corner. */
         for (i = 0; i < XtNumber(corners); i++)
             XtVaCreateManagedWidget(corners[i],
                 xmPushButtonGadgetClass, bboard, NULL);

         XtRealizeWidget(toplevel);
         XtAppMainLoop(app);
     }

     /* resize(), the routine that is automatically called by Xt upon the
      * delivery of a Configure event.  This happens whenever the widget
      * gets resized.
      */
     static void
     resize(w, event, args, num_args)
     CompositeWidget w;   /* The widget (BulletinBoard) that got resized */
     XConfigureEvent *event;  /* The event struct associated with the event */
     String args[]; /* unused */
     int *num_args; /* unused */
     {
         WidgetList children;
         int width = event->width;
         int height = event->height;
         Dimension w_width, w_height;
         short margin_w, margin_h;

         /* get handle to BulletinBoard's children and marginal spacing */
         XtVaGetValues(w,
             XmNchildren, &children,
             XmNmarginWidth, &margin_w,
             XmNmarginHeight, &margin_h,
             NULL);

         /* place the top left widget */
         XtVaSetValues(children[0],
             XmNx, margin_w,

             XmNy, margin_h,
             NULL);

         /* top right */
         XtVaGetValues(children[1], XmNwidth, &w_width, NULL);

         /* To Center a widget in the middle of the BulletinBoard (or Form),
          * simply call:
          *   XtVaSetValues(widget,
               XmNx,    (width - w_width)/2,
               XmNy,    (height - w_height)/2,
               NULL);
          * and return.
          */
         XtVaSetValues(children[1],
             XmNx, width - margin_w - w_width,
             XmNy, margin_h,
             NULL);
         /* bottom left */
         XtVaGetValues(children[2], XmNheight, &w_height, NULL);
         XtVaSetValues(children[2],

             XmNx, margin_w,
             XmNy, height - margin_h - w_height,
             NULL);
         /* bottom right */
         XtVaGetValues(children[3],
             XmNheight, &w_height,
             XmNwidth, &w_width,
             NULL);
         XtVaSetValues(children[3],
             XmNx, width - margin_w - w_width,
             XmNy, height - margin_h - w_height,
             NULL);
     }

 c.  No uil solution has been suggested, because of the widget size problem