Why do Delphi-written applications not skin right in menus.

from WinCustomize Forums
As a longtime Delphi developer as well as a WindowBlinds customer, I'm wondering why it is that I can always tell which applications were written in Delphi because the WindowBlinds + ClearType combination messes up menus. If you wish to see screenshots, let me know. A good example is easy to make. With WindowBlinds and one of the new vista skins installed, AND ClearType enabled (although this happens on old skins as well), Left click on the StarDock Central icon in the task tray. You'll see dark menu text with light shadows that looks horrible. Looks like ClearType is trying to anti-alias the menus and the result is soup. Then right click on one of the other taskbar menus that are 'standard', such as the Network Connections icon, and notice the menu looks fine. This is always true with applications that are written with the Delphi TMenu component. I don't know whether the blame belongs with the TMenu component or with WindowBlinds or with ClearType (although I don't remember this happening with ClearType and NO windowblinds). I have friends at Borland on the Delphi team and can ask them to investigate this, but I wanted to ask you guys first, since WB5 is the final straw in the 'mess-up' of the menus, and your own products (apparently written with Borland software), exhibit these characteristics. Thanks, Randy Magruder
windowblinds
3,961 views 6 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Hi Randy,

A screenshot (or a few) would definitely help to illustrate your situation.  I'd also be interested to know which OS you're running (including any service packs) as well as your version of the WindowBlinds 5 Beta. 

Since this software is still beta, it's expected to have issues, but thanks to the help of people like you we can work out all it's bugs. Thanks!

-Mike
[Stardock Support]

Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Mike, this isn't unique to WB5 or any version of Delphi. I would have pasted an image here but it looks like you can only paste URL's here, not images, which does you no good.

If you send me an e-mail at [email protected], I'll send you the side by side images displaying the menu looks, along with my machine configuration and anything else you want to know.

Thanks,

Randy

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Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Delphi apps tend to use ownerdrawn menus.  In this case WB tries its best to make the menus look like the menu skin, but it can only do so much.  If the skin just uses flat menus (like the Windows XP style) then there is no problem because the menu content area isn't being skinned.

The problem will be worse on skins which set the systemwide menu colours differently to the average colour of the menu skins.

Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top

I thought Delphi apps might've had owner-drawn components, but since I'm not a delphi developer, I wasn't sure. Thanks for the input, Neil.

RMagruder: You could upload files to http://www.freewebspace.net/guide/diskstorage.shtml and then reference them here. There should be an image button on the comment post toolbar that allows you specify a url to load the image from.

-Mike
[Stardock Support]

Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I'm looking at the link you sent.

In the meantime, can you tell me what version of Delphi was last used to compile StarDock Central? Delphi 7? It's important because if I'm going to go into the VCL source code and try to figure out how the painting may or may not be working 'standard' then I might be able to help supply the 'fix'.

Randy

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Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Stardock Central was developed in C++. Anything Delphi related in it's directory is there for the programs that were written in Delphi.

-Mike
[Stardock Support]