Chapter 26: Creating Form-Based Windows Applications

Overview

Most of the programs shown in this book are console applications. Console applications are good for demonstrating the elements of the C# language and are appropriate for some types of utility programs, such as file filters. Of course, most modern applications are designed for the Windows graphical user interface (GUI) environment, and this book would seem incomplete without demonstrating how to use C# to create a Windows application.

In the past, creating Windows applications was a challenging endeavor. It was not uncommon for a newcomer to spend several weeks just learning the basic elements of a Windows application. Fortunately, C# and the .NET Framework change all that. The .NET library contains an entire subsystem that supports Windows Forms, which greatly simplifies the creation of a Windows program. Using C# and the System.Windows.Forms library, Windows applications are much easier to create, and the entire development process has been significantly streamlined.

Windows programming is a very large topic, with entire series of books devoted to it. It is, obviously, not possible to describe all aspects of it in a single chapter. Instead, this chapter provides a “jump-start” to form-based Windows programming. It explains how to create a window, create a menu, implement a button, and respond to a message. Once you have worked through this chapter, you will easily be able to advance to other aspects of forms-based Windows programming.