Windows Aero areas in own C# Applications

Question

I'm wondering about that many new applications, I think most built in WPF, has this really cool Windows Aero Glass interfaces.

For example Seesmic or the upcoming Firefox 3.7

Searching in the internet most time it looks like you need a hack to realize this. But seriously: I don't think big software development teams use hacks to roll out their huge used products.

So my question is: Windows Aero Glass Areas - How to do?

Is it only possible with a hack?

Maybe it's just one property, i don't know. I'm WinForms developer so I never tested out WPF. But my Google search didn't look like It is easier with WPF.

Answer 1

To have Aero glass, you need to use the Desktop Window Manager. It is a Win32 DLL, so you need to P/Invoke it. Articles on how to do this are all over the Internet, ex. http://www.nukeation.net/2006/09/22/How+To+Use+Aero+Glass+In+Your+WPF+Applications.aspx Using P/Invoke is definitely not a hack.