A Quick Look at the GDI Namespaces

A Quick Look at the GDI+ Namespaces

You can find the core functionality of GDI+ in the .NET Framework class library namespaces listed in Table 11-1.

Table 11-1: GDI+ Core Namespaces

NAMESPACE	DESCRIPTION
System: :Drawing	This namespace is the core of GDI+. It consists of numerous classes to handle basic 2D rendering. It is also the location of the Graphics class from which all GDI+ functionality springs.
System::Drawing: :Drawing2D	This namespace extends the 2D rendering capabilities of GDI+ by providing more advanced 2D rendering and vector graphics.
System: :Drawing: :Images	This namespace provides classes that allow direct manipulation of graphical images.
System: :Drawing: :Printing	This namespace provides classes that allow printing to a printer. It also provides classes to interact with the printer.
System: :Drawing: :Text	This namespace provides advanced font and font family functionality.

Primarily, most of the functionality that you'll be working with is found in the classes and structures in the System::Drawing namespace (see Table 11-2).

Table 11-2: Key System::Drawing Namespace Classes and Structures

CLASS/STRUCTURE	DESCRIPTION
Bitmap	A class that represents and provides limited manipulation capabilities for an image file with formats such as .bmp, .gif, and .jpg
Brush	A class used to specify the color and pattern to fill the interior of a shape such as a rectangle, ellipsis, or polygon
Brushes	A class made up of several static properties of predefined brushes
Color	A structure that represents a color
Font	A class that represents a font
FontFamily	A class that defines a group of fonts with the same basic design
Graphics	The core class of GDI+ that represents a drawing surface where you will place your text, shapes, and images
Icon	A class that represents a Windows icon
Image	An abstract base class used in all image type classes such as bitmaps and icons
Pen	A class used to specify the color, thickness, and pattern used to outline shapes
Pens	A class made up of several static properties of predefined pens
Point, PointF	A structure that represents an x,y coordinate as either a pair of Int32s or Singles
Rectangle, RectangleF	A structure that represents the size and location of a rectangle using either Int32 or Single values
Region	A sealed class that describes a geometric shape using rectangles
Size, SizeF	A structure that represents a size as either a pair of Int32s or Singles
SolidBrushes	A class that defines a Brush that fills a shape with a solid color
StringFormat	A sealed class that specifies the layout information such as alignment, formatting, and line spacing for a set of text
SystemBrushes	A class made up of several static properties of SolidBrushes using system colors
SystemColors	A class made up of several static properties of system colors
SystemIcons	A class made up of several static properties of Windows system icons
SystemPens	A class made up of several static properties of Pens using system colors
TextureBrush	A class that represents a Brush that uses an image to fill a shape interior

All of the functionality of GDI+ is located within the System.Drawing.dll assembly. Thus, you need to reference it at the top of your source code with the following #using statement:

 #using <System.Drawing.dll>