Yet Another Code Site

TaeRichEdit Component Information
Open Beta Test

After two years of trying to work with the Borland VCL TRichEdit class, I finally gave up.  There were too many obstacles that Delphi could easily overcome but BCB could not -- mostly because Delphi does not honor the strict object-oriented rules that C++ imposes.  I will not bore you with the details since they would require at least a page or two to describe.  I will, however, tell you what is available in this new component....

The TaeRichEdit Component is a set of roughly twenty classes designed to replace the TRichEdit component.  The main component class, TTaeRichEdit, completely mimics the VCL TRichEdit class and adds support for Rich Edit 2.0 and 3.0.  Unlike similar components, it is derived from neither TRichEdit nor TCustomRichEdit.  Instead, the component is derived directly from the VCL TCustomMemo class (as is the VCL TRichEdit component) and written entirely in BCB C++.

TaeRichEdit Component Features
TaeRichEdit Component Classes
The TaeRichEdit To Do List
The TaeRichEdit Component Vision
Download The TaeRichEdit Component
TaeRichEdit Component Bugs

TaeRichEdit Component Features

The TaeRichEdit Component:

• Completely replaces the Delphi Pascal TRichEdit class and is entirely BCB C++ source (except for a bit of well-commented assembler).

• Supports Rich Edit versions 2.0 and 3.0.  New classes are included to support Rich Edit 2.0/3.0 font characteristics and paragraph formatting as well as automatic URL recognition, multi-level undo and redo capabilities, and a host of other new features.

• Provides OLE support by default.  This means that users can paste bitmaps and other objects directly into the control, view and print the bitmaps and objects as they should be displayed or printed, and edit the objects using the program that created them.

• Makes previewing and printing the contents of the control easy using default print, preview, print abort dialogs and windows.  If you need to change them, the dialogs and windows are easily changed (hey, the source code is included).  But you should not really need to modify the source code since events are provided to trap before-page, after-page, before-print-job, and after-print-job control.  Using these events, you should be able to modify the rendered output easily.

• Includes page headers and footers with substitutable values.  That is, you can easily specify headers and footers that print the current page number, the number of pages in the document, the document file creation and/or modification dates, the document file size, the document file name, etc.  New properties are included to make setting the values a cinch.

• Provides properties for setting margins and drawing borders around headers, footers, and body text.  You can specify which borders are drawn (left, top, right, bottom) for each of the sections (header, footer, and body) and the width of the margins and lines.

• Includes support classes to simplify saving/retrieving information to/from the Registry and to simplify getting file information (the creation date, long file name, short file name, etc.).  There are even functions to test whether a file is probably simple text, RTF, or binary so that you can open the file in the best format.

• Includes a Page Setup Dialog component to allow users to set page margins and orientation.

TaeRichEdit Component Classes

The following table lists most of the new TaeRichEdit component classes.

The TaeRichEdit To Do List

Naturally, there are a few things in my "to-do" list:

• Create a TaeRichEdit FAQs page to answer common questions, a Bugs page to list problems and work-arounds, and a Programs page to link to sites with programs that use the component.  (Please see also below.)

• Extend the OLE support to provide in-place activation of objects.  (The current implementation opens the server program in a separate window when the object is opened for editing.)  I could use some help here.  Any volunteers?

• I have already been asked if there will be a database version of the TaeRichEdit Component.  I am only beginning to think about it but, yeah, it should not be too hard.  But it will have to wait until we find out how many bugs are in the current version.  (Note:  Other programmers have contributed database extensions that are included in the distribution file.)

• Improve the documentation.  It is currently rather sparse and requires reading a lot of source code to use effectively.

• Modify the component to support BCB5.  Done!

Finally, I fully expect that a few bugs will be discovered and these become a top priority.

The TaeRichEdit Component Vision

If you read the TaeRichEdit Component license agreement (and you should), you might think that I am trying to get rich with this component.  Not bloody likely, in my opinion.  I have no delusions that this component will make me rich, solve world hunger, or supplant the basic mousetrap.  Instead, I would prefer that the TaeRichEdit Component become an "open source" effort.  To get there, I need your help.  Ultimately, I would like to:

• Write an "open source" version of the Rich Edit control.  This is not as far-fetched as it sounds.  To develop the TaeRichEdit Component, I translated the Delphi Pascal VCL TRichEdit, TRichEditStrings, TFont, TConsistentAttributes, TCharAttributes, and TParaAttributes classes to Borland C++ Builder.  We *can* reproduce the Rich Edit control in open source, but we *must* do it before HTML (or some other technology) renders the Rich Edit control obsolete.

• Develop an "open source" C/C++ replacement for the Borland Delphi VCL.  Ok, this is a bit more far-fetched.  Or maybe not.  Hey, I translated and enhanced the TRichEdit component (and the aforementioned related classes) in about a month..  If enough of us get motivated, we could replace the Delphi VCL in a matter of months.

• Have a team of experts to answer Rich Edit control or TaeRichEdit Component questions.  To this end, I plan to create an "Experts Page" that lists sites or e-mail addresses of those that contribute and/or are willing to answer Rich Edit and TaeRichEdit Component questions.  If you think that you might be able to help others solve problems with the component, please let me know.

Clearly, this vision is a group effort.  If enough of us get behind this, it can happen.  Let me know if you are interested.

Download The TaeRichEdit Component

Please see the TaeRichEdit Component Bugs page for current information about bugs, fixes, and enhancements.

Note:  To get the most out of this component, you will need the Rich Edit 2.0 or 3.0 DLL (riched20.dll, both versions).  This package does not include them because Microsoft told me "no" when I asked to distribute Rich Edit 2.0.  See other pages on this site for locations where you might find the DLL.

Download the BCB4 version of the TaeRichEdit Component Open Beta (version 1.0.0.9, 06-07-2000, ~298KB).

Download the BCB5 version of the TaeRichEdit Component Open Beta (version 1.0.0.9, 06-07-2000, ~299KB).

Download the currently incomplete component help (last updated 02-13-2000, ~191KB).

(Thanks to Pete Fraser for sharing his great GenHelp program without which the help file would probably never get this far.  See the Links page for more information on GenHelp.)

For the truly brave, or truly desperate, here are fixes for certain printer problems, STL compatibility issues, and a couple of other changes.  See the TaeRichEdit Component Bugs page for details.  Be sure to read the documentation files before installing the changes, especially if you are using BCB4.

Download the interim fixes (last updated 09-09-2000, ~27KB).

Copyright © 1999, 2000 Thin Air Enterprises and Robert Dunn.  All rights reserved.