Cursor Class
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.NET Framework Class Library
Cursor Class

Represents the image used to paint the mouse pointer.

Namespace:  System.Windows.Forms
Assembly:  System.Windows.Forms (in System.Windows.Forms.dll)
Syntax

'Usage

Dim instance As Cursor

'Declaration

<SerializableAttribute> _
<TypeConverterAttribute(GetType(CursorConverter))> _
Public NotInheritable Class Cursor _
    Implements IDisposable, ISerializable
Remarks

A cursor is a small picture whose location on the screen is controlled by a pointing device, such as a mouse, pen, or trackball. When the user moves the pointing device, the operating system moves the cursor accordingly.

Different cursor shapes are used to inform the user what operation the mouse will have. For example, when editing or selecting text, a Cursors..::.IBeam cursor is typically displayed. A wait cursor is commonly used to inform the user that a process is currently running. Examples of processes you might have the user wait for are opening a file, saving a file, or filling a control such as a DataGrid, ListBox or TreeView with a large amount of data.

All controls that derive from the Control class have a Cursor property. To change the cursor displayed by the mouse pointer when it is within the bounds of the control, assign a Cursor to the Cursor property of the control. Alternatively, you can display cursors at the application level by assigning a Cursor to the Current property. For example, if the purpose of your application is to edit a text file, you might set the Current property to Cursors..::.WaitCursor to display a wait cursor over the application while the file loads or saves to prevent any mouse events from being processed. When the process is complete, set the Current property to Cursors..::.Default for the application to display the appropriate cursor over each control type.

NoteNote:

If you call Application..::.DoEvents before resetting the Current property back to the Cursors..::.Default cursor, the application will resume listening for mouse events and will resume displaying the appropriate Cursor for each control in the application.

Cursor objects can be created from several sources, such as the handle of an existing Cursor, a standard Cursor file, a resource, or a data stream.

NoteNote:

The Cursor class does not support animated cursors (.ani files) or cursors with colors other than black and white.

If the image you are using as a cursor is too small, you can use the DrawStretched method to force the image to fill the bounds of the cursor. You can temporarily hide the cursor by calling the Hide method, and restore it by calling the Show method.

Examples

The following code example displays a form that demonstrates using a custom cursor. The custom Cursor is embedded in the application's resource file. The example requires a cursor contained in a cursor file named MyCursor.cur. To compile this example using the command line, include the following flag: /res:MyCursor.Cur, CustomCursor.MyCursor.Cur

Imports System
Imports System.Drawing
Imports System.Windows.Forms

Namespace CustomCursor

   Public Class Form1
      Inherits System.Windows.Forms.Form

      <System.STAThread()> _
      Public Shared Sub Main()
         System.Windows.Forms.Application.Run(New Form1())
      End Sub 'Main

      Public Sub New()

         Me.ClientSize = New System.Drawing.Size(292, 266)
         Me.Text = "Cursor Example"

         ' Looks namespace.MyCursor.cur in the assemblies manifest.

         ' The following generates a cursor from an embedded resource.
         ' To add a custom cursor, create or use an existing 16x16 bitmap
         '        1. Add a new cursor file to your project: 
         '                File->Add New Item->Local Project Items->Cursor File
         '        2. Select 16x16 image type:
         '                Image->Current Icon Image Types->16x16
         ' --- To make the custom cursor an embedded resource  ---
         ' In Visual Studio:
         '        1. Select the cursor file in the Solution Explorer
         '        2. Choose View->Properties.
         '        3. In the properties window switch "Build Action" to "Embedded"
         ' On the command line:
         '        Add the following flag:
         '            /res:CursorFileName.Cur,Namespace.CursorFileName.Cur
         '
         ' The following line uses the namespace from the passed-in type
         ' and looks for CustomCursor.MyCursor.Cur in the assemblies manifest.
     ' NOTE: The cursor name is acase sensitive.        

         Me.Cursor = New Cursor(Me.GetType(), "MyCursor.Cur") 
      End Sub 'New       
   End Class 'Form1
End Namespace 'CustomCursor


The following code example displays customer information in a TreeView control. The root tree nodes display customer names, and the child tree nodes display the order numbers assigned to each customer. In this example, 1,000 customers are displayed with 15 orders each. The repainting of the TreeView is suppressed by using the BeginUpdate and EndUpdate methods, and a wait Cursor is displayed while the TreeView creates and paints the TreeNode objects. This example requires that you have a cursor file named MyWait.cur in the application directory. It also requires a Customer object that can hold a collection of Order objects, and that you have created an instance of a TreeView control on a Form.

Public Class Customer
   Inherits [Object]
   Private custName As String = ""
   Friend custOrders As New ArrayList()

   Public Sub New(ByVal customername As String)
      Me.custName = customername
   End Sub

   Public Property CustomerName() As String
      Get
         Return Me.custName
      End Get
      Set(ByVal Value As String)
         Me.custName = Value
      End Set
   End Property

   Public ReadOnly Property CustomerOrders() As ArrayList
      Get
         Return Me.custOrders
      End Get
   End Property
End Class 'End Customer class


Public Class Order
   Inherits [Object]
   Private ordID As String

   Public Sub New(ByVal orderid As String)
      Me.ordID = orderid
   End Sub 'New

   Public Property OrderID() As String
      Get
         Return Me.ordID
      End Get
      Set(ByVal Value As String)
         Me.ordID = Value
      End Set
   End Property
End Class ' End Order class

' Create a new ArrayList to hold the Customer objects.
Private customerArray As New ArrayList()

Private Sub FillMyTreeView()
   ' Add customers to the ArrayList of Customer objects.
   Dim x As Integer
   For x = 0 To 999
      customerArray.Add(New Customer("Customer" + x.ToString()))
   Next x

   ' Add orders to each Customer object in the ArrayList.
   Dim customer1 As Customer
   For Each customer1 In customerArray
      Dim y As Integer
      For y = 0 To 14
         customer1.CustomerOrders.Add(New Order("Order" + y.ToString()))
      Next y
   Next customer1

   ' Display a wait cursor while the TreeNodes are being created.
   Cursor.Current = New Cursor("MyWait.cur")

   ' Suppress repainting the TreeView until all the objects have been created.
   treeView1.BeginUpdate()

   ' Clear the TreeView each time the method is called.
   treeView1.Nodes.Clear()

   ' Add a root TreeNode for each Customer object in the ArrayList.
   Dim customer2 As Customer
   For Each customer2 In customerArray
      treeView1.Nodes.Add(New TreeNode(customer2.CustomerName))

      ' Add a child TreeNode for each Order object in the current Customer object.
      Dim order1 As Order
      For Each order1 In customer2.CustomerOrders
         treeView1.Nodes(customerArray.IndexOf(customer2)).Nodes.Add( _
    New TreeNode(customer2.CustomerName + "." + order1.OrderID))
      Next order1
   Next customer2

   ' Reset the cursor to the default for all controls.
   Cursor.Current = System.Windows.Forms.Cursors.Default

   ' Begin repainting the TreeView.
   treeView1.EndUpdate()
End Sub 'FillMyTreeView


Inheritance Hierarchy

System..::.Object
  System.Windows.Forms..::.Cursor
Thread Safety

Any public static (Shared in Visual Basic) members of this type are thread safe. Any instance members are not guaranteed to be thread safe.
Platforms

Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP SP2, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Starter Edition, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2000 SP4, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows 98, Windows CE, Windows Mobile for Smartphone, Windows Mobile for Pocket PC

The .NET Framework and .NET Compact Framework do not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 3.5, 3.0, 2.0, 1.1, 1.0

.NET Compact Framework

Supported in: 3.5, 2.0, 1.0
See Also

Reference

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