New features in ClearWin+

Two significant features have been added to ClearWin+ and are available for beta testing. They are

1. A new 'design' mode that allows you to modify a Window at runtime.
2. A new 'multi-button' toolbar based on the Microsoft toolbar control.

These are available in three downloads via the following links.

They include:

1. New dlls together with header files and sample programs for the new features.
2. A video presenting 'ClearWin+ News' together with a demonstration tutorial.
3. A new version of Plato that includes features mentioned in the video.

Please note that the native %pl has not changed since the last set of intermediate DLLs.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/dt2qdqlkm1y4lje/newDLLs11.zip?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pl1sm79nimhnjzz/ClearWinPlus1.zip?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/tunieim9atvt172/plato.zip?dl=0

Sounds like after Apple, Google ,Microsoft we finally got our own long awaited Silverfrost Development Conference (right now in offline form). Keep doing that, guys, this step is in right direction.

These Fortran new GUI visual development features are exactly what everyone always wanted in Clearwin+. Let's see how conveniently for user they were implemented and how capable they are. So far all looks very very exciting, and some things were made even better then I'd imagine them.

There is no significance to this being posted under 64 bits. It was simply my mistake. The readme.txt in the download might help identify the earlier issues.

Windows Defender doesn't like the new Plato.

Eddie

Strange. Did it like the previous version?

I have no problems with Defender and generally this build is stable as opposed to previous few after #5 or #6 but got problem with F accelerator keys, the F1-F12 keys are not working. Please confirm if this is a bug or my own problems. Try to run this code where hitting either F1 or Ctrl+E should close it. Ctrl+E is doing its job but F1 does not.

i=winio@('%ww%ca[ Ctrl+E or F1 -- Exit]&')
i=winio@('%ac[Ctrl+E]&','exit')
i=winio@('%ac[F1]','exit')
end

Dan

I can confirm that this is a regression that has now been fixed. A new set of DLLs will be available shortly.

Paul,

Can't say as I haven't installed every version, but 4.7.0 get no complaints from Win 10 64-bit Home.

It is far from critical, as I don't generally use it, but some of the tricks in your video seem useful.

Eddie

Here is a new set of DLLs that contain fixes for two regressions:

1. failure of ClearWin64.dll under Windows 7.
2. winio@ %ac not working of F1 etc..

This intermediate 'release 12' only includes the DLLs. For the samples, instructions and video you still need to download 'release 11'.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/5y6wic7qhcx45js/newDLLs12.zip?dl=0

Eddie

I have switched on Windows Defender and Plato runs OK for me.

If anyone else experiences the same problem that please report it here.

Hi Paul,

Windows has so many configuration possibilities and other installed software options that it is probably something to do with my setup. I presume that design mode works without Plato, but (obviously) not the smart editing.

I'll try it on other machines.

Thanks for looking.

Eddie

Eddie

Yes the design mode works independently of Plato.

Unfortunately their is a small regression in the working of the design mode in version 12 of the intermediate DLLs. For testing the design mode it is better to use version 11.

Incidentally, the design mode can be extended and this further work has begun in version 12. Now (in version 12) you can modify text items and button captions at design time. Also you can add new text into the design whilst designing.

The next logical step is to allow the user to insert other components at design time. Where these require a link to variables in the Fortran code, these links could be supplied by new format codes; for example, a format code to pass the address of an integer, which could then be used at design time to insert (for example) a %rd edit control or anything else that requires an integer argument. You will get the idea.

I think that this development might be very powerful and hopefully popular. I think the development will not be too costly so it is likely to go forward anyway but, at the same time it would be interesting to get feedback on the concept.

Seasoned ClearWin+ developers should try to imagine what it would be like to use ClearWin+ and the new design mode as though they were beginners. I guess that beginners and casual users will be the users who have most to gain.

Also the use of video tutorials seems to be an important step forward.

John-Silver

Thank you for your feedback.

I will add 'MS Office menu bar styles' to the wish list but I doubt that it would be feasible. They probably use Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC). MFC provides an interface into the Windows API and, in this respect is like ClearWin+. Going sideways from ClearWin+ to MFC would probably be very tricky if not impossible.

Regarding the documentation, a lot of work went into this for the last full release. There will always be room for improvement but just to let you know that this has not been neglected.

First of all, the video. Yes, I thought it was very useful. May I suggest a section on the website for instructional videos?

As far as the new design mode goes, I am certain that users will find it of great value, but a word of caution and that is that unconventional layouts do confuse many users, and even such mundane issues as to which is the default button, whether ‘OK’ is the leftmost, whether buttons are centred or justified etc, can make a huge difference to the acceptability of a dialog. Matters are complicated by Microsoft’s propensity to change their mind about such things from version to version in Windows! The User Experience Guidelines are not updated frequently enough in MSDN.

The ability in design mode to change the button height seems to me to be very valuable, and it seems to me that as this is can now be done, perhaps it could be a facility in %bt, and even if available in %bt, why not also in %tt and %bb? (so they can be all the same height).

The new multibutton format looks very interesting, and especially the availability of some standard, professionally-drawn, icons in 16x16 and 24x24 is a big plus. Those professional icons have the potential to be recognisable when inactive (greyed) which is something that one’s own icons don’t always achieve when using the automatic generation of the greyed-out state.

I looked up TBSTYLE in MSDN, and the TBSTYLE_LIST looked interesting (with text alongside the icon as in %bb) and particularly TBSTYLE_TRANSPARENT, which would be a great complement to %ib.

Eddie

Eddie

I have had a quick look at TBSTYLE_LIST and I think that, with the current implementation, we would have to choose between text with buttons or tooltips, not both.

I am assuming that tooltips are preferred.

I haven't tried using this style in a ClearWin+ program (and the latest implementation). If it does anything useful then it would be purely by chance.

I've looked at the video, and tried the examples, and I am impressed.

Once you get the hang of it, it's pretty easy to do a really decent job. Any new UI always has a learning curve.

Thanks for putting in all this work!

And, thanks, Paul, for all your efforts to keep us straight.

Bill

I have added a new option [strings] for %mb. The effect is to replace what otherwise would be tooltips by text below each button bitmap. Another option [list] can be used with [strings] and the result is that the text appears to the right of each button bitmap rather than below it.