The Old New Thing

Practical development throughout the evolution of Windows.

Latest posts

When I define a window class with no default cursor, what is the explanation for the cursors that appear in my client area?
Apr 24, 2025
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When I define a window class with no default cursor, what is the explanation for the cursors that appear in my client area?

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

You said you'd take care of it, but you didn't.

What resource ID should I give my application’s main icon?
Apr 23, 2025
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What resource ID should I give my application’s main icon?

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Applying what we know about how Explorer finds the "first" icon in a file.

Microspeak: top of mind
Apr 22, 2025
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Microspeak: top of mind

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Things I'm thinking about.

The ongoing story of seconds on the taskbar
Apr 21, 2025
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The ongoing story of seconds on the taskbar

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

The cost of ticking.

The case of the feature flag that didn’t stay on long enough, part 2
Apr 18, 2025
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The case of the feature flag that didn’t stay on long enough, part 2

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Leaving everything the way you found it.

The case of the feature flag that didn’t stay on long enough, part 1
Apr 17, 2025
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The case of the feature flag that didn’t stay on long enough, part 1

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Understanding scope and order of destruction.

Using the classical model for linking to provide unit test overrides
Apr 16, 2025
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Using the classical model for linking to provide unit test overrides

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Overriding a LIB with an OBJ for fun and profit.

There was a lot of imagined dropping tablets in swimming pools
Apr 15, 2025
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There was a lot of imagined dropping tablets in swimming pools

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

The archetypical example of needing a replacement computer.

Dubious security vulnerability: Once I have tricked the user into running a malicious shortcut, I can install malware
Apr 14, 2025
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Dubious security vulnerability: Once I have tricked the user into running a malicious shortcut, I can install malware

Raymond Chen
Raymond Chen

Yes, that's sort of the point.