Title bar of a common control, match the System color

[Shompinice]

I think the title bar of a common control should be able to do it, just the title bar and the window border, so that it can be more harmonious and unified with the modern appearance of Windows. Use a black title bar when the system color is dark and a light title bar when the system mode is light.

I still want to see Blender in line with the modern UI of Windows. Includes title bar, maximize minimize and close buttons, window borders. If you can, you can also use the Windows common controls on the menu, maybe this is a better wish .

Reference: UWP Universal Controls
docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/uwp/design/basics/design-and-ui-intro#controls

About Fluent Design:
medium. com/microsoft-design/fluent-makeover-photolab-a583d25f362b

On how to use Fluent Design and XAML in Win32:
Windows 10 now enables you to use UWP controls in non-UWP desktop applications so that you can enhance the look, feel, and functionality of your existing desktop applications with the latest Windows 10 UI features that are only available via UWP controls. This means that you can use UWP features such as Windows Ink and controls that support the Fluent Design System in your existing WPF, Windows Forms, and C ++ Win32 applications. This developer scenario is sometimes called XAML islands.

Announced at Build 2018 during the keynote:
developer.microsoft. com/en-us/events/build/content/announcing-uwp-xaml-islands

XAML Islands Demo
developer.microsoft. com/en-us/events/build/content/fluent-design-system-demo

Entire Fluent Design @ Build 2018 playlist
developer.microsoft. com/en-us/events/build/content/fluent-design-system-evolution?playlist=41f18bdd-6d5a-44b9-8586-0fa36ed91c45

Documentation here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/uwp/xaml-platform/xaml-host-controls

[Harleya]

@Shompinice

I think the title bar of a common control should be able to do it, just the title bar and the window border, so that it can be more harmonious and unified with the modern appearance of Windows. Use a black title bar when the system color is dark and a light title bar when the system mode is light.

Which “title bar” and “window border” do you mean exactly? Blender itself is hosted in a window drawn by the operating system and is shown in the colors you choose there.

But we could certainly read the system colors from the OS and (optionally) use them in themes perhaps.

@Shompinice

…you can also use the Windows common controls on the menu, maybe this is a better wish . Reference: UWP Universal Controls docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/uwp/design/basics/design-and-ui-intro#controls

Blender is a multi-platform app, so needs to work on Linux and Mac as well. We certainly couldn’t use controls that are not only Windows-only, but only work for users with Windows 10 since our current minimum requirement is Vista.

[Harleya]

Its not quite like that. The title bar is “non-client area” and is drawn by the OS. There isn’t a way for Blender to tell the operating to use specific colors for the standard title bar it provides. You change those colors globally along with other Windows colors.

So right now you could select a color theme in the OS that matches your preferred Blender theme. For example, selecting “Dark Mode” in Windows, if you prefer the default Blender theme, would match a bit better. That way the difference would be a little less glaring.

If you truly want them to match exactly though then we’d have to make changes to Blender…

One choice, mentioned above, is to have Blender get the system colors from the operating system and use those in the theme. And yes, it could change colors as the app gets or lose focus.

The other choice is for us to draw the title bar ourselves. We could inform Windows that we intend to draw it ourselves and then our client area would include that top bit. But then we’d also have to draw, and react, to things like minimizing, maximizing, and even dragging. And that work would all be for Windows users only. So in any tutorials Blender would look different depending on the platform.

[TheRedWaxPolice]

@Shompinice

this is the problem, there is a white title bar

In the meantime, try this…

[ThinkingPolygons]

@TheRedWaxPolice

In the meantime, try this

Nice, works like a charm.

[Harleya]

@Shompinice

This can bring a colorful title bar, but not black. The complete solution is this

https://www.deviantart.com/cleodesktop/art/After-Dark-CC-Theme-Win10-1909-828035995

Yes, there are lots of ways to customize your own installation of Windows. But what does that have to do with Blender or the way that blender is made? You know… the reason for this site you’ve posted on. LOL

[Shompinice]

We should not focus on how to bring a dark title bar to the system, but instead discuss whether Blender can use a dark title bar. You should focus on my other reply, not this.

[Harleya]

As I’ve tried to explain the title bar is managed by the Window operating system and by you. There are some things that could change, and I’ve outlined those options earlier in this thread.

But so far it seems that your primary complaint is that you don’t like how your operating system changes the title bar to a color you don’t like when a program does not have focus. You could always complain to Microsoft or try a different operating system.

Personally, I’m not too worried about the color of title bars of programs I’m not using.

[Shompinice]

Imagine Blender with a black title bar in Photoshop.

We should not focus on how to bring a dark title bar to the system, but instead discuss whether Blender can use a dark title bar. You should focus on my other reply, not this.

In other words, my feature request is to bring Blender a dark title bar, which has nothing to do with accent colors. Although you mentioned in the first reply that you use the accent color to color the title bar. As mentioned earlier, it is not possible to use black as the accent color, so this solution does not bring a black title bar. Moreover, not all users choose to color the title bar.

So the best way is to modify Blender to use the title bar of the custom control, but it should be noted that I think a title bar that looks the same as the system control is the best.

As users, we of course hope that each application will use the design specifications of each platform on each platform. For example, on Android we use material design and on Windows we use Fluent Design System. It does not mean that you must use native controls, it is just a matter of good luck just to look like native.

In other words, we only need a black title bar that looks like the title bar of Windows 10, just like in the settings, the official title bar like Feedback Hub.

Except for the title bar, all other controls are custom controls. This is very good. As an old Chinese saying goes, “Gentleman is the same but different”, which means that as a gentleman, you can both live in harmony with others and have your own Unique pursuit. So Blender’s interface not only has its own unique style, but also harmonizes with the Windows 10 interface.

[MetinSeven]

Hi @Shompinice,

We usually don’t grant deletion requests of topics in which other users have already taken the time to reply, unless there’s something offensive or otherwise intolerable inside the discussion.

You can decide yourself which of your own posts you’d like to edit or delete.

[myway880]

msstyle files are for the entire OS themes, not for a specific application so You can’t use one for Just blender .

A side from that, only approved themes “msstyle” from Microsoft can be used by windows. To use a custome themes from anywhere else you need a patched version of the windows DLL for the theming engine.

There is an application that does that “UltraUXThemePatcher”

Blender can’t crack people windows installation and install custom theme for them…

[Shompinice]

As I said……We should not focus on how to bring a dark title bar to the system, but instead discuss whether Blender can use a dark title bar. You should focus on my other reply, not this.

[xdanic]

Applications might not be able to read the color of the bar, but they can change it.

For example chrome can change the color of the bar, and when is not focused and you have a dark theme and/or bar, it displays light grey, but still not white as it happens in blender.

[myway880]

Because it uses a GUI framework that can do it.
Only the native windows GUI framework can ask to change the colour of the title bar . Qt can do it by asking the OS’s not to draw the title bar at all and replace all of its functions aka

@Harleya

The other choice is for us to draw the title bar ourselves. We could inform Windows that we intend to draw it ourselves and then our client area would include that top bit. But then we’d also have to draw, and react, to things like minimizing, maximizing, and even dragging. And that work would all be for Windows users only. So in any tutorials Blender would look different depending on the platform

Blender uses ghost it’s own in-house framework the functionality could be added to it but it’s not an easy few lines of code thing. It’s a major job and for very small return and only on windows. It could happen at som point I guess…

[Shompinice]

As the picture shows. I think modifying Blender to use its own controls is a better choice. It should look like this.

[ThinkingPolygons]

This is overkill. The way it is now is fine imo.

Now, if only we could fully get rid of the window border, that would be actually great.

[Harleya]

@Shompinice

I think modifying Blender to use its own controls is a better choice

Yes, you already started one thread about this already. No need to spam it all over the place.

[Shompinice]

@Harleya

Its not quite like that. The title bar is “non-client area” and is drawn by the OS. There isn’t a way for Blender to tell the operating to use specific colors for the standard title bar it provides. You change those colors globally along with other Windows colors.

So right now you could select a color theme in the OS that matches your preferred Blender theme. For example, selecting “Dark Mode” in Windows, if you prefer the default Blender theme, would match a bit better. That way the difference would be a little less glaring.

If you truly want them to match exactly though then we’d have to make changes to Blender…

One choice, mentioned above, is to have Blender get the system colors from the operating system and use those in the theme. And yes, it could change colors as the app gets or lose focus.

The other choice is for us to draw the title bar ourselves. We could inform Windows that we intend to draw it ourselves and then our client area would include that top bit. But then we’d also have to draw, and react, to things like minimizing, maximizing, and even dragging. And that work would all be for Windows users only. So in any tutorials Blender would look different depending on the platform.

What you said，I think it is useful

[MetinSeven]

@Shompinice, please keep this subject in this topic, and don’t start new topics about the same subject. I’ve merged the other thread with this one.

[Shompinice]

so，how Google chrome did it？

Dark tittle bar

light mode

If you set to color the title bar

for Windows 7