Ivor Horton's Beginning Visual C++ 2012

SKETCHER LIMITATIONS

There are still some limitations in Sketcher. For instance:

1. You can open another view window for the current sketch by using the Window ⇒ New Window menu option. This capability is built into an MDI application. However, if you draw in one window the elements are not drawn in the other window. Elements never appear in windows other than the one in which they were created unless the area they occupy is redrawn for some other reason.

2. You can draw only in the client area you can see. It would be nice to be able to scroll the view and draw over a bigger area.

3. Even though the document object can delete an element from the sketch, you have no user interface mechanism for deleting an element. If you make a mistake, you either live with it or start over with a new document.

4. You can’t view a sketch window at different scales. Being able to view a sketch at a larger scale would make it easier to add fine detail.

5. You can’t print a sketch. If you want to show your artistic capabilities to someone, you have to bring your computer along.

6. You can’t save a sketch in a file so it has no permanence at all.

These are quite serious deficiencies that limit the usability of the program. You’ll overcome the first three before the end of this chapter. You’ll remove the remaining limitations before the end of the book.