I am new to MFC well not entirely new but wanted to ask experts on this forum as why one would choose one project over the other. I hope this is not a stupid question as I am relatively new to MFC.
Thanks so much
+3
A:
Chose based on what template your application fits best into:
Single Document Interface (SDI) - if your application needs to work with only 1 document or data object or data set at a time
Example: notepad.exe
Multiple Document Interface (MDI) - if your applicaiton needs to work with multiple documents or data objects or data set at a time
Example: Visual Studio
Dialog Based - for anything else.
Example: Calculator
No matter what you chose, you still have the same functionality available to you in the end and you can cusotmize it in any way. So you aren't limiting yourself to anything you start with.
All variants come with CWinApp which is the base class for which you derive your MFC applications.
With a dialog based application you start with a CDialog as well. With an SDI application you start with CMainFrame, CDocument, and CView as well.
Brian R. Bondy
2009-03-19 02:54:43
+1
A:
If you select an SDI project you get a whole Model-View-Controller framework included. You get a document class (inheriting from CDocument) which ideally should hold all of the data, and a view class (inheriting from CView) to do with the display. You get given a hosting frame with a menu already attached, and there are functions you can override to save and load to file.
If you have a dialog based application, then you get one dialog. That's it. Of course, this dialog can spawn off others, but the application essentially consists of a dialog.
If you're developing a small application that just does one task, a dialog application is appropriate, because you don't need the overhead.
If you are developing an application where the user will be loading, editing and saving data, then the SDI path would be more appropriate.
Having answered your question, I'd politely ask if there was a compelling reason why you were choosing MFC over Windows Forms. I believe that MFC was an excellent technology for its day, but the Visual Studio suite offers more advanced tools (if you're prepared to go down the .NET path).
Andrew Shepherd
2009-03-19 03:03:38
Sorry I must have missed your question. I unfortunately do not know or have any knowledge or training with Windows Forms. Maybe it might be something to look into. I started my training working with Visual C++ and MFC.
2009-03-22 20:57:23
"In it's Day"? Have you noticed the advancements MS is continuing to add to MFC in the Visual Studio Suite? Sounds as though you retired MFC prematurely. I much prefer MFC and unmanaged C++ over Windows Forms and the .NET managed languages. Call me old-school, but my unmanaged MFC applications outperform managed .NET applications hands-down. My clients are paying for performance, not developer "conveniences" - it might take _me_ more effort, but the end-result was worth it to them.
SAMills
2009-04-18 14:05:20
A:
If a "document" is the right metaphor for your application, use SDI or MDI. (Single of only one document can be open at a time, Multiple if more than one.) When you think about it, the document metaphor really isn't appropriate for most applications.
Aidan Ryan
2009-03-20 12:03:04