ShapesDynInst Sample

The ShapesDynInst sample contains the ShapesDynInst object, which is the run-time object for the ShapesDsgn designer.

This designer demonstrates the following features:

Creating a public object. Its run-time objects can be created by other applications.
Using the host's toolbox. You can drag and drop or click and drag objects from the toolbox to the designer surface.
Setting a startup program. Implements IDesignerDebugging methods to notify you upon transition from design mode to run mode and vice versa, and lets you specify a program with which to debug it. (The ShapesClient.exe program is provided as a default.)
Registering custom information. The run-time object uses DllRegisterDesigner and DllUnregisterDesigner to register itself as a member of the Shapes CATID, for which the sample client can search.

At run time, the ShapesDynInst object depersists the subobjects created at design time into three internal lists. When the user requests a subobject, the ShapesDynInst object returns an IDispatch pointer to the requested subobject.

To build the ShapesDynInst sample

In Visual C++ 6.0, open ShapesDynInst.dsp. On the Build menu, select Rebuild All or Batch Build to build ShapesDynInst.dll.
On the command line, set your directory to ShapesDynInst\Debug or ShapesDynInst\Release, then run make.bat to build the debug or release version of ShapesDynInst.dll.

Using the Designer at Run Time:

The designer notifies you upon transition to and from run time. In addition, it prompts you for the pathname of the .EXE file to start. Note that you must enter a pathname in response to this prompt.

At run time, you must explicitly create an instance of the designer object that aggregates the base designer run-time object. To access the subobjects created at design time, provide public properties and methods. See VB_ShapesDsgn for an example.

Sample Project

The VB_ShapesDsgn project in the VBSamples directory is a Visual Basic test program for the ShapesDynDsgn sample. To use this project in Visual Basic, create an ActiveX DLL project. On the File menu, click Open Project, then navigate to the VB_Samples\VB_ShapesDsgn directory. Select ShapesDsgn.vbp to load the project files into the Visual Basic environment.

Sample Start-Up Program

The VB_ShapesClient project in the VBSamples directory is a Visual Basic project you can use as a start-up application for the ShapesDynInst designer. To use the client, you must first register the Regobj.dll from the samples\bin directory. Then, when ShapesDsgn prompts for a start-up application, specify ShapesClient.exe.

See Also

ShapesDynDsgn Sample