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πŸ’‘ Overview

The Wise Component Library (WCL) is a powerful and extensive toolkit for .NET WinForms developers. Inspired by the visual and functional paradigms of Microsoft Office, Visual Studio, and Windows XP, WCL delivers a comprehensive suite of high-performance controls, extensible components, and system-level librariesβ€”all in a unified, design-time-friendly framework.

Whether you’re building a new desktop app or modernizing legacy software, WCL enables rapid development with polished, professional results.

πŸŽ›οΈ WCL Bars Suite

Modern toolbars and menus with rich styling:

  • Command Bars & Context Menus – Seamlessly integrate menus and toolbars with Office-style rendering
  • List Bar – Outlook-style vertical navigation bar with drag-and-drop support
  • Status Bar – Extensible status bar with progress panels and custom rendering
  • View Bar – Multi-view navigation panel similar to Outlook 2003
  • Renderer Support – Office 2003, Office XP, Windows XP themes plus custom renderer support

🧩 WCL Component Suite

Utility components that enhance productivity and functionality:

  • Computer Browser Form – Browse network computers on the LAN
  • Flags Editor – Design-time editor for [Flags] enumerations
  • Image Store – Embed images with transparency directly in RESX
  • Extended Notify Icon – Enhanced system tray icon with balloon support
  • MSN-Style Taskbar Notifier – Skinned popup notifications
  • High Resolution Timer – Use performance counters for precise timing
  • Menu Item Image Extender – Add images to standard Windows Forms menu items
  • Status Message Extender – Display contextual messages in the status bar at runtime

🧱 WCL Controls Suite

Sophisticated WinForms controls with intuitive behaviors:

  • Control List – Custom list control allowing full UI flexibility
  • Auto-Complete Text Box – Text input with MRU auto-complete
  • Balloon Tips – Anchored tooltips for any control
  • Color Picker Button – Inline button that launches a color selection dialog
  • Extended Combo Box – Combo box with history, recent documents, and images
  • Desktop Alert – Outlook-style toast notifications
  • Drop-Down Tree View – Tree view embedded in a combo box
  • Graph Control – Bar, line, and pie charting in one unified control
  • Masked Text Box – Validated input for dates, IPs, SSNs, etc.
  • Skinned Panel – Themed container for skinned tabs or panels
  • XP Style Button – Button with system styling, images, and smooth hover transitions

🧭 WCL Docking Suite

Advanced layout and window management tools:

  • Dock Container – Full-featured Visual Studio–style docking system with layout persistence
  • MDI Tabbed Groups – Tabbed multi-document interface with horizontal/vertical group support
  • Tab Control – Standalone tab control with custom themes and docking integration

πŸ“ WCL Task Pane Suite

Recreate the Windows XP–style Explorer bar experience:

  • Task Pane Interface – Common task-oriented layout seen in Windows Explorer
  • Theme Support – Automatically uses Windows colors or lets you define your own color schemes

🧾 WCL Reusable Forms

Reusable base forms to standardize application UX:

  • Dialog Box – Pre-styled modal dialog with OK/Cancel buttons and taskbar exclusion
  • Popup Form – Lightweight transient window for tooltips or popup editors
  • Wizard Form – Guided multi-step form ideal for installers or wizards

πŸ› οΈ WCL Utility Library

Helpful back-end classes and wrappers:

  • Collection With Events – Observable collection with change events
  • FTP Library – Upload/download files via FTP with ease
  • MAPI Library – Send and receive emails using native Windows MAPI
  • UXTheme Wrapper – Access and use Windows XP theme APIs
  • WNet Wrapper – Enumerate all network computers with a single call
  • Misc Utilities – A set of tools to simplify or work around .NET quirks

🧬 WCL Win32 Wrapper

The industry’s most extensive and accurate Win32 API wrapper for .NET:

  • 1600+ Pre-declared APIs – One of the largest Win32 interop collections for .NET
  • Fully Verified – Each declaration is tested and error-free
  • Developer-Friendly – No need for manual P/Invoke declarations or signature guesswork
  • Consistent & Safe – Reduces bugs and ensures reliable interop with native Windows APIs

πŸš€ Why Choose WCL?

  • 🎨 Modern & Legacy Themes – Seamlessly match the look of Office, XP, or your own UI
  • 🧱 Modular Architecture – Use only what you need, without bloat
  • 🧩 Extendable Design – Easily extend or skin any part of WCL
  • πŸ§ͺ Field-Tested – Proven in production-grade Windows desktop apps

πŸ”— Get Started with WCL Today

Whether you’re building enterprise software, desktop utilities, or custom tools, the Wise Component Library is your all-in-one solution for creating polished, intuitive, and powerful Windows Forms applications.