Using native Windows GUI with Allegro
Paul whoknows

It is possible to use windows GUI (menu bar, combobox, labels, listbox, etc) with Allegro?
I looked at the manual and I only found Shawn's old-AtariST-based-GUI, which is really ugly (btw, I think Allegro 4.2 deserves a better GUI).
I decided to use windowed mode for my level editor and I want to use Windows GUI for that, I also want to use several additional windows if were necessary.

My level editor should look like this:

http://www.freeimagelibrary.com/images/PaulPaul/ss2_3.png

I know there are a lot of free GUIs for Allegro, but I don't want to use them, most Allegro GUIs were designed for games, not for applications, and my level editor should look like a serious application.

Archon
Quote:

It is possible to use windows GUI (menu bar, combobox, labels, listbox, etc) with Allegro?

Yes.

You should be able to 'blit' Allegro into a picture-box (or any other widget) because they all have HWNDs/HDCs.

Obviously you'll lose that cross-platform ability - maybe someone will recommend wxwidgets or other.

Specter Phoenix

Off-Topic Question: If Windows uses HWNDs/HDCs what do other OSes use? If anything.

Paul whoknows

I think I'll need some help:-/
Here is typical "Hellow world" windows program.
How should I add allegro in a program like this?
How can I blit something on it?

1 sizeof(WNDCLASSEX);
2// tyty.cpp : Defines the entry point for the application.
3//
4 
5#include "stdafx.h"
6#include "resource.h"
7 
8#define MAX_LOADSTRING 100
9 
10// Global Variables:
11HINSTANCE hInst; // current instance
12TCHAR szTitle[MAX_LOADSTRING]; // The title bar text
13TCHAR szWindowClass[MAX_LOADSTRING]; // The title bar text
14 
15// Foward declarations of functions included in this code module:
16ATOM MyRegisterClass(HINSTANCE hInstance);
17BOOL InitInstance(HINSTANCE, int);
18LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc(HWND, UINT, WPARAM, LPARAM);
19LRESULT CALLBACK About(HWND, UINT, WPARAM, LPARAM);
20 
21int APIENTRY WinMain(HINSTANCE hInstance,
22 HINSTANCE hPrevInstance,
23 LPSTR lpCmdLine,
24 int nCmdShow)
25{
26 // TODO: Place code here.
27 MSG msg;
28 HACCEL hAccelTable;
29 
30 // Initialize global strings
31 LoadString(hInstance, IDS_APP_TITLE, szTitle, MAX_LOADSTRING);
32 LoadString(hInstance, IDC_TYTY, szWindowClass, MAX_LOADSTRING);
33 MyRegisterClass(hInstance);
34 
35 // Perform application initialization:
36 if (!InitInstance (hInstance, nCmdShow))
37 {
38 return FALSE;
39 }
40 
41 hAccelTable = LoadAccelerators(hInstance, (LPCTSTR)IDC_TYTY);
42 
43 // Main message loop:
44 while (GetMessage(&msg, NULL, 0, 0))
45 {
46 if (!TranslateAccelerator(msg.hwnd, hAccelTable, &msg))
47 {
48 TranslateMessage(&msg);
49 DispatchMessage(&msg);
50 }
51 }
52 
53 return msg.wParam;
54}
55 
56 
57 
58//
59// FUNCTION: MyRegisterClass()
60//
61// PURPOSE: Registers the window class.
62//
63// COMMENTS:
64//
65// This function and its usage is only necessary if you want this code
66// to be compatible with Win32 systems prior to the 'RegisterClassEx'
67// function that was added to Windows 95. It is important to call this function
68// so that the application will get 'well formed' small icons associated
69// with it.
70//
71ATOM MyRegisterClass(HINSTANCE hInstance)
72{
73 WNDCLASSEX wcex;
74 
75 wcex.cbSize =
76 wcex.style = CS_HREDRAW | CS_VREDRAW;
77 wcex.lpfnWndProc = (WNDPROC)WndProc;
78 wcex.cbClsExtra = 0;
79 wcex.cbWndExtra = 0;
80 wcex.hInstance = hInstance;
81 wcex.hIcon = LoadIcon(hInstance, (LPCTSTR)IDI_TYTY);
82 wcex.hCursor = LoadCursor(NULL, IDC_ARROW);
83 wcex.hbrBackground = (HBRUSH)(COLOR_WINDOW+1);
84 wcex.lpszMenuName = (LPCSTR)IDC_TYTY;
85 wcex.lpszClassName = szWindowClass;
86 wcex.hIconSm = LoadIcon(wcex.hInstance, (LPCTSTR)IDI_SMALL);
87 
88 return RegisterClassEx(&wcex);
89}
90 
91//
92// FUNCTION: InitInstance(HANDLE, int)
93//
94// PURPOSE: Saves instance handle and creates main window
95//
96// COMMENTS:
97//
98// In this function, we save the instance handle in a global variable and
99// create and display the main program window.
100//
101BOOL InitInstance(HINSTANCE hInstance, int nCmdShow)
102{
103 HWND hWnd;
104 
105 hInst = hInstance; // Store instance handle in our global variable
106 
107 hWnd = CreateWindow(szWindowClass, szTitle, WS_OVERLAPPEDWINDOW,
108 CW_USEDEFAULT, 0, CW_USEDEFAULT, 0, NULL, NULL, hInstance, NULL);
109 
110 if (!hWnd)
111 {
112 return FALSE;
113 }
114 
115 ShowWindow(hWnd, nCmdShow);
116 UpdateWindow(hWnd);
117 
118 return TRUE;
119}
120 
121//
122// FUNCTION: WndProc(HWND, unsigned, WORD, LONG)
123//
124// PURPOSE: Processes messages for the main window.
125//
126// WM_COMMAND - process the application menu
127// WM_PAINT - Paint the main window
128// WM_DESTROY - post a quit message and return
129//
130//
131LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc(HWND hWnd, UINT message, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
132{
133 int wmId, wmEvent;
134 PAINTSTRUCT ps;
135 HDC hdc;
136 TCHAR szHello[MAX_LOADSTRING];
137 LoadString(hInst, IDS_HELLO, szHello, MAX_LOADSTRING);
138 
139 switch (message)
140 {
141 case WM_COMMAND:
142 wmId = LOWORD(wParam);
143 wmEvent = HIWORD(wParam);
144 // Parse the menu selections:
145 switch (wmId)
146 {
147 case IDM_ABOUT:
148 DialogBox(hInst, (LPCTSTR)IDD_ABOUTBOX, hWnd, (DLGPROC)About);
149 break;
150 case IDM_EXIT:
151 DestroyWindow(hWnd);
152 break;
153 default:
154 return DefWindowProc(hWnd, message, wParam, lParam);
155 }
156 break;
157 case WM_PAINT:
158 hdc = BeginPaint(hWnd, &ps);
159 // TODO: Add any drawing code here...
160 RECT rt;
161 GetClientRect(hWnd, &rt);
162 DrawText(hdc, szHello, strlen(szHello), &rt, DT_CENTER);
163 EndPaint(hWnd, &ps);
164 break;
165 case WM_DESTROY:
166 PostQuitMessage(0);
167 break;
168 default:
169 return DefWindowProc(hWnd, message, wParam, lParam);
170 }
171 return 0;
172}
173 
174// Mesage handler for about box.
175LRESULT CALLBACK About(HWND hDlg, UINT message, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
176{
177 switch (message)
178 {
179 case WM_INITDIALOG:
180 return TRUE;
181 
182 case WM_COMMAND:
183 if (LOWORD(wParam) == IDOK || LOWORD(wParam) == IDCANCEL)
184 {
185 EndDialog(hDlg, LOWORD(wParam));
186 return TRUE;
187 }
188 break;
189 }
190 return FALSE;
191}

Quote:

Obviously you'll lose that cross-platform ability

Yes, I am working only on Windows at the moment.

Archon

I don't know WIN32 API. I tried learning it with DirectX 6 but it was a mistake at my level. I learnt most of the Windows programming stuff via Visual Basic 6.

Look at these functions (and others) described in the Allegro Manual: 

win_set_window(HWND wnd);

blit_to_hdc(BITMAP *bitmap, HDC dc, int sx, sy, dx, dy, w, h);

Paul whoknows

It would be possible to write a wrapper for this purpose instead? so I can keep my code 100% allegro-friendly:D, those win32 code lines hurts my eyes badly every time I see them:(

Archon
Quote:

It would be possible to write a wrapper for this purpose instead?

Just a question, are you going to be using the WIN32 widgets only for a map editor? If so, I personally would have just have used C# or VB.NET which is almost as easy as VB6 to do form based applications.

Paul whoknows
Quote:

Just a question, are you going to be using the WIN32 widgets only for a map editor?

A "map editor" is not what I have in mind, a complex level editor instead, you know (tiles, objects placement, enemies, AI, mission creation, routes, story, etc).
Now I am open to suggestions about which allegro GUI should I try for my level editor (it has to allow comercial usage).
I won't give up so easily;), but now I am working in a prototype and I think it would be stupid to waste my time in such silly details.

Quote:

I personally would have just have used C# or VB.NET which is almost as easy as VB6

I want to make my level editor interactive, so the game "engine" has to be running inside the level editor

Specter Phoenix

Why not use QT4 Open Source for Mingw? GUI for all OSes and skinnable too?

Paul whoknows

Can you give me a link?
Also I am thinking to change from MSVC6 to MingW, but I don't know where to start:-/
Can you give me some advice to install Mingw with Dev-c?

[EDIT]

It seems that QT is something more than a GUI, and it is expensive!

Thomas Fjellstrom
Quote:

It seems that QT is something more than a GUI

So is Win32.

Quote:

and it is expensive!

Expensive, IF you dont want to use the GPL version. Othwerwise its free for linux, osx, and windows.

Archon
Quote:

Also I am thinking to change from MSVC6 to MingW, but I don't know where to start:-/
Can you give me some advice to install Mingw with Dev-c?

Dev-C++ would come with MinGW unless you get the one that says "IDE only" or "compiler not included".

It's so simple that I did it ::)

Arthur Kalliokoski

Look in /allegro/tests/win for some examples that use regular windows programming stuff along with allegro.

Paul whoknows

That's exactly what I wanted!, a true win32-allegro hybrid program.
It seems dibsound.c is the first program featuring resizable windows and a system menu bar using allegro... and win32
Thanks guys!

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