Thread: GDI using microsoft visual studio

Can anyone recommend any good websites or videos to learn GDI?

I don't know any specific websites.
I too am just learning GDI.

I recommend you "search" the archives at this site for "GDI".
Also, Charles Petzold's book: Programming Windows 5th Ed., available on Amazon.
I recently picked up, (for cheap) on Amazon: Windows Graphics Programming, by: Sanchez and Canton.

The usual solution to tutorials for Windows is theForger's Win32 API Tutorial. Considering they have GDI pages, I think that's another fine job done by theForger.

Try these:

The GDI
(this one is easier to start)

Win32 Programming - FunctionX
(this one is more detailed)

* Legacy support
* Smaller files
* Less overhead and bloatation
* No need to force user(s) to install various runtime/driver-packs in order for application to run

etc

Originally Posted by Elysia

As in what, the 1% that uses versions prior to XP? Also, you realize that many libraries support legacy operating systems, as well?

Point taken...

Besides Ace's point, what is a MB or two these days? Seriously? The overhead is negligible at best.

When you're writing a program that comes in at 100K without the bloat... an MB is a big deal.

This one is rich. Oh, so you think your Visual C++ programs will run without runtime? Of course they won't. Why don't you go back to the roots and do pure Win32 so you don't have to use any external libraries?
Point is, this is typically what installers take care of. Otherwise, you can just link them statically and the worry is out the window. Not a very convincing argument.

Actually it is a very convincing argument.

I'm thinking you don't have a lot of service contact with end users to realize the problem of reliance upon 3rd party libraries can cause people. I've seen entire companies have to shut down their networks for a day to install a new version of their software... and the 30 updates it forces and for some that's quite a hit.

I currently support a number of home theatre systems in my area. To a one, I got called "What does 'Please install latest version of Direct X' mean?" when the latest version of Media Player Classic Home Cinema came out. I ended up going out, at no charge, and updating all their systems for them.

So yes, it does matter.

Originally Posted by Elysia

You fail to see the point. 1 MB is nothing. Whether your executable is 100 KB or not. It is acceptable.

Actually, that IS the point... It's about the attitude.

Only a few years ago, when I was still working Pascal, we used to work to reduce code sometimes only by a few bytes. We cared how much of a customer's machine we occupied and smaller/faster was always better.

Now it seems the attitude has done a 180. Nobody cares if they are loading up 200megs to play a midi file (exaggeration to make a point). Customer machines are treated as infinite resources and programmers seem not to care that sometimes their code can force whole-cloth hardware upgrades on a company wide basis.

One or two MB may not be disastrous... but I've seen applications over 30mb that I can program in like 150K... It's a horrible lot of bloat that fails to consider what other applications a customer may be running concurrently. Think of the impact if everything is similarly bloated. More than once, when still on my career, we had to actually sell memory upgrades along with new software... and the customers were not amused.

A fair point. However, this is a 3rd party library problem.
However, it is also entirely possible to write libraries which do not force you to shut down all your applications to install or update. Mostly update.
And it's likely not going to matter when you install Qt, or some other small GUI library.

No it's a programmer problem... Again, it's the attitude of not caring what you inflict upon your customers. I will agree that sometimes it's necessary to get a certain job done but the amount of raw bloat in software these days is seldom justified on any basis except "ease of programming"which in my opinion runs counter to the craft. We're supposed to be the smart ones that make life easy for end users, not the other way around.

Less overhead and bloatation

Eh? I would say GDI is far more overhead than needed and extremely bloated.

I'm also not convinced about the smaller files bit since most resources in GDI apps are embedded in the executable thus making it extremely large.

Originally Posted by Elysia

Oh, so you must know everything before you can use it? How about your computer? Do you know everything, down to the atoms and the electrons on how it works? Does it matter?

Actually, yes, I do... and yes, it does.
My first computer, (so to speak, if it could even be called that), was something I constructed, by soldering together transistors, resistors and capacitors.
Do you even know what those are ?

I'm guessing, probably not.

...you probably think a computer is something you buy at the store.

Originally Posted by Elysia

Interesting.
So do you know how your stove works? Your refrigerator? Your TV? Do you know how your clothes are made? Do you know how the ingredients for your food are made? Do you know how your house is built?
If you don't, you can't use them, because that would violate your statement. And if don't know how your house is built, you mustn't live in there, because what if it breaks? How can you fix it?

Yes, I know what transistors, resistors and capacitors are.

Hmm...,
...yes,
...basically,
...definitly,
...most certainly,
...yes, I often kill what I eat,
...yes I do.

If you don't, you can't use them, because that would violate your statement. And if don't know how your house is built, you mustn't live in there, because what if it breaks? How can you fix it?

I don't understand..., at what point did I say or even indicate that I couldn't possibly use an add-on simply because I didn't know or understand how it worked ?
Just because I like to know how things work, I deserve to be slammed by you.

I've read a number of your posts on this forum. They often follow along a similar vein.
It's clear that you were severly abused as a child.

It's becoming widely know that the abused often become abusers themselves.
I'm sorry for your sadness in life.