Universal Windows Platform – Custom Button

Custom Button demonstrates how to create a custom Style for a Button Control

Step 1

If not already, follow Setup and Start on how to Install and get Started with Visual Studio 2017 or in Windows 10 choose Start, and then from the Start Menu find and select Visual Studio 2017.

Step 2

Once Visual Studio Community 2017 has started, from the Menu choose File, then New then Project…

Step 3

From New Project choose Visual C# from Installed, Templates then choose Blank App (Universal Windows) and then type in a Name and select a Location and then select Ok to create the Project

Step 4

Then in New Universal Windows Project you need to select the Target Version this should be at least the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (10.0; Build 16299) and the Minimum Version to be the same.

The Target Version will control what features your application can use in Windows 10 so by picking the most recent version you’ll be able to take advantage of those features. To make sure you always have the most recent version, in Visual Studio 2017 select Tools Extensions and Updates… then and then see if there are any Updates

Step 5

Once the Project is created from the Solution Explorer select App.xaml

Step 6

From the Menu choose View and then Designer

Step 7

Once in the Design View for App.xaml between the Application and /Application elements the following should be entered:

<Application.Resources>
	<Style x:Key="CircleButton" TargetType="Button">
		<Setter Property="Background">
			<Setter.Value>
				<LinearGradientBrush StartPoint="0.5,0" EndPoint="0.5,1">
					<GradientStop Offset="0" Color="LightSalmon"/>
					<GradientStop Offset="1" Color="DarkSalmon"/>
				</LinearGradientBrush>
			</Setter.Value>
		</Setter>
		<Setter Property="Template">
			<Setter.Value>
				<ControlTemplate TargetType="Button">
					<Grid>
						<VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
							<VisualStateGroup x:Name="CommonStates">
								<VisualState x:Name="Pressed">
									<Storyboard>
										<ObjectAnimationUsingKeyFrames Storyboard.TargetName="Inner" Storyboard.TargetProperty="(ScaleTransform.ScaleY)">
											<DiscreteObjectKeyFrame KeyTime="0:0:0.0" Value="1"/>
										</ObjectAnimationUsingKeyFrames>
										<ObjectAnimationUsingKeyFrames Storyboard.TargetName="Outer" Storyboard.TargetProperty="(ScaleTransform.ScaleY)">
											<DiscreteObjectKeyFrame KeyTime="0:0:0.0" Value="-1"/>
										</ObjectAnimationUsingKeyFrames>
									</Storyboard>
								</VisualState>
							</VisualStateGroup>
						</VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
						<Ellipse Margin="4" Fill="{TemplateBinding Background}" RenderTransformOrigin="0.5,0.5">
							<Ellipse.RenderTransform>
								<ScaleTransform ScaleY="1" x:Name="Outer"/>
							</Ellipse.RenderTransform>
						</Ellipse>
						<Ellipse Margin="20" Fill="{TemplateBinding Background}" RenderTransformOrigin="0.5,0.5">
							<Ellipse.RenderTransform>
								<ScaleTransform ScaleY="-1" x:Name="Inner"/>
							</Ellipse.RenderTransform>
						</Ellipse>
						<ContentPresenter x:Name="content" HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center"/>
					</Grid>
				</ControlTemplate>
			</Setter.Value>
		</Setter>
	</Style>
</Application.Resources>

In the App.xaml there is a CircleButton resource Style declared and it uses a LinearGradientBrush to create a gradient background. There is a VisualStateGroup with a Pressed State which will invert the gradient background. The Button itself is made up of a pait of Ellipse Elements which will appear with the gradient background in its unpressed state.

Step 8

In the Solution Explorer select MainPage.xaml

Step 9

From the Menu choose View and then Designer

Step 10

The Design View will be displayed along with the XAML View and in this between the Grid and /Grid elements, enter the following XAML:

<Button Height="200" Width="200" Content="Tap Here" HorizontalAlignment="Center" Style="{StaticResource CircleButton}" Click="Button_Click"/>

The block of XAML represents the Button Control with the Style of the the CircleButton and will trigger the Button_Click Event when clicked.

Step 11

From the Menu choose View and then Code

Step 12

Once in the Code View, below the end of public MainPage() { … } the following Code should be entered:

private async void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
	await new Windows.UI.Popups.MessageDialog("Hello World").ShowAsync();
}

Below the MainPage() Method there is the Button_Click Event which will use a MessageDialog to display “Hello World”

Step 13

That completes the Universal Windows Platform Application so Save the Project then in Visual Studio select the Local Machine to run the Application

Step 14

After the Application has started running it should then appear with the Style of the Custom Button displayed

Step 15

To Exit the Application select the Close button in the top right of the Application