Building modern user interfaces with the VCL

It is an old myth, and I have grown rather tired of defending it. However, a while ago I built a use case and proof of concept for TMS Software that made use of their new SVG vector graphic support in the VCL. As TMS makes clear, their SVG support is aimed to build modern user-interfaces for multiple devices with different resolutions. However, the focus is on menu, list, button, and toolbar icons at the moment. Thus, they provide you with means to import SVG images into your Delphi application and added an image collection component that can be hooked to the Virtual Image List of the VCL. Using vectors to build user interfaces that are ready for High DPI is a piece of cake this way.

However, as I strive to push TMS’ components to the limit, I built a complete user interface that contained complex, hard to render vector images. We all know that the visual appearance of an application is the first criteria a potential customer takes note of and thus it should look modern, clear and contain visuals known to the target audience.

Thus, I built a fictional user interface for a medical application to track respiratory medical conditions:

Needless to say, due to the fact that I only used vector images, this user-interface is ready for any display resolution.

I will not have to write a single line of code to make that happen!

The image elements can be complemented nicely with additional controls like TAdvMemo, TAdvEdit, and TAdvStringGrid. Of course, you may also use Standard Delphi VCL controls like TEdit, TMemo, etc.

Maybe this post will make even the most pessimistic developers realize that the VCL and its associated technologies are anything but old and outdated!