How to add multiple-column Items to TListBox? - delphi

Question

In a 32-bit VCL Application in Windows 10 in Delphi 11.1 Alexandria, I am trying to add multiple-column Items to TListBox. The CHM Libraries Reference for VCL in the Vcl.StdCtrls.TCustomListBox.Items topic has the following tip:
So I created the following VCL Application test project:
DPR:
program TListBoxMultiColumn;
uses
Vcl.Forms,
Unit1 in 'Unit1.pas' {Form1};
{$R *.res}
begin
Application.Initialize;
Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;
Application.CreateForm(TForm1, Form1);
Application.Run;
end.
PAS:
unit Unit1;
interface
uses
Winapi.Windows, Winapi.Messages, System.SysUtils, System.Variants, System.Classes, Vcl.Graphics,
Vcl.Controls, Vcl.Forms, Vcl.Dialogs, Vcl.StdCtrls;
type
TForm1 = class(TForm)
ListBox1: TListBox;
Button1: TButton;
procedure Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
private
{ Private declarations }
public
{ Public declarations }
end;
var
Form1: TForm1;
implementation
{$R *.dfm}
procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
begin
ListBox1.Items.Add('First Column'^I'Second Column');
ListBox1.Items.Add('1'^I'2');
ListBox1.Items.Add('4'^I'5');
end;
end.
DFM:
object Form1: TForm1
Left = 0
Top = 0
Caption = 'TListBox MultiColumn Test'
ClientHeight = 191
ClientWidth = 368
Color = clBtnFace
Font.Charset = DEFAULT_CHARSET
Font.Color = clWindowText
Font.Height = -15
Font.Name = 'Segoe UI'
Font.Style = []
Position = poScreenCenter
PixelsPerInch = 120
TextHeight = 20
object ListBox1: TListBox
Left = 0
Top = 0
Width = 241
Height = 191
Margins.Left = 4
Margins.Top = 4
Margins.Right = 4
Margins.Bottom = 4
Align = alLeft
Columns = 2
ItemHeight = 20
TabOrder = 0
ExplicitHeight = 413
end
object Button1: TButton
Left = 260
Top = 20
Width = 94
Height = 31
Margins.Left = 4
Margins.Top = 4
Margins.Right = 4
Margins.Bottom = 4
Caption = 'Button1'
TabOrder = 1
OnClick = Button1Click
end
end
However, the result is not what is promised in the documentation:
So how can I add multiple-column Items to a TListBox?

Answer 1

You must set the TabWidth property to a suitable, large enough value:
ListBox1.TabWidth := 100;
ListBox1.Items.Add('First Column'^I'Second Column');
ListBox1.Items.Add('1'^I'2');
ListBox1.Items.Add('4'^I'5');
Bonus information: You may wonder why ^I is used here. Well, since I is the 9th letter in the English alphabet, ^I is equal to #9, that is, the tabulator character.
I would write this
ListBox1.TabWidth := 100;
ListBox1.Items.Add('First Column'#9'Second Column');
ListBox1.Items.Add('1'#9'2');
ListBox1.Items.Add('4'#9'5');
Actually, the current version of the documentation states
Tip: If you have a list box with tab stops enabled (TabStop property) and you want to add data to specific columns, you can set the TabWidth property to obtain a list box in which individual lines can be displayed in columns, as long as they use tabs in their text, as shown in the snippet below (notice #9 is the tab character).
This is a better description, since it mentions the TabWidth property, uses #9 instead of ^I, and doesn't misuse the word "parameter". However, its reference to TabStop is utterly nonsense. The TabStop property is about the form's tab order.