Interacting with other applications

[castor2003]

I am creating an app which is not a COM server that has functions that the user would be using. My app uses that app data. I want to be able to make that visible and invisible at will. The idea is to force the user to log into that app when starting my app then I want to make the app invisible and then visible again from a menu call from my app.

In short, can I make a third-party app running on a workstation invisible from within VFP?

I already know how to open the app with shellexecute()

 

[Mike Gagnon]

castor2003

I want to be able to make that visible and invisible at will.

I'm not sure how you make a running application with an interface disappear. Can you use just a DLL? (With no interface)>

Mike Gagnon

If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ184-2483 first.

 

[Mike Lewis]

Castor,

Take a look at the ShowWindow() API call. I believe its second parameter defines the window state, which includes a setting for invisible.

Mike


Mike Lewis
Edinburgh, Scotland

http://www.ml-consult.demon.co.uk

 

[castor2003]

Mike

I have pick up a number of API functions from this board, need to know where I can find repository of all of them with the descriptions of their parameters.

In short, I don't know where to find help on this function.

 

[rgbean]

All the API calls are documented at the MSDN site -

http://msdn.microsoft.com/.

For those calls that other VFP developers have found useful (and can be used in VFP), go to the UT API area -

http://www.universalthread.com/

or

http://www.news2news.com/vfp/.

Rick

 

[castor2003]

Rgbean

Thanks, I have found the MSDN link with the full set of API functions.

However, they refer to CONSTANTS such as 'SW_RESTORE'
I have been looking for a place that would list the values of these CONSTANTS. Could you help again. Forgive me if I am asking too much...I really want to delve deeper into windows APIs.

 

[rgbean]

Depending on the specific API call, you'll need the appropriate C++ header file. These come from installing Visual Studio .NET (or even just the C++ Compiler), sometimes you'll need a specific SDK (Software Developer Kit) and sometimes you can get them from the appropriate type library (.TLB) file.

A book that I used a lot was Dan Appleman's Visual Basic 5.0 Programmer's Guide to the Win32 API. It documented a lot of useful API calls with sample VB code - including all the values of the constants. It was never too difficult to convert most of the calls from VB syntax to VFP. Note: There are probably newer books around, I just found this one readable back when I first started 'extending' VFP's capabilities.

Rick