PRB: Activating Full-Screen DOS App from Icon in Enhanced Mode

ID: Q69895

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) versions 3.0, 3.1

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Windows enhanced mode, when an application calls the OpenIcon or ShowWindows functions to activate a full-screen MS-DOS application from an icon, the activation fails. These functions perform as documented in real and standard mode.

RESOLUTION

To avoid this problem, simulate the result of an ALT+TAB key combination on the MS-DOS application icon: Send a WM_ACTIVATE message to the MS-DOS application, and then specify its handle in a call to ShowWindow function. For example:


   SendMessage(hDOSApp, WM_ACTIVATE, 1, MAKELONG(hDOSApp, TRUE));
   ShowWindow(hDOSApp, SW_SHOWNORMAL);

When the application sends the WM_ACTIVATE message, wParam is set to 1 because the application is being invoked by simulating the keyboard. The high-order word of lParam is set to TRUE (non-zero) because the MS-DOS application is represented by an icon.

The method works in all three Windows modes for windowed and full- screen MS-DOS applications.

Additional query words: 3.00 3.10

Keywords :
Version : WINDOWS:3.0,3.1
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type :