[SOLVED] Images and controls

[Petrus Vorster]

Hi All

I started a project with an background image on the main form.
It simply uses the current one currently on the Desktop.

I have observed something interesting.
1. If  Windows is set to a background color instead of an image, my form becomes transparent. My panels shows, but everywhere the image would have been is transparent. It also allows mouse movements to highlight desktop icons that was underneath.

2. A PAGECONTROL opens for some function with Tabpages on it. Its Zorder is on top of everything in the form.
A DBNAVIGATOR on that Tabsheet seems to have some Transparent border that shows the Windows desktop underneath the project. Dragging the form makes it very obvious.

Perhaps the background image idea on the form was not the best idea.

-Peter
No other control seems to do it.

[Ñuño_Martínez]

I'm curious:  How do you assign the desktop background to the form?  Is it portable?

[Petrus Vorster]

Hi

Basically just ask windows what its current background is.
A bit of AI code and a Timage that is anchored to the main form borders.
I deleted the whole thing, because it causes weird tranparency on some cotrols.

Code: Pascal  [Select][+][-]

1. unit Unit1;
2.  
3. {$mode objfpc}{$H+}
4.  
5. interface
6.  
7. uses
8.   Classes, SysUtils, Forms, Controls, Graphics, Dialogs, ExtCtrls, StdCtrls,
9.   Windows;
10.  
11. type
12.  
13.   { TForm1 }
14.  
15.   TForm1 = class(TForm)
16.     Button1: TButton;
17.     Image1: TImage;
18.     procedure Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
19.   private
20.  
21.   public
22.  
23.   end;
24.  
25. var
26.   Form1: TForm1;
27.  
28. implementation
29.  
30.  
31. procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
32. var
33.   WallpaperPath: array[0..MAX_PATH] of Char;
34. begin
35.  
36.   FillChar(WallpaperPath, SizeOf(WallpaperPath), 0);
37.   if SystemParametersInfo(SPI_GETDESKWALLPAPER, MAX_PATH, @WallpaperPath, 0) then
38.   begin
39.     // Check if file exists and load it into TImage
40.     if FileExists(WallpaperPath) then
41.     begin
42.       Image1.Picture.LoadFromFile(WallpaperPath);
43.     end
44.     else
45.       ShowMessage('Wallpaper file not found: ' + WallpaperPath);
46.   end
47.   else
48.     ShowMessage('Failed to query wallpaper information.');
49. end;
50.  
51. end.

Then you set the Image to stretch and/Or proportional.

But like I said, you get odd stuff happening here and there. 

-Peter

[Petrus Vorster]

NOT SOLVED, but notimportant anymore.
-Peter

[Zvoni]

You do realize, that if your FileExists above returns False (because it's not a Picture but a color), you can check "Transparent" of the TImage and set it to False?
Resp. the AlphaBlend/AlphaBlendValue of the Form?

[Petrus Vorster]

Thats good to know.

At first this kind of looked like a great idea, but then I ran into a problem where i wanted my buttons to look like Windows icons.
The LOOK part was not difficult, but Windows Desktop icons text has a little black border around the text and I was unable to replicate that, which made reading the text hard on some backgrounds.

Then there was this weird issue with the DB navigator. I have placed a Pagecontrol with some Tabsheets on it. Worked like a charm except the DBnavigator that would have a little odd border showing some text or whatever was on the screen below the running project.

Too much trouble for a not-so-important project.

But as always, I am most grateful for your inputs.

-Peter