I wrote a simple c# windows forms application (.net, in visual studios 2012) for a mouse-controlled keyboard for use in a desktop application. Ultimately, I want to have a keyboard form that can be used on a touchscreen in a kiosk-like setting.
My question: can I expect the desktop app to work "as is" on a touchscreen? My specific concern is whether I can reasonably expect the mouse-click events to intercept touch events on the touchscreen, or whether I should a priori consider importing certain libraries and/or bind events other than "Click". I would simply test it myself but I don't have access rights now to a touchscreen device on which I can run the app.
Can I expect the desktop app to work "as is" on a touchscreen?
Yes, it's down to the hardware to translate a "touch" to a click. You can write more advanced apps which target touch screen devices specifically e.g. swiping/pinching etc. However, if yours is just a basic app with buttons it should all work the same on a touch screen.
Related
Is it possible to get a list of applications, in order that they were last active.
Several years ago I developed my own mouse application, to be used in conjunction with voice recognition software. I gave up using it, primarily because my application removed the focus from the application I am working with.
I am considering resurrecting this and extending it so it works with multiple monitors but I would like to be able to switch back to the application I was working with before I launched this mouse application. Also, I will have to check whether by issuing a voice command to launch this application, whether the voice recognition software temporarily gets the focus, hence why it might not be as simple as the last active application.
Is there a way to change the language that Windows is using from a UWP app during runtime?
The app I am working on will be used in a kiosk environment and will be used by people with different languages. So the user needs to be able to change the language within the app, that will not only change the text displayed within the app, but also the input language on the Windows touch keyboard.
In WPF, you could simply change the CurrentInputLanguage property on the InputLanguageManager but there doesn't seem to be an alternative in UWP.
I know I can listen to the CoreTextServicesManager.InputLanguageChanged event when the input language is changed in Windows, but can't find anywhere to change it from the app.
Thanks
For now, there's no build-in API for you to change the input language at runtime in UWP app. There's a Language.TrySetInputMethodLanguageTag(String) Method, but it only supports on IOT device. So, if the device has installed other languages, you could tell them to press window+space on screen keyboard to switch input language.
In addition, you could submit a "Feature Request" to WPDev UserVoice.
I realize this might sound a little dubious but I assure you it isn't. I have a client who wants a win 8 pro touch screen app. One of the requirements is that the app is the only thing on the device the user may use. So my question is, can I make it so that the user cannot exit my wpf application? I have it running full screen without toolbars but they could still click on start etc. I essentially want it to run on windows but kind of be its own OS. Any advice is appreciated. Also if this is something that can be handled in group policies or some other way I would love to have that advice as well. Thank you.
You'll need to set Windows 8.1 to run in "Kiosk" mode.
How to enable Kiosk mode in Windows 8.1
The only caveat, is that the app must be a Windows modern app, not WPF.
Windows 8.1 comes with an excellent feature where you can lockdown the
device allowing the user to use only one application. You need to keep
in mind that this application needs to be a modern application and
cannot be a desktop application. So, if you are going to use it for
your customized company application (For e.g. ATMs, Flight Schedule),
the application should be a modern application
There is a product called "Secure Lockdown" from Inteset http://shop.inteset.com/lock-down-windows-7-with-inteset-secure-lockdown that looks like it can be used with a WPF app. I've not used it (yet), but it looks like it should work for your scenario. It's not free, but it reasonably priced at around $20. It says it is compatible with Windows 8 as well.
I'm making a C# windows application, in which I've embedded a Windows Media Player in my form.
Now, instead of using the player in a normal way, I want to access its buttons, for e.g I want to hide its "Play" & "Pause" button.
In short, I want to customize the player according to my needs.
How can I do so?
You will have to hook the creation of the app. Mainly the windows mesaage WM Create or WM Paint.
There You have to check which window names the corresponding controls have. There are several tools to examine such things during runtime, which all use the windows hooking mechanism. However, I think this will fail for metro apps. You must read about hooks . Check codeproject.com for that, because You also will need to create at least one dll. And there is a good example in c, which surely can be ported to c#.Can I give You furthrer info?
Disclaimer:It's my first time developing an app that will be on a tablet style pc.
The app needs to allow a user to write notes with either a tablet pen or by touch. This must be a .net app and may be on either Windows XP and/or Windows 7. I am mainly tasked with capturing written notes from the user interface, but I am sure I will be working on other aspects of the app.
I have looked into Digital Ink and it seems the way to go, but I am unsure of how much support currently exists for windows 7 and how much support there is going to be for this technology in the future.
My questions:
Am I going in the right direction, and if not...is there something that would allow me to better accommodate this type of user input?
Does any one have other tips or good reference sites with good info on microsoft based touch and/or tablet stylus input.
If you plan on doing custom programming, you can check out the Windows Touch API for Windows 7.
Touch and Digital Ink both use C# and .NET framework, so I would imagine there is a considerable amount of support for Digital Ink in Windows 7.
Also, in the .NET framework, there's a Stylus class that tracks stylus coordinates in a text box, even if the stylus leaves the box and comes back in:
System.Windows.Input.Stylus
Hope this helps!
Microsoft also provides the RealTimeStylus API, see this tutorial.