XP style buttons, etc.

[Stephen]

I have read the article "Using Windows XP Visual Styles
With Controls on Windows Forms" and have gotten an
application to run with the new styles, but isn't there
an easier way? Not only do you have to do all of this
manual file editing, but you can't even deploy the
application after it's built, you have to manually edit
the EXE's resources after development but before
deployment. This seems cumbersome, especially in
contrast to the rest of the .NET Framework's ability to
simplify things the previously required API calls and
such.
I know they wanted to make the .NET Framework OS-
independant, but it seems to me each control should have
a property where you could select the Comctl32 version
and WinXP could be an enumeration member or something
like that.

Stephen

 

[Herfried K. Wagner [MVP]]

Hello,

I have read the article "Using Windows XP Visual Styles
With Controls on Windows Forms" and have gotten an
application to run with the new styles, but isn't there
an easier way? Not only do you have to do all of this
manual file editing, but you can't even deploy the
application after it's built, you have to manually edit
the EXE's resources after development but before
deployment. This seems cumbersome, especially in
contrast to the rest of the .NET Framework's ability to
simplify things the previously required API calls and

NET 1.0:

Set the controls' 'FlatStyle' properties to 'System', then add an
application manifest:

Tools

http://www.msjogren.net/dotnet/eng/tools/default.asp
-> tool "ThemeMe"

MSDN:

VS.NET Addin for using XP visual styles
http://tinyurl.com/37yk

Using XP Visual Styles in Windows Forms apps
http://tinyurl.com/37yi

..NET 1.1:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/03/03/WindowsForms/default.aspx

HTH,
Herfried K. Wagner