VLC media player 3.0.11 UI

[D.Draker]

21 hours ago, Dixel said:

Hello , that's a very fine research ! I can confirm it also works ...

Dixel , please show us the full comparison of something older , like 2.x.x and anything higher than 3.x.x. Thanks

[Dixel]

[Dixel]

18 hours ago, UCyborg said:

They didn't do anything, it uses buttons provided by the operating system by default.

I just don't understand how can you not see the difference . And yes , I've made everything like you said. Still 3.0.0 and above stick with Win10 buttons and older versions have Vista style buttons . Yes , they became somewhat better after the patch , but not to the point of representing the previous glory. So I agree with the previous poster , VLC devs made something ugly to the buttons.

The shot was taken on Vista x64.

[Dixel]

3 hours ago, UCyborg said:

Because Win7+ doesn't have the bug that Vista has.

By the way , I had the same flat buttons with Win 7 with everythin after 3.0.0 , it's just I do not use WIn 7 on a regular basis , just for testing once in blue moon , so can't make a pic. , sorry. It did have an aero frame though , but everything else was Win10 flat and ugly. Buttons , volume control , etc.

[UCyborg]

Sure, they look a bit different. But @TECHGEEK was referring to the problem that has to do with comctl32.dll library, which happens if you call SetDefaultDllDirectories.

I was wrong about the version of comctl32.dll being loaded though. Even unmodified VLC loads the correct version, so the problem is something else. Can't really say if it's the library itself or some other component.

I guess the first time I noticed the problem with another program, I didn't actually check with Process Hacker and made assumption since the classic theme looking controls are common with old software that don't have a directive embedded in the manifest to load the version 6 of library (details).

Older versions of the library don't support visual styles, version 6 supports both visual styles and classic look.

[Dixel]

5 hours ago, UCyborg said:

Sure, they look a bit different. But @TECHGEEK was referring to the problem that has to do with comctl32.dll library, which happens if you call SetDefaultDllDirectories.

I was wrong about the version of comctl32.dll being loaded though. Even unmodified VLC loads the correct version, so the problem is something else....

@TECHGEEKusually has the most rare problems , unique problems I'd say , which others don't. I've never had any issues with VLC's Aero on Vista . It worked without any patching , as you can see by my first post in this topic , before your suggestion , but it improved buttons on the newer versions , added some curves to them , so don't cut yourself short , it's definitely the dev's who are to blame. But I wouldn't say "a bit different" , I'd say they are almost invisible . It's hard to see the signs on the buttons.

Edited December 12, 2020 by Dixel
misspelled "TCHEGEEK'S" nmae

[win32]

comctl32 seems to be fine, as the "open/save file" dialogs are fine, aside from the fact they are unskinned!

So what has problems is uxtheme.dll. Here is some Dependency Walker output:

Quote

LoadLibraryExW("uxtheme.dll", 0x0000000000000000, LOAD_WITH_ALTERED_SEARCH_PATH) called from "USER32.DLL" at address 0x0000000076941879.
LoadLibraryExW("uxtheme.dll", 0x0000000000000000, LOAD_WITH_ALTERED_SEARCH_PATH) returned NULL. Error: The parameter is incorrect (87).

The Vista version of SetDefaultDllDirectories is quite basic compared to the 7 version.

Edited December 12, 2020 by win32

[UCyborg]

11 hours ago, Dixel said:

@TECHGEEKusually has the most rare problems , unique problems I'd say , which others don't.

This is quite easily reproducible. I've known about the existence of this issue on Vista for a while, though never looked into it deeply.

11 hours ago, Dixel said:

I've never had any issues with VLC's Aero on Vista . It worked without any patching , as you can see by my first post in this topic , before your suggestion

Your screenshots make it really hard to see the problem due to whatever customizations you applied.

2 hours ago, win32 said:

So what has problems is uxtheme.dll.

I forgot about that DLL and the fact that even old programs that use older comctl32.dll still have skinned scrollbars and menus, so that's another clue.

2 hours ago, win32 said:

LoadLibraryExW("uxtheme.dll", 0x0000000000000000, LOAD_WITH_ALTERED_SEARCH_PATH) called from "USER32.DLL" at address 0x0000000076941879.
LoadLibraryExW("uxtheme.dll", 0x0000000000000000, LOAD_WITH_ALTERED_SEARCH_PATH) returned NULL. Error: The parameter is incorrect (87).

Bingo! LOAD_WITH_ALTERED_SEARCH_PATH flag may only be used with absolute path to the DLL, otherwise the behavior is undefined.

[D.Draker]

7 hours ago, UCyborg said:

1 - This is quite easily reproducible. I've known about the existence of this issue on Vista for a while, though never looked into it deeply.

2 - Your screenshots make it really hard to see the problem due to whatever customizations you applied.

1 - You mean the first picture in this topic where aero is totally absent ? I can't reproduce it no matter how hard I try , Ive tested on an a clean install , without any mods. I mean , yeah , I can find a newer version where the buttons will be flat , but the aero is always working with all versions ! Known or had it youself ? If it is easily reproduced , could you show us a pic. ? I'm curious. Thanks.

2 - The screen of the user named @Dixel clearly shows that aero is working and it is transparent , in both versions, patched and unpatched , don't you see ? 

[Win10-Hater]

5 minutes ago, D.Draker said:

1 - You mean the first picture in this topic where aero is totally absent ? I can't reproduce it no matter how hard I try , Ive tested on an a clean install , without any mods. I mean , yeah , I can find a newer version where the buttons will be flat , but the aero is always working with all versions ! Known or had it youself ? If it is easily reproduced , could you show us a pic. ? I'm curious. Thanks.

2 - The screen of the user named @Dixel clearly shows that aero is working and it is transparent , in both versions, patched and unpatched , don't you see ? 

What I'm trying to say from the very beginning is : Aero and window borders are working perfectly without modifications but the control buttons present in earlier versions of VLC which matched with the look of Aero are absent in 3.x.x without the hex edit. This issue is a universal issue on Vista, as @UCyborg said. WHY don't you or Dixel understand me??

Also, I thought you knew that maximised windows in Vista turn opaque, being a longtime Vista user. This happens with all applications. Test again using a maximised window and see what happens.

 

[D.Draker]

15 hours ago, TECHGEEK said:

What I'm trying to say from the very beginning is : Aero and window borders are working perfectly without modifications but the control buttons present in earlier versions of VLC which matched with the look of Aero are absent in 3.x.x without the hex edit. This issue is a universal issue on Vista, as @UCyborg said. WHY don't you or Dixel understand me??

Also, I thought you knew that maximised windows in Vista turn opaque, being a longtime Vista user. This happens with all applications. Test again using a maximised window and see what happens.

 

And what I'm trying to say , Aero buttons are still absent even in 2.2.8 (not to mention 3.x.x.) and even with the hex edit. (do you want me to repeat again?) Yes , I agree with Dixel , they somewhat look better after hexing , some curves are added , they don't look as flat as before , but nowhere near the previous ones , that you (and most of us) wanted to see . So hexing is NOT the ultimate solution , it's better to roll-back to earlier versions , 2.2.6 something. I don't quite understand how "testing again using a maximised window" will help with the aero look in the butoons . I'm just starting to think you don't understand English well enough , or have a poor LCD display and simply can't see the obviuos difference , excuse me if I'm wrong (in advance) , but it's pretty obvious and shown well enough at Dixel's picture with the patched 3.3.x and NOT patched 2.2.x . Also , his upper frame looks prettier than the one that you provided , I mean the shape , not the colour , since it is his own customized colour. In case you don't agree or understand again , please refrain from asking me 'cause I simply can't tell you anything new apart from what I've already said , please ask other members if they see the obvious differnce at the Dixel's picture .

[Win10-Hater]

8 hours ago, D.Draker said:

And what I'm trying to say , Aero buttons are still absent even in 2.2.8 (not to mention 3.x.x.) and even with the hex edit. (do you want me to repeat again?) Yes , I agree with Dixel , they somewhat look better after hexing , some curves are added , they don't look as flat as before , but nowhere near the previous ones , that you (and most of us) wanted to see . So hexing is NOT the ultimate solution , it's better to roll-back to earlier versions , 2.2.6 something. I don't quite understand how "testing again using a maximised window" will help with the aero look in the butoons . I'm just starting to think you don't understand English well enough , or have a poor LCD display and simply can't see the obviuos difference , excuse me if I'm wrong (in advance) , but it's pretty obvious and shown well enough at Dixel's picture with the patched 3.3.x and NOT patched 2.2.x . Also , his upper frame looks prettier than the one that you provided , I mean the shape , not the colour , since it is his own customized colour. In case you don't agree or understand again , please refrain from asking me 'cause I simply can't tell you anything new apart from what I've already said , please ask other members if they see the obvious differnce at the Dixel's picture .

You know why I can't rollback to earlier versions, scroll back. Also, btw, I DO understand English well but I have a god-awful 1366 by 768 TN panel on my main laptop.

I don't use custom dark themes and also Dixel's customisations make it super hard to see the difference. I strained my eyes very much trying to see it. I thought you saw what @UCyborg said about the same. 

My issue is resolved now so let's stop arguing. 

[Dixel]

VLC 3.0.12 UN-patched

[Dixel]

VLC 3.0.12 patched

[Dixel]

VLC 2.2.x  UN-patched with beautiful Vista buttons , now with these high quality pictures , which I spent some time to deliver , I assume one can see that patching is only a 50/50 solution at best ,  and I really hope this will help TCHEGEEK to finally notice the difference on his display . By the way , @TECHGEEK , have you ever considered writing to the developers of VLC directly ? I mean with your advanced skills of communicating with other people , I guess they will finally shed some light on what's really going on .

Edited December 14, 2020 by Dixel
misspelled THKEGEEK's name again.