When you write typical Windows applications, you'll most likely spend a fair amount of time creating dialog boxes, because any Windows application that interacts with a user probably needs them. The Dialog Editor is a tool for constructing Windows dialog boxes.
In this chapter, you'll learn to create a dialog box and see how to include it in your application. The reference chapter that follows lists all the Dialog Editor's tools and commands. You should be able to easily move between the editor, the reference, and online help as you learn.
If you've ever created a dialog box by writing a resource script, then you'll appreciate the Dialog Editor. When you write a resource script by hand, you must compile the script to see the new dialog box. With the Dialog Editor, you build a dialog by dropping elements into place on the screen, much like using a paint program.
You can still write resource scripts by hand, if you wish, but you'll be more productive if you use the Dialog Editor instead.
Figure 1.1 shows a typical dialog box.
NOTE:
You must use a mouse or similar pointing device with the Dialog Editor. You should also be familiar with the material about basic skills in the Windows User's Guide before you use the Dialog Editor.