Chapter 17. Creating Visually Compelling Windows Forms Applications

IN BRIEF

So far in the section of this book dealing with Windows Forms, you've seen a basic introduction to WinForms programming followed by an introduction to creating reusable controls and using attributes on those controls to make them easier to use.

This chapter will introduce some advanced user interface topics that you might not be familiar with. Continuing the discussion of reusable interface elements, this chapter will illustrate visual inheritance, a technology that allows one form to inherit the user interface of another.

That discussion is followed by an overview of creating dynamic context menus. After that is a discussion of creating custom-drawn elements, complete with samples of custom list boxes and menu items. The chapter finishes with a discussion of custom-shaped forms and form transparency.

WHAT YOU NEED

REQUIRED SOFTWARE	.NET Framework SDK v1.1 Visual Studio .NET 2003 with C# installed
RECOMMENDED HARDWARE	PC that meets .NET SDK minimum requirements
SKILLS REQUIRED	C# and .NET familiarity Familiarity with Windows Forms

CREATING VISUALLY COMPELLING WINDOWS FORMS APPLICATIONS AT A GLANCE

Visual Inheritance		351
	Using Inherited Forms	351	Visual Inheritance Best Practices	358
	WinForms Visual Inheritance in Action	352
Creating and Using Dynamic Context Menus		359
	Introduction to Contextual, Adaptive User Interfaces	360	A Sample Dynamic Context Menu in Action	360
Drawing Custom List Elements		363
Using the DrawMode Property		363
	Creating a Custom ListBox	365	Creating Custom Menu Items	365
Shaped Forms		368
	Introduction to Shaped Forms	368	Creating a Sample Shaped Form	368
Summary		370
Further Reading		370