The Template Program: A Template for Application Development

The Template example, like WinHello, is a simple but functional Windows application. But unlike WinHello, Template has been designed specifically for use as a template for your own application development. The Template.I include file has also been used as the foundation for a number of the demo applications discussed in this book.

TIP

If you are using MFC and the AppWizard provided with the Developers Studio, you will not need nor want the Template.I include file, which is the core of the Template demo. The Template demo is included simply for those who, for various reasons, prefer to perform development without using the foundation class libraries.

Unlike familiar DOS programs, which generally have little, if any, source code in common—the main procedure aside—most Windows applications have a number of elements in common:

The same WinMain procedure can be used by hundreds of programs, remaining unchanged except for a few string labels identifying the application by name.
Essentially the same WndProc procedure can be used over and over. In this area, the sample provided by the Template demo will need to be expanded and altered to provide the specific needs of each separate application.
Although the About dialog box used in the Template demo may not be satisfactory for all purposes, it does provide an example for use in constructing and programming generic dialog boxes.

NOTE

The Template demo, including the Template.C, Template.DEF, Template.H, Template.BAT, and Template.RC files, is on the CD accompanying this book, in the Chapter 2 folder.