Dialog Boxes 

  • Article

A dialog box is a secondary window that prompts an exchange of information between the user and the program. Use a dialog box to quickly obtain information that is needed to carry out a task. Dialog boxes are also often invoked from other surfaces as a means of extending those surfaces—you can move infrequently used or sizable groups of related controls to dialog boxes.

Because dialog boxes are associated with performing a task, they differ from property sheets, which simply describe an object’s current settings. Dialog boxes are more analogous to wizards, which also collect information, but in steps across a sequence of surfaces. When the process of exchanging information requires considerable explanation, wizards are more appropriate than dialog boxes. Also, the functionality and window dimensions of dialog boxes are more flexible than those of property sheets and wizards.

See Also

Concepts

Command Buttons
Labels
Layout
Layout Specifications: Win32
Layout Specifications: Windows Forms
Property Sheets
Wizards