CCmdTarget::BeginWaitCursor

void BeginWaitCursor( );

Remarks

Call this function to display the cursor as an hourglass when you expect a command to take a noticeable time interval to execute. The framework calls this function to show the user that it is busy, such as when a CDocument object loads or saves itself to a file.

The actions of BeginWaitCursor are not always effective outside of a single message handler as other actions, such as OnSetCursor handling, could change the cursor.

Call EndWaitCursor to restore the previous cursor.

Example

// The following example illustrates the most common case
// of displaying the hourglass cursor during some lengthy
// processing of a command handler implemented in some
// CCmdTarget-derived class, such as a document or view.

void CMyView::OnSomeCommand()
{
   BeginWaitCursor(); // display the hourglass cursor

   // do some lengthy processing

   EndWaitCursor(); // remove the hourglass cursor
}

// The next example illustrates RestoreWaitCursor.
void CMyView::OnSomeCommand()
{
   BeginWaitCursor(); // display the hourglass cursor

   // do some lengthy processing

   // The dialog box will normally change the cursor to
   // the standard arrow cursor, and leave the cursor in
   // as the standard arrow cursor when the dialog box is
   // closed.
   CMyDialog dlg;
   dlg.DoModal();

   // It is necessary to call RestoreWaitCursor here in order
   // to change the cursor back to the hourglass cursor.
   RestoreWaitCursor();

   // do some more lengthy processing

   EndWaitCursor(); // remove the hourglass cursor
}

// In the above example, the dialog was clearly invoked between
// the pair of calls to BeginWaitCursor and EndWaitCursor.
// Sometimes it may not be clear whether the dialog is invoked 
// in between a pair of calls to BeginWaitCursor and EndWaitCursor.
// It is permissable to call RestoreWaitCursor, even if 
// BeginWaitCursor was not previously called.  This case is 
// illustrated below, where CMyView::AnotherFunction does not
// need to know whether it was called in the context of an
// hourglass cursor.
void CMyView::AnotherFunction()
{
   // some processing ...

   CMyDialog dlg;
   dlg.DoModal();
   RestoreWaitCursor();

   // some more processing ...
}

// If the dialog is invoked from a member function of
// some non-CCmdTarget, then you can call CWinApp::DoWaitCursor
// with a 0 parameter value to restore the hourglass cursor.
void CMyObject::AnotherFunction()
{
   CMyDialog dlg;
   dlg.DoModal();
   AfxGetApp()->DoWaitCursor(0); // same as CCmdTarget::RestoreWaitCursor   
}

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