Although the FormatText event can be used to map data values into more descriptive display values, True DBGrid for WinForms also provides a mechanism for performing such data translations automatically without code. Through the use of the ValueItem object, alternate text or even pictures can be specified to be displayed in place of the underlying data values.

This feature is ideally suited for displaying numeric codes or cryptic abbreviations in a form that makes sense to end-users. For example, country codes can be rendered as proper names or even as pictures of their respective flags. Or, the numbers 0, 1, and 2 may be displayed as Yes, No, and Maybe. Either the actual values (0, 1, 2) or the translated values (Yes, No, Maybe) may be displayed as radio buttons in a cell or in a drop-down combo box.