Chapter 11. Windows Controls

The Microsoft .NET Framework includes a rich object model for creating and configuring Windows Forms. These types, which are found in the System. Windows.Forms namespace, abstract away most of the headaches of the Win32 API and also make it possible to perform tasks that would otherwise be extremely complex. They also mean that most of the solutions you might have used in the Microsoft Visual Basic 6 world no longer apply. In fact, some (such as control arrays, which are replaced in recipe 11.3) might even be counterproductive.

In this chapter you’ll learn how to take charge of the .NET control classes. For example, you’ll learn a few fundamentals such as adding controls programmatically (recipe 11.1), using drag-and-drop operations (recipe 11.11), and saving window positions and sizes (recipe 11.18). You’ll also see how to enhance text boxes and combo boxes (recipes 11.8 and 11.9), use form inheritance (recipe 11.15) and context menus (recipes 11.12 and 11.13), work in multiple languages (recipe 11.14), and apply the Window{ XP styles (recipe 11.21).