Font1.Name = "Arial" Set Text1.Font = Font1 End Sub Which Fonts Are Available? You can also determine which fonts are available for either screen or printer by checking the Fonts property of the Visual Basic Printer and Screen objects. This property holds an array (0-based) of the available font’s names (note that this collection is not a collection of Font objects). Here’s an example. To see all the fonts available on your display using Visual Basic, you can loop over all fonts in the Screen object—the total number of fonts is stored in the FontCount property—and display the font names in message boxes this way (note that this code may display a lot of message boxes): Private Sub Command1_Click() Dim intLoopIndex As Integer For intLoopIndex = 0 To Screen.FontCount MsgBox Screen.Fonts(intLoopIndex) Next intLoopIndex End Sub TIP: You can format text when you print it to forms, picture boxes, or the Printer object by determining its width and height, and you do that with the TextWidth and TextHeight methods. Drawing Lines You draw lines in forms and picture boxes with the Line method: object.Line [Step] ( x1, y1) [Step] ( x2, y2), [color], [B][F] Here are the arguments you pass to Line: • Step—Keyword specifying that the starting point coordinates are relative to the current graphics position given by the CurrentX and CurrentY properties. • x1, y1—Single values indicating the coordinates of the starting point for the line or rectangle. The ScaleMode property determines the unit of measure used. If omitted, the line begins at the position indicated by CurrentX and CurrentY. • Step—Keyword specifying that the end point coordinates are relative to the line starting point. • x2, y2—Single values indicating the coordinates of the end point for the line being drawn. • color—Long integer value indicating the RGB color used to draw the line. If omitted, the ForeColor property setting is used. You can use the RGB function or QBColor function to specify the color. • B—If included, causes a box to be drawn using the coordinates to specify opposite corners of Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\588-592.html (3 of 4) [3/14/2001 1:55:11 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com the box. • F—If the B option is used, the F option specifies that the box is filled with the same color used to draw the box. You cannot use F without B. If B is used without F, the box is filled with the current FillColor and FillStyle. The default value for FillStyle is transparent. Let’s see an example. Here, we’ll draw lines crisscrossing a form and a picture box, Picture1, when the user clicks a button: Private Sub Command1_Click() Line (0, 0)-(ScaleWidth, ScaleHeight) Line (ScaleWidth, 0)-(0, ScaleHeight) Picture1.Line (0, 0)-(Picture1.ScaleWidth, Picture1.ScaleHeight) Picture1.Line (Picture1.ScaleWidth, 0)-(0, Picture1.ScaleHeight) End Sub The result of this code appears in Figure 18.4. Now we’re drawing lines in forms and picture boxes. Figure 18.4 Drawing lines in forms and picture boxes. Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\588-592.html (4 of 4) [3/14/2001 1:55:11 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Drawing Boxes You draw boxes in forms and picture boxes with the Line method, using the B argument: object.Line [Step] ( x1, y1) [Step] ( x2, y2), [color], [B][F] Here are the arguments you pass to Line: • Step—Keyword specifying that the starting point coordinates are relative to the current graphics position given by the CurrentX and CurrentY properties. • x1, y1—Single values indicating the coordinates of the starting point for the line or rectangle. The ScaleMode property determines the unit of measure used. If omitted, the line begins at the position indicated by CurrentX and CurrentY. • Step—Keyword specifying that the end point coordinates are relative to the line starting point. • x2, y2—Single values indicating the coordinates of the end point for the line being drawn. • color—Long integer value indicating the RGB color used to draw the line. If omitted, the ForeColor property setting is used. You can use the RGB function or QBColor function to specify the color. • B—If included, causes a box to be drawn using the coordinates to specify opposite corners of the box. • F—If the B option is used, the F option specifies that the box is filled with the same color used to draw the box. You cannot use F without B. If B is used without F, the box is filled with the current FillColor and FillStyle. The default value for FillStyle is transparent. Let’s see an example showing how to draw boxes in forms and picture boxes when the user clicks a command button. In this case, we’ll draw a box in a form Private Sub Command1_Click() Line (ScaleWidth / 4, ScaleHeight / 4)–(3 * ScaleWidth / 4, 3 * _ ScaleHeight / 4), , B … and another box in a picture box: Private Sub Command1_Click() Line (ScaleWidth / 4, ScaleHeight / 4)–(3 * ScaleWidth / 4, 3 * _ ScaleHeight / 4), , B Picture1.Line (Picture1.ScaleWidth / 4, Picture1.ScaleHeight / 4)–_ (3 * Picture1.ScaleWidth / 4, 3 * Picture1.ScaleHeight / 4), , B End Sub The result of this code appears in Figure 18.5. Now we’re drawing boxes in Visual Basic. Figure 18.5 Drawing boxes in forms and picture boxes. Drawing Circles Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\593-596.html (1 of 2) [3/14/2001 1:55:20 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com You use the Circle method to draw circles in forms and picture boxes: object.Circle [Step] (x, y), radius, [color, [start, end, [aspect]]] Here are the arguments you pass to Circle: • Step—Keyword specifying that the center of the circle, ellipse, or arc is relative to the current coordinates given by the CurrentX and CurrentY properties of object. • x, y—Single values indicating the coordinates for the center point of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the units of measure used. • radius—Single value indicating the radius of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the unit of measure used. • color—Long integer value indicating the RGB color of the circle’s outline. If omitted, the value of the ForeColor property is used. You can use the RGB function or QBColor function to specify the color. • start, end—Single-precision values. When an arc or a partial circle or ellipse is drawn, start and end specify (in radians) the beginning and end positions of the arc. The range for both is –2 pi radians to 2 pi radians. The default value for start is 0 radians; the default for end is 2 * pi radians. • aspect—Single-precision value indicating the aspect ratio of the circle. The default value is 1.0, which yields a perfect (nonelliptical) circle on any screen. As an example, we draw the biggest circle possible in both a form and a picture box, Picture1, when the user clicks a command button, Command1, using this code, and using a Switch function to determine if the form’s width or height is larger: Private Sub Command1_Click() Circle (ScaleWidth / 2, ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(ScaleWidth >= ScaleHeight, ScaleHeight / 2, _ ScaleWidth < ScaleHeight, ScaleWidth / 2) Picture1.Circle (Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2, Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(Picture1.ScaleWidth >= Picture1.ScaleHeight, _ Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2, Picture1.ScaleWidth < _ Picture1.ScaleHeight, Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2) End Sub Running this code gives us the result you see in Figure 18.6. Figure 18.6 Drawing circles in forms and picture boxes. The code for this example is located in the drawcircle folder on this book’s accompanying CD-ROM. Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\593-596.html (2 of 2) [3/14/2001 1:55:20 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Drawing Ellipses You use the Circle method to draw ellipses in picture boxes and forms, setting the aspect argument to set the ellipse’s aspect ratio: object.Circle [Step] ( x, y), radius, [color, [start, end, [aspect]]] Here are the arguments you pass to Circle: • Step—Keyword specifying that the center of the circle, ellipse, or arc is relative to the current coordinates given by the CurrentX and CurrentY properties of object. • x, y—Single values indicating the coordinates for the center point of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the units of measure used. • radius—Single value indicating the radius of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the unit of measure used. • color—Long integer value indicating the RGB color of the circle’s outline. If omitted, the value of the ForeColor property is used. You can use the RGB function or QBColor function to specify the color. • start, end—Single-precision values. When an arc or a partial circle or ellipse is drawn, start and end specify (in radians) the beginning and end positions of the arc. The range for both is –2 pi radians to 2 pi radians. The default value for start is 0 radians; the default for end is 2 * pi radians. • aspect—Single-precision value indicating the aspect ratio of the circle. The default value is 1.0, which yields a perfect (nonelliptical) circle on any screen. Here’s how it works: the aspect ratio is the ratio of the vertical to horizontal axes in the ellipse, and the length of the ellipse’s major (that is, longer) axis is the value you specify in the radius argument. As an example, we draw an ellipse in both a form and a picture box, Picture1, with this code when the user clicks a command button, Command1. In this case, we use a vertical to horizontal ratio of 0.8 for both ellipses: Private Sub Command1_Click() Circle (ScaleWidth / 2, ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(ScaleWidth >= ScaleHeight, ScaleHeight / 2, _ ScaleWidth < ScaleHeight, ScaleWidth / 2), , , , 0.8 Picture1.Circle (Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2, Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(Picture1.ScaleWidth >= Picture1.ScaleHeight, _ Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2, Picture1.ScaleWidth < _ Picture1.ScaleHeight, Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2), , , , 0.8 End Sub Running the preceding code gives you the result you see in Figure 18.7. The program is a success. Now we’re drawing ellipses in Visual Basic. Figure 18.7 Drawing ellipses with Visual Basic. Drawing Arcs Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\596-599.html (1 of 3) [3/14/2001 1:55:30 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com You use the Circle method to draw arcs, using the start, end, and aspect arguments: object.Circle [Step] ( x, y), radius, [color, [start, end, [aspect]]] Here are the arguments you pass to Circle: • Step—Keyword specifying that the center of the circle, ellipse, or arc is relative to the current coordinates given by the CurrentX and CurrentY properties of object. • x, y—Single values indicating the coordinates for the center point of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the units of measure used. • radius—Single value indicating the radius of the circle, ellipse, or arc. The ScaleMode property of object determines the unit of measure used. • color—Long integer value indicating the RGB color of the circle’s outline. If omitted, the value of the ForeColor property is used. You can use the RGB function or QBColor function to specify the color. • start, end—Single-precision values. When an arc or a partial circle or ellipse is drawn, start and end specify (in radians) the beginning and end positions of the arc. The range for both is –2 pi radians to 2 pi radians. The default value for start is 0 radians; the default for end is 2 * pi radians. • aspect—Single-precision value indicating the aspect ratio of the circle. The default value is 1.0, which yields a perfect (nonelliptical) circle on any screen. In Visual Basic, an arc is part of an ellipse. To draw an arc, you proceed as though you were going to draw an ellipse, including specifying the origin, major radius (in the radius argument), color, and aspect ratio. Then you specify values for the beginning and end of the arc, in radians (in other words, radians go from 0 to 2 * pi for a full circle). Let’s see an example. In this case, we draw a convex arc in a form and a concave arc in a picture box, Picture1, when the user clicks a command button, Command1: Private Sub Command1_Click() Circle (ScaleWidth / 2, ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(ScaleWidth >= ScaleHeight, ScaleHeight / 2, _ ScaleWidth < ScaleHeight, ScaleWidth / 2), , 0, 3.14, 0.8 Picture1.Circle (Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2, Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2), _ Switch(Picture1.ScaleWidth >= Picture1.ScaleHeight, _ Picture1.ScaleHeight / 2, Picture1.ScaleWidth < _ Picture1.ScaleHeight, Picture1.ScaleWidth / 2), , 3.14, 6.28, 0.8 End Sub The result of this code appears in Figure 18.8. Now we’re drawing arcs in Visual Basic. Figure 18.8 Drawing ellipses in forms and picture boxes. The code for this example is located in the drawarcs folder on this book’s accompanying CD-ROM. Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\596-599.html (2 of 3) [3/14/2001 1:55:30 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\596-599.html (3 of 3) [3/14/2001 1:55:30 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Drawing Freehand With The Mouse The Testing Department is on the phone. Your new program, SuperDuperGraphicsPro, is fine, but how about letting the user draw freehand with the mouse? Hmm, you think, how does that work? As the user moves the mouse, you can use the Line statement to connect the mouse locations passed to your program in the MouseMove event handler. Note that you are not passed every pixel the mouse travels over, so you must connect the dots, so to speak, rather than setting individual pixels as a lot of programmers think. Here’s an example where we draw freehand with the mouse. Because we should only draw after the mouse button has gone down, we set up a Boolean flag, blnDrawFlag, in the (General) part of the form: Dim blnDrawFlag As Boolean We set that flag to False when the form first loads: Private Sub Form_Load() blnDrawFlag = False End Sub When the user presses the mouse button, we set the current drawing location (CurrentX, CurrentY) to the location of the mouse (so we don’t start drawing from the origin of the form by mistake), and set blnDrawFlag to True in the MouseDown event handler: Private Sub Form_MouseDown(Button As Integer, Shift As Integer, _ X As Single, Y As Single) CurrentX = X CurrentY = Y blnDrawFlag = True End Sub When the user moves the mouse, we check if the blnDrawFlag is True in the MouseMove event, and if so, draw a line from the current drawing location to the current (X, Y) position (if you omit the first coordinate of a line, Visual Basic uses the current drawing location): Private Sub Form_MouseDown(Button As Integer, Shift As Integer, _ X As Single, Y As Single) If blnDrawFlag Then Line -(X, Y) End Sub When the mouse button goes up, we set blnDrawFlag to False in the MouseUp event: Private Sub Form_MouseDown(Button As Integer, Shift As Integer, _ X As Single, Y As Single) blnDrawFlag = False Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\599-604.html (1 of 4) [3/14/2001 1:55:52 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com End Sub Running this program results in the kind of display you see in Figure 18.9, where we’re letting the user draw with the mouse. Note that we’ve also changed the mouse cursor into a cross in this drawing example, by setting the form’s MousePointer property to 2. Figure 18.9 Drawing freehand with the mouse. Now we’re drawing freehand in Visual Basic. The code for this example is located in the drawfreehand folder on this book’s accompanying CD-ROM. Filling Figures With Color To fill figures with color, you can use the FillColor property of forms and picture boxes, along with the FillStyle property to set the type of fill you want. Let’s see an example. Here, we’ll draw a circle and a box in a form in the default drawing color (black) and fill those figures with solid blue when the user clicks a button, Command1. First, we set the form’s FillColor property to blue: Private Sub Command1_Click() FillColor = RGB(0, 0, 255) … Then we specify we want figures colored in solidly by setting the FillStyle property to vbSolid (for more on FillStyle, see the next topic in this chapter): Private Sub Command1_Click() FillColor = RGB(0, 0, 255) FillStyle = vbFSSolid … Finally we draw the box and the circle: Private Sub Command1_Click() FillColor = RGB(0, 0, 255) FillStyle = vbFSSolid Line (0, 0)-(ScaleWidth / 2, ScaleHeight / 2), , B Circle (3 * ScaleWidth / 4, 3 * ScaleHeight / 4), ScaleHeight / 4 End Sub That’s it—now the preceding code will draw a box and a circle with a black border, filled in blue, as shown in Figure 18.10. Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\599-604.html (2 of 4) [3/14/2001 1:55:52 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Figure 18.10 Filling figures with color. TIP: If you use the F argument when drawing boxes with the Line method, Visual Basic will use the color you specify for the box’s drawing color (and if you didn’t specify a color, it will use the current ForeGround color) instead of the FillColor. Filling Figures With Patterns You can use the form and picture box FillStyle property to set the fill pattern in Visual Basic graphics. Here are the possibilities: • VbFSSolid—0; solid • VbFSTransparent—1 (the default); transparent • VbHorizontalLine—2; horizontal line • VbVerticalLine—3; vertical line • VbUpwardDiagonal—4; upward diagonal • VbDownwardDiagonal—5; downward diagonal • VbCross—6; cross • VbDiagonalCross—7; diagonal cross Figure 18.11 shows what the fill patterns look like. The default, VbFSTransparent, means that by default figures are not filled in. Figure 18.11 The Visual Basic fill patterns. Setting Figure Drawing Style And Drawing Width The Aesthetic Design Department is on the phone. Can’t you do something about the graphics figures in your program? Maybe make them—dotted? You think, dotted? Visual Basic can help: just set the DrawStyle property in forms or picture boxes. Here are the possible values for that property: • vbSolid—1 (the default); solid (the border is centered on the edge of the shape) • vbDash—2; dash • vbDot—3; dot • vbDashDot—4; dash-dot • vbDashDotDot—5; dash-dot-dot • vbInvisible—5; invisible • vbInsideSolid—6; inside solid (the outer edge of the border is the outer edge of the figure) Visual Basic 6 Black Book:Working With Graphics http://24.19.55.56:8080/temp/ch18\599-604.html (3 of 4) [3/14/2001 1:55:52 AM] Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com [...]... http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 3 -61 7.html (3 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 11 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 3 -61 7.html (4 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 11 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images The code for the example you see in Figure 19.2 is located in the imageform folder on this book s... three layers Not recommended by Microsoft http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \61 1 -61 2.html (1 of 2) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 05 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \61 1 -61 2.html (2 of 2) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 05 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images Chapter 19 and Split Unregistered... bitmaps, GIF images, JPEG images, http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 7 -62 1.html (3 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 18 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images metafiles, and icons Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 7 -62 1.html (4 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 18 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images Let’s see an example to show... the Clipboard and then pasted into the second picture box Now we’re using the Clipboard with picture boxes Printing Graphics http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \60 9 -61 1.html (1 of 2) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 04 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics Visual Basic has two ways of printing both text and graphics: Simpo PDF Merge and using the PrintForm method • Printing entire formsSplit Unregistered... print to printers other than the default http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \60 9 -61 1.html (2 of 2) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 04 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics Layering Graphics With The AutoRedraw And ClipControls Properties Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com When you create graphics in Visual Basic, bear in mind that graphical controls and labels, nongraphical... http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \60 4 -60 6.html (1 of 2) [3/14/2001 1:55: 56 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics • vbMergePenNot—14, Merge Pen Not; combination of the pen color and the inverse of the displayPDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Simpo color • vbMergePen—15, Merge Pen; combination of the pen color and the display color • vbWhiteness— 16, Whiteness... http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 3 -61 7.html (1 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 11 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images There are a number of different image formats that you use today: bitmap (.bmp), GIF, JPEG, WMF (Windows metafile format), enhanced WMF, icon (.ico), compressed bitmap (.rle), and more Visual Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Basic can handle... All these effects are powerful techniques that you might not expect from Visual Basic That’s it for the overview of images for the moment—it’s time to turn to the Immediate Solutions Immediate Solutions Adding Images To Controls http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch19 \61 3 -61 7.html (2 of 4) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 11 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Images The Aesthetic Design Department is calling again... they draw it again with the same pen, thereby restoring the screen The code for this example is located in the drawinvert folder on this book s accompanying CD-ROM http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \60 4 -60 6.html (2 of 2) [3/14/2001 1:55: 56 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics Setting Drawing Scales Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com Forms and picture... End Sub Now the program resizes its graphics to match the user’s actions The code for this example is located in the resizer folder on this book s accompanying CD-ROM http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 \60 6 -60 9.html (3 of 3) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 00 AM] Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics Copying Pictures To And Pasting Pictures From The Clipboard Simpo PDF Merge and Split Unregistered Version - http://www.simpopdf.com . we’re drawing ellipses in Visual Basic. Figure 18.7 Drawing ellipses with Visual Basic. Drawing Arcs Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch185 96- 599.html (1 of. drawinvert folder on this book s accompanying CD-ROM. Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 60 4 -60 6.html (2 of 2) [3/14/2001 1:55: 56 AM] Simpo PDF Merge. resizer folder on this book s accompanying CD-ROM. Visual Basic 6 Black Book: Working With Graphics http://24.19.55. 56: 8080/temp/ch18 60 6 -60 9.html (3 of 3) [3/14/2001 1: 56: 00 AM] Simpo PDF Merge