LoadCursor

  HCURSOR LoadCursor(hinst, lpszCursor)    
  HANDLE hinst; /* handle of application instance */
  LPCTSTR lpszCursor; /* name string or cursor resource identifier */

The LoadCursor function loads the specified cursor resource from the executable file associated with the given application instance.

Parameters

hinst

Identifies an instance of the module whose executable file contains the cursor to be loaded.

lpszCursor

Points to a null-terminated string that contains the name of the cursor resource to be loaded. Alternatively, this parameter can consist of the resource identifier in the low-order word and zero in the high-order word. The MAKEINTRESOURCE macro can be used to create this value.

Return Value

The return value is the handle to the newly loaded cursor if the function is successful. Otherwise, it is NULL.

Comments

The function loads the cursor resource only if it has not been loaded; otherwise, it retrieves a handle to the existing resource. The LoadCursor function returns a valid cursor handle only if the pszCursor parameter points to a cursor resource. If pszCursor points to any type of resource other than a cursor (such as an icon), the return value will not be NULL, even though it is not a valid cursor handle.

The cursor resource can be either a color or a monochrome bitmap.

An application can use the LoadCursor function to access the predefined cursors used by Windows. To do this, the application must set the hinst parameter to NULL and the pszCursor parameter to one the following values:

Value Meaning

IDC_ARROW Standard arrow cursor.
IDC_CROSS Crosshair cursor.
IDC_IBEAM Text I-beam cursor.
IDC_ICON Empty icon.
IDC_SIZE A square with a smaller square inside its lower-right corner.
IDC_SIZENESW Double-pointed cursor with arrows pointing northeast and southwest.
IDC_SIZENS Double-pointed cursor with arrows pointing north and south.
IDC_SIZENWSE Double-pointed cursor with arrows pointing northwest and southeast.
IDC_SIZEWE Double-pointed cursor with arrows pointing west and east.
IDC_UPARROW Vertical arrow cursor.
IDC_WAIT Hourglass cursor.

The LoadCursor function may be used as either a wide-character function (where text arguments must use Unicode) or an ANSI function (where text arguments must use characters from the Windows 3.x character set).

See Also

SetCursor, ShowCursor