Consider the following scenario. You have an application that has several owned WS_EX_APPWINDOW pop-up windows. Then, a user selects an inactive window in this application from the taskbar of a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 or Windows Vista. In this scenario, the currently active pop-up window is selected again.

For example, assume that an application has a main window and the owned pop-up windows C, D, and E. Pop-up window D is active. You click the button on the taskbar for pop-up window C or E to make that window active. Instead, pop-up window D remains the active window.

You develop an application that uses the UpdateLayeredWindowIndirect function to update a layered window. However, when you run the application in Windows Vista or in Windows Server 2008, the function does not correctly display the layered window.

This issue occurs when the following conditions are true:

• In the UPDATELAYEREDWINDOWINFO structure, you use both the pptSrc parameter and the prcDirty parameter.
• The pptSrc parameter does not use the default value (0, 0).
• The Desktop Window Manager (DWM) feature is enabled.

Additionally, when the issue occurs, you cannot manipulate the parameters to output the correct result.

When you press a Windows HotStart button to start a program on a Windows Vista-based computer, the program may not be started as a topmost window. If other windows are open, these windows may remain in the foreground, and the program that is associated with the Windows HotStart button appears in the background.

Note: This behavior does not occur if you start the program by using the Start menu or the Start Search box.

In Tip 53 I pointed out how to change the border padding for windows in Vista Aero. The same can be done if you are running Vista’s Basic interface (such as you would if running Vista Home Basic, or if you have a video card that isn’t Aero capable). The reasons are the same, the steps are just slightly different. Keep reading →

There are many parts to a window, some more important than others. One of the less important areas would be the border padding, that space around the edges. With Vista’s new Aero interface, this border padding seems larger than it needs to be, most likely so the transparency of those borders is apparent. Ironically, if the border was smaller, it wouldn’t need to be transparent (wouldn’t be covering anything up). Kristan points out how to shrink the border padding for those Aero windows. Note that you can do the same for Vista’s basic theme as well, but the steps are slightly different, and will be covered in the next tip. Keep reading →

If a program stops responding in Windows Vista, top-level windows that are owned by the program may be replaced by a ghost window until the program resumes. When the program resumes, windows that use the WS_EX_LAYERED extended window style may appear corrupted.

While the old ‘Prnt Scrn’ still works in Vista to capture the entire screen to the clipboard, you then need to paste that image into a program so you can grab the part you want, and save it to disk. Vista’s new Snipping Tool simplifies this task.
Keep reading →