Shoutbox

Hello, the coloring of letters by color codes looks different in WLM for Windows 7 than in WLM for Windows XP.

I have contacts in the format of [c=12]<[c=4]Rictoo[/c]>[/c]
In Windows XP, it used to be correctly displayed: <Rictoo>
In Windows 7, it is displayed as <Rictoo>

Is this between the same Windows Live Messenger versions (both Windows Live Messenger 2009 on XP and 7), or is this between Windows Live Messenger 2009 on XP and Windows Live Messenger 2011 on Windows7 ?

Because I'm not sure that this is a bug in Plus! itself.

It might also be an issue with Windows Live Messenger itself, or rather how Windows renders RichText.

I've only tested the Windows 7 one with WLM 2011.

I don't think it's a problem with WLM itself, because color codes are only in Messenger Plus.

quote:

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Originally posted by amcsi
I don't think it's a problem with WLM itself, because color codes are only in Messenger Plus.

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Yes, but that's not the thing. It is WLM itself which displays the colors.

The controls used for displaying the screennames are 'standard' windows controls (thus from WLM itself), Messenger Plus! does not change that. What Messenger Plus! does is manipulating the text in these RichText controls from simple pure black text to text with controls characters/tags which define what color to use; Much like you format text on the forum, or for a website.

So, Messenger Plus! makes it only possible to use the already existing color codes so to speak, by enabling rich text manipulation (which already exists, but is otherwise disabled and completely hidden from the user)....

But if those controls don't support the otherwise standard codes, or interpret them differently, then it is not the fault of Messenger Plus!, but from WLM.

Compare it to a website designer who makes a webpage. That webdesigner (=Messenger Plus) can create some fancy looking texts. But if the browser doesn't support those codes, or if it interpret them differently than normal (eg: you tell it to use red, but the browser colors it brown), it is not the webdesigner's fault.

.....if that make any sense

I have also noticed colours being slightly off and found it is definitely to do with WLM 2011.

So basically, new color tags (possible other tags as well) are ignored until the last color is closed. I liked it in the case of the older WLM that you could have color tags in colored spans of text, where after closing the inner tag, the color goes back to that represented by the outer tag.

I disagree with you Cookie... Does Plus! not intercept the drawing of the text on the control and therefore should process it appropriately? That is how I see it and that it is a Plus! bug.

quote:

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Originally posted by matty
I disagree with you Cookie... Does Plus! not intercept the drawing of the text on the control and therefore should process it appropriately? That is how I see it and that it is a Plus! bug.

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If Plus! itself draws the text, then yes, it is a Plus! bug, but as far as I know it doesn't do that...

...that is: it does intercept the raw string to draw, but it is not Plus! which does the actual drawing. Plus! intercepts it, adds its own flavors to the text - or rather, changes the tags as we know them to proper formatting codes understood by the drawing process of the control (in RichText* format that is "\cf1blahblah" for color 1 for example) - and then returns this new raw string to the drawing process. So, the controls are already RichText* since WLM uses it to add some fancy text formating itself; it is just that, as a normal user, you aren't enabled to control it.

Much like you can color your text on the forums; and it is the php script which intercepts this raw string with tags and converts it to something the browser understand.

*maybe not exactly a RichText control, but you know what I mean with "RichText" I hope.

...at least, that is how I have always understood it.

To bad Patchou isn't around anymore to shed some light on it

richedit hooking isn't the easiest part of messenger plus!
lots of tweaks to get it works, like gradient is not the same implementation in wlm 2009 and 2011, thanks to Virgil.
I agree with Cookie that rendering is finally done by original controls.