Default Aqua Windows in OS X

[Richard Gaskin]

Alan Golub wrote:

> When you open a new stack window in OS X, the default mode is toplevel, and
> it appears with a white background. In other modes (modeless, palette,
> modal), the window gets the default Aqua background. This raises a few
> questions for me:
> 
> 1. What is the rational for the white background as the default in toplevel
> mode? I believe that the Aqua Human Interface Guidelines suggest that all
> windows get the Aqua appearance by default (with the exception of windows
> that somehow connect to digital peripherals, which can get the "textured" or
> "brushed metal" appearance). A look at the default window appearance in
> other OS X development platforms (REALbasic, SuperCard, Apple's own
> Interface Builder) confirms this.

The pattern is for non-content areas.  Toplevel is generally used for
content, while auxilliary modes (palette, modal, modeless) get the stripes.
Your content window will have non-content portions filled with stripes when
you add non-content objects to them which have their backpattern set to
empty.

See the example window at
<http://developer.apple.com/techpubs/macosx/Essentials/AquaHIGuidelines/AHIG
Windows/chapter_5_section_3.html>


> 2. Is there a way to set the appearance of a standard window to have the
> Aqua background? Neither the colors nor the patterns windows appear to
> include such an option for setting the background.

If you must use toplevel for a non-user-content window, you can just place
an object there with its backpattern set to false.

> 3. For that matter, is there a way to get the textured, or brushed metal,
> appearance?

The textured windows are not yet supported, but its my understanding that
those and drawers are on the list.

-- 
 Richard Gaskin 
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