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Thread: Windows 10 Look?

  1. #41
    VB-aholic & Lovin' It LaVolpe's Avatar
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jimboat View Post
    so, that's the same for ToolBar too, then? (5.0 w/COMCTL32.OCX)
    Yes, the 6.0 ocx cannot be themed.
    The 5.0 ocx can be themed, but the controls have less properties & built-in functions than the 6.0 version. That can be a deal breaker for some that like convenience. The missing properties/functions can be replicated via API calls.

    Also Krool's common controls replacement project (VBCCR) can be compiled to a single ocx, giving you all the common controls as both themed and unicode compatible.

    edited: misread the post. Yes that one is themable also. 2-5.0 is themable. The remaining two: 2-6.0 & 3-6.0 (coolbar) not sure. You can always bump them against Krool's VBCCR for comparisons. But all of those ocxs have scaling and other issues when a manifest is applied for per-monitor DPI awareness and DPI changes while app is running. I'll just throw that out there though I don't know if it will apply to you.
    Last edited by LaVolpe; Sep 8th, 2020 at 11:16 AM.
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  2. #42
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    am i correct that the controls such as CommandButtons, CheckBoxes, treeview, etc do not allow me to change background color or font color when I select the Common Controls 6.x assembly via a manifest? if this is true, is there any way around this (change forecolor)?
    /Jimboat

  3. #43
    VB-aholic & Lovin' It LaVolpe's Avatar
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    One would have to play with them via subclassing as that would be the only way other than hacking the theme itself. The problem there is that you may be changing a color that could adversely affect the ability to see it. Huh?

    When themed, you aren't going to know which theme the user has selected (simplistically speaking). Maybe the background colors in that theme will result in your modified caption colors being difficult to read, if at all? Now that's a worse case scenario and working around that just adds even more complexity.
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  4. #44
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    Quote Originally Posted by LaVolpe View Post
    One would have to play with them via subclassing as that would be the only way other than hacking the theme itself. The problem there is that you may be changing a color that could adversely affect the ability to see it. Huh?

    When themed, you aren't going to know which theme the user has selected (simplistically speaking). Maybe the background colors in that theme will result in your modified caption colors being difficult to read, if at all? Now that's a worse case scenario and working around that just adds even more complexity.
    yes, i get that. appreciate your help and advice. there are other themed controls (label, textbox) that DO allow/require setting of bg/fg colors, however, does this mean that if i manually set these colors, that the system theming could make them difficult to see?
    /Jimboat

  5. #45
    VB-aholic & Lovin' It LaVolpe's Avatar
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jimboat View Post
    ...however, does this mean that if i manually set these colors, that the system theming could make them difficult to see?
    I think that is a slight risk everyone takes when they change from the system colors. That existed well before themes. An example to prove a point. Back in the day, we could define bg/fg colors for lots of things from the systems settings appelate, let's say some user set their window background to blue and foreground to white. Then in your app, you chose to leave the textbox background as system color (white for your pc) and manually changed the text color to blue. Now when your app is run on that other pc, the text cannot be seen because it is blue on blue.

    In the textbox example from your reply, you can also change the background color. Well, if the background & foreground colors are non-system colors, then they'll always be those colors regardless of theme

    Themes, in generate have colors that are relative to the 20+ system colors. There is a color for generic window background and text color, disabled text color, etc. If I had to make a suggestion, then per control: either keep with system colors or don't use any system colors. But with modern windows and themes, changing foreground/background colors of some controls not doable without subclassing or owner-drawing.
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  6. #46

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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    It can get even tougher dealing with stuff like "high contrast" themes. The worst cases are polychromatic controls like the RichTextBox.

    Say the user has vision issues and requires the high contrast theme. He types a colorful RTF document on the vbWindowBackground color (black for him). On saving, will the colors look right when that document is viewed by somebody using the standard theme?

    Pastel color choices might be nearly invisible where vbWindowBackground is white. Other text colors might not contrast well with each other either. And some programs would save the entire thing with a black background though that screwup takes some effort.

  7. #47
    Addicted Member Davor Geci's Avatar
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    Guys,
    did anyone maybe find a way how to change the scrollbar colors on, for example, MSHFlexGrid?
    My projects:
    Virtual Forms
    VBA Telemetry

  8. #48
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    Re: Windows 10 Look?

    Jeez what a mess.....

    I've been using Codejock Command Bars for awhile for complicated interface needs but it isn't cheap, and of course has files to distribute and an ocx to register. But with the Codejock stuff I can get a more modern look, and a degree of DPI awareness without too much effort.

    I know that this doesn't answer the original question but for smaller needs I use mostly my own custom controls, and I sometimes use GDI+ to draw parts of the interface in real time. Here is a shot of a program which I wrote just over a year ago for a specific Ham Radio application which does this:

    Attachment 179292

    That entire form is drawn with GDI+, including the frequency readout and the pointer on the analog meter. Not DPI aware of course but consistent otherwise......

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