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Thread: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,controls)

  1. #1

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    how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,controls)

    hi,i am looking for sample code or user control or activex control to can design my form with special skins(not rectangle styles).
    for exmaple i want design gui like these skins and then i want add buttons or images or text box or other controls on form skined.



    or





    important: i did try with active skin,skin crafter,vbskinner or like this but not worked because all of theme can design like as rectangle styles.
    important : this is matter for me to can add buttons or controls on form skined.

  2. #2
    PowerPoster Arnoutdv's Avatar
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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Just drop the idea of using existing control.

    For the form create an irregular form using a picture mask.
    Sample: http://www.thescarms.com/VBasic/ActiveSkin.aspx

    For the buttons, don't use them.
    Draw everything yourself and handle areas as buttons, by checking the desired X,Y in the MouseDown/Up event of the form (or image) you can simulate button clicks

  3. #3

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    any body have sample skins in active skin or like these(any sample code) ?
    Attached Images Attached Images  

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    1-do you hv any sample with shadows or unrectangle style? my means is i want can use images like png or animated images with soft effects.like as attached image.(for exmaple i want create skin with shadows or lights too)






    2-do you have sample skin like as #3 ( my means free forms or custom forms in active skin),i can not find avast skins because is about old version(version 4 or 5).
    Attached Images Attached Images  

  6. #6
    VB-aholic & Lovin' It LaVolpe's Avatar
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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    #1. SetLayeredWindowAttributes & UpdateLayeredWindowAttributes can be used to create irregular shaped forms. Basically, you create a premultiplied ARGB bitmap from some source (PNG, etc) then apply it to your borderless form via the APIs noted above. When that is done, the system takes care of rendering your form from that bitmap.

    Problems: As mentioned above, controls are not used, i.e., no buttons, etc. Everything is pretty much owner drawn and painted, updating the form's bitmap as needed. With modern O/S (Win8+), one could probably use pictureboxes as controls since UpdateLayeredWindowAttributes can be used for child controls. Anyway, you are looking at drawing nearly everything via code. You will also likely need to subclass the form and handle all mouse movements/clicks yourself, including doing your own hit testing to see if the mouse is over your "controls".

    #2. Skins can be found if you search hard enough, but professional ones are typically copyrighted/owned and not offered for free. I'd think graphic artists get paid well enough for creating these & don't offer them for free most times.

    WinAmp is/was an app that made heavy use of skins. Each skin had a configuration file to identify where each "control" was and its dimensions, which image to use for the control's up/down/animation, etc. Typically, most apps that use skins need some sort of configuration file because it is not likely that all your skins will have the "controls" located in the same position and same size while other skins may have additional controls and so many other variations.

    You may find projects that skin forms on the web, but most non-professional ones you find are probably gonna be quite buggy. I haven't played with this in over 10 years and am only chiming in to offer the above comments. Have fun.
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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Quote Originally Posted by LaVolpe View Post
    #1. SetLayeredWindowAttributes & UpdateLayeredWindowAttributes can be used to create irregular shaped forms. Basically, you create a premultiplied ARGB bitmap from some source (PNG, etc) then apply it to your borderless form via the APIs noted above. When that is done, the system takes care of rendering your form from that bitmap.

    Problems: As mentioned above, controls are not used, i.e., no buttons, etc. Everything is pretty much owner drawn and painted, updating the form's bitmap as needed. With modern O/S (Win8+), one could probably use pictureboxes as controls since UpdateLayeredWindowAttributes can be used for child controls. Anyway, you are looking at drawing nearly everything via code. You will also likely need to subclass the form and handle all mouse movements/clicks yourself, including doing your own hit testing to see if the mouse is over your "controls".

    #2. Skins can be found if you search hard enough, but professional ones are typically copyrighted/owned and not offered for free. I'd think graphic artists get paid well enough for creating these & don't offer them for free most times.

    WinAmp is/was an app that made heavy use of skins. Each skin had a configuration file to identify where each "control" was and its dimensions, which image to use for the control's up/down/animation, etc. Typically, most apps that use skins need some sort of configuration file because it is not likely that all your skins will have the "controls" located in the same position and same size while other skins may have additional controls and so many other variations.

    You may find projects that skin forms on the web, but most non-professional ones you find are probably gonna be quite buggy. I haven't played with this in over 10 years and am only chiming in to offer the above comments. Have fun.
    i am looking for skins of avast version 4 or 5 because skins in avast designed with active skin and then packed but this version is old and i can not find it.so i want find it and because of it i writed here.

    and about SetLayeredWindowAttributes & UpdateLayeredWindowAttributes do u hv sample skins? i want use png for skins and buttons or ..... i need use controls like lists or tree view or ... to can use in skin to,so how ?

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    any body here have avast skins (like this http://pukesoftwares.blogspot.com/20...ast-skins.html but files removed from host)

    or free in avast website : (http://www.avast.com/eng/skins.html)
    Last edited by Black_Storm; May 27th, 2018 at 07:32 AM.

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Wayback machine at archive.org should have them

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Why do you want Avast skins? Are you writing something to spoof an AV message/dialog or something? Sounds dodgy...
    If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there...

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Quote Originally Posted by OptionBase1 View Post
    Wayback machine at archive.org should have them
    i can not find them.how ?

  13. #13

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    Re: how can design new skin(not rectangle style) and support add (button,texts,contro

    Quote Originally Posted by ColinE66 View Post
    Why do you want Avast skins? Are you writing something to spoof an AV message/dialog or something? Sounds dodgy...
    for better design,for can edit,for can how design,for watch animations in skins and others...
    its matter for me to can find theme.but i can not find yet.

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