Windows Forms API Reference
Windows Forms is a UI framework for building rich desktop applications for Windows. This section provides detailed API documentation for the classes, interfaces, enumerations, and other types that make up the Windows Forms framework.
System.Windows.Forms Namespace
This is the primary namespace for Windows Forms. It contains classes for creating controls, forms, menus, dialogs, and handling user input.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| System.Windows.Forms.Form | Represents a window, which is a separate control that displays a title bar, border, and (depending on the style) can be minimized, maximized, and closed. |
| System.Windows.Forms.Control | Represents the base class for all controls in a Windows Forms application. |
| System.Windows.Forms.Button | Represents a standard Windows button control. |
| System.Windows.Forms.TextBox | Represents a Windows text box control. |
| System.Windows.Forms.Label | Represents a Windows label control. |
| System.Windows.Forms.DataGridView | Represents a Windows Forms control that displays data in a table format. |
| System.Windows.Forms.MessageBox | Displays a message box, which is a dialog box that presents a message to the user and waits for the user to respond. |
System.Drawing Namespace
Provides fundamental types used for graphics operations, such as colors, points, rectangles, and images.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| System.Drawing.Color | Represents an RGBA color. |
| System.Drawing.Point | Represents an ordered pair of integers that specifies a location in two-dimensional space. |
| System.Drawing.Rectangle | Represents a rectangle defined by a location, width, and height. |
| System.Drawing.Bitmap | Represents an object that is a portion of a surface of the most commonly used type of bitmap. |
System.ComponentModel Namespace
Contains types that enable runtime and design-time support for components and controls. This includes attributes, events, and type converters.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| System.ComponentModel.EventHandler | Represents the method that will handle an event. |
| System.ComponentModel.BrowsableAttribute | Specifies whether to show a property or event in the Properties window at design time. |
| System.ComponentModel.DisplayNameAttribute | Specifies the display name for a property, event, or member. |
System.Windows.Forms.DataVisualization Namespace
Contains classes for creating charts and graphs within Windows Forms applications.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| System.Windows.Forms.DataVisualization.Charting.Chart | Represents a Windows Forms control that displays chart data. |
| System.Windows.Forms.DataVisualization.Charting.Series | Represents a collection of data points that are plotted as a single series on a chart. |
Microsoft.VisualBasic.Compatibility.VB6.WinForms Namespace
Provides classes to help migrate Visual Basic 6.0 Windows Forms applications to Visual Basic .NET.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Microsoft.VisualBasic.Compatibility.VB6.WinForms.AxHost | Provides functionality to host ActiveX controls in .NET Windows Forms. |
Getting Started
To start building Windows Forms applications, you typically create a new project in Visual Studio. You can then drag and drop controls from the Toolbox onto your form designer and write code in C# or Visual Basic to handle events and implement application logic.
Common Tasks:
- Creating a new Form.
- Adding controls like Buttons, TextBoxes, and Labels.
- Handling user interactions (e.g., Button clicks).
- Binding data to controls like DataGridView.
- Customizing control appearance and behavior.