Several functions enable you to change a menu after it has been loaded or created. These changes may include adding or removing menu items and modifying existing menu items.
To add a menu item, use the InsertMenuItem function. You can use the SetMenuItemInfo function to change the attributes of an existing menu item. The lpmii parameter points to a MENUITEMINFO structure, which contains the new attributes and specifies which attributes to change. A menu item's attributes include its type, state, identifier, submenu, bitmaps, item data, and text.
The older AppendMenu and InsertMenu functions can also be used to add menu items, but new applications should use InsertMenuItem. The AppendMenu function appends a menu item to the end of a menu or submenu; the InsertMenu function inserts a menu item at a specified position in a menu or submenu. Both functions permit the attributes of the menu item to be specified, including whether the menu item is enabled, disabled, grayed, checked, or unchecked.
To change the appearance or attributes of an existing menu item, use the ModifyMenu function. For example, the text string or bitmap of a menu item can be enabled, disabled, grayed, checked, or unchecked. The ModifyMenu function replaces the specified menu item with a new item.
To retrieve information about a menu item, use the GetMenuItemInfo function. The lpmii parameter points to a MENUITEMINFO structure, which specifies the attributes to retrieve and receives their current values.
To delete a menu item from a menu, use the DeleteMenu or RemoveMenu function. If the item being deleted is one that opens a submenu, DeleteMenu deletes the associated submenu, discarding the menu handle and freeing the memory used by the submenu. The RemoveMenu function deletes a menu item, but if the item opens a submenu, the function does not destroy the submenu or its handle, allowing the submenu to be reused.
To redraw the menu bar after a menu bar has been modified, use the DrawMenuBar function. Otherwise, the modifications will not appear until the system redraws the owner window.