This function draws formatted text in the specified rectangle. It formats the text according to the specified format method.
At a Glance
| Header file: | Winuser.h |
| Windows CE versions: | 1.0 and later |
Syntax
int DrawText(HDC hDC, LPCTSTR lpString, int nCount, LPRECT lpRect, UNIT uFormat);
Parameters
hDC
[in] Handle to the device context.
lpString
[in] Long pointer to the string to be drawn. If the nCount parameter is –1, the string must be null-terminated.
If uFormat includes DT_MODIFYSTRING, the function could add up to four additional characters to this string. The buffer containing the string should be large enough to accommodate these extra characters.
nCount
[in] Specifies the number of characters in the string. If nCount is –1, then the lpString parameter is assumed to be a pointer to a null-terminated string and DrawText computes the character count automatically.
lpRect
[in] Long pointer to a RECT structure that contains the rectangle (in logical coordinates) in which the text is to be formatted.
uFormat
[in] Specifies the method of formatting the text. It can be any combination of the following values:
| Value | Description |
| DT_BOTTOM | Justifies the text to the bottom of the rectangle. This value must be combined with DT_SINGLELINE. |
| DT_CALCRECT | Determines the width and height of the rectangle. If there are multiple lines of text, DrawText uses the width of the rectangle pointed to by the lpRect parameter and extends the base of the rectangle to bound the last line of text. If there is only one line of text, DrawText modifies the right side of the rectangle so that it bounds the last character in the line. In either case, DrawText returns the height of the formatted text but does not draw the text. |
| Before calling DrawText, an application must set the right and bottom members of the RECT structure pointed to by lpRect. These members are updated with the call to DrawText. | |
| DT_CENTER | Centers text horizontally in the rectangle. |
| DT_EDITCONTROL | Duplicates the text-displaying characteristics of a multiline edit control. Specifically, the average character width is calculated in the same manner as for an edit control, and the function does not display a partially visible last line. |
| DT_END_ELLIPSIS or DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS | Replaces part of the given string with ellipses, if necessary, so that the result fits in the specified rectangle. The given string is not modified unless the DT_MODIFYSTRING flag is specified. |
| You can specify DT_END_ELLIPSIS to replace characters at the end of the string, or DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS to replace characters in the middle of the string. If the string contains backslash (\) characters, DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS preserves as much as possible of the text after the last backslash. | |
| DT_EXPANDTABS | Expands tab characters. The default number of characters per tab is eight. The DT_WORD_ELLIPSIS, DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS, and DT_END_ELLIPSIS values cannot be used with the DT_EXPANDTABS value. |
| DT_INTERNAL | Uses the system font to calculate text metrics. |
| DT_LEFT | Aligns text to the left. |
| DT_MODIFYSTRING | Modifies the given string to match the displayed text. This flag has no effect unless the DT_END_ELLIPSIS or DT_PATH_ELLIPSIS flag is specified. |
| DT_NOCLIP | Draws without clipping. DrawText is somewhat faster when DT_NOCLIP is used. |
| DT_NOPREFIX | Turns off processing of prefix characters. Normally, DrawText interprets the mnemonic-prefix character & as a directive to underscore the character that follows, and the mnemonic-prefix characters && as a directive to print a single &. By specifying DT_NOPREFIX, this processing is turned off. |
| DT_RIGHT | Aligns text to the right. |
| DT_RTLREADING | Layout in right to left reading order for bi-directional text when the font selected into the hdc is a Hebrew or Arabic font. The default reading order for all text is left to right. |
| DT_SINGLELINE | Displays text on a single line only. Carriage returns and linefeeds do not break the line. |
| DT_TABSTOP | Sets tab stops. Bits 15–8 (high-order byte of the low-order word) of the uFormat parameter specify the number of characters for each tab. The default number of characters per tab is eight. The DT_CALCRECT, DT_EXTERNALLEADING, DT_INTERNAL, DT_NOCLIP, and DT_NOPREFIX values cannot be used with the DT_TABSTOP value. |
| DT_TOP | Top-justifies text (single line only). |
| DT_VCENTER | Centers text vertically (requires DT_SINGLELINE flag). |
| DT_WORDBREAK | Breaks words. Lines are automatically broken between words if a word would extend past the edge of the rectangle specified by the lpRect parameter. A carriage return-linefeed sequence also breaks the line. |
| DT_WORD_ELLIPSIS | Truncates text that does not fit in the rectangle and adds ellipses. |
Return Values
The height of the text indicates success. Zero indicates failure. To get extended error information, call GetLastError.
Remarks
The DrawText function uses the device context’s selected font, text color, and background color to draw the text. Unless the DT_NOCLIP format is used, DrawText clips the text so that it does not appear outside the specified rectangle. All formatting is assumed to have multiple lines unless the DT_SINGLELINE format is specified.
If the selected font is too large for the specified rectangle, the DrawText function does not attempt to substitute a smaller font.
For Windows CE versions 2.10 and later, line breaking is supported for the Chinese, Korean, and Japanese languages.
See Also