Member Avatar for Rasool Ahmed

Hi guys,

I am developing a software and I want to make it in good appearance!!!!
As you see most of programs have a beautiful skins, I want too!! I have google it in days and I found a dll file called "DevComponents.DotNetBar2.dll" ( may you have heard about it) this file change my form skin to something like " microsoft office " visual style, but this file have no source code.
So, any body can help me with "How develop a form and list of controls depending on pictures designed prior?".

When I opened the form.designer in VB.net I found that this code:

Partial Class Form1
    Inherits System.Windows.Forms.Form

Then I knew that the form can be programmed and so its controls and make my class inherits from it....
Can this be achieved???!!!
Can I program my own form and its controls????

thanx

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Dani AI

Generated

Short answer: yes — you can write your own form chrome and your own skinned controls, or use a framework that makes it much easier. ’s DotNetBar is a third‑party suite that gives Office‑style chrome out of the box, but it is a separate component you install (don’t just copy a lone DLL). (stackoverflow.com)

If you want to build a skinable UI yourself, pick one of two practical routes:

  • Use WPF (recommended for new apps). WPF separates visuals from behavior (XAML + ControlTemplate + styles), so you can redefine any control’s look without low‑level drawing code. It also has built‑in support for custom window chrome and modern effects. (learn.microsoft.com)
  • Stay with WinForms (good for existing apps). Create custom or extended controls by inheriting from Control or an existing control and override OnPaint (owner‑draw). For a skinned borderless window you set FormBorderStyle = None and implement drawing and hit‑testing/resizing yourself. Hit testing/resizing typically uses Win32 non‑client hit testing (WM_NCHITTEST) or mouse handling in WndProc. (learn.microsoft.com)

Quick C# sketch (concept only):

public class SkinnedForm : Form
{
    public SkinnedForm()
    {
        FormBorderStyle = FormBorderStyle.None;
        DoubleBuffered = true;
    }

    protected override void OnPaint(PaintEventArgs e)
    {
        base.OnPaint(e);
        // draw background frame, caption, buttons using your images
    }
}

Practical tips and cautions: design scalable artwork (9‑slice / nine‑patch for corners), provide images for states (normal/hover/pressed/disabled), test high‑DPI and keyboard/accessibility, and keep window behavior (move/resize/minimize/close) consistent. If you pick DotNetBar or similar toolkits avoid simply copying a DLL — use the vendor installer and match the target .NET version. If starting fresh and skinning is a key goal, choose WPF for much cleaner templating and fewer low‑level hacks. (stackoverflow.com)

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Member Avatar for Begginnerdev

It would be wise, if you are after the razzle dazzle, to use WPF instead of Winforms.

WPF allows alot of glitter and sparkles for your gui.

Member Avatar for Rasool Ahmed

It would be wise, if you are after the razzle dazzle, to use WPF instead of Winforms.

WPF allows alot of glitter and sparkles for your gui.

what you mean?? can you explain more?? and what is WPF???

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