The Microsoft Foundation Class (MFC) Library is a collection of classes (object-oriented programming’s generalized definitions) that can be used to create application programs. The MFC Library’s classes are written in the C++ programming language. The MFC Library saves programmers time by supplying previously written code. It also provides a general structure for the application program’s development.
MFC Library classes are available for all graphical user interface elements (windows, frames, menus, toolbars, status bars, and so on), as well as for constructing database interfaces, handling events like as messages from other applications, keyboard and mouse input, and creating ActiveX controls.
What is MFC?
MFC (Microsoft Foundation Class Library) is an “application framework” for Microsoft Windows programming. Much of the code necessary for the following is provided by MFC.
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i. Taking care of Windows
ii. Dialog boxes and menus
iii. Basic input/output operations are carried out
iv. Keeping track of data objects, etc
By adding your application-specific code to the MFC framework, you can simply modify or override the core functionality of the MFC framework in your C++ applications.
MFC Framework
Much of the Win32 and COM APIs are wrapped in an object-oriented wrapper by the Microsoft Foundation Class (MFC) Library. However, you can use the MFC framework to create applications with Office-style user interfaces. Below are some advantages of using MFC-
i The MFC framework includes a set of reusable classes that make Windows development easier
ii MFC provides classes for many common objects seen in everyday programming, such as strings, files, and collections
iii. It also includes classes for windows, controls, and device contexts, which are all popular Windows APIs and data structures
iv. More advanced functionality, such as ActiveX and document view processing, are built on top of the framework
v. MFC also provides an application framework, which includes the classes that form the application architectural hierarchy
Why MFC?
The MFC framework is a strong solution for Windows development that allows you to build on the work of skilled programmers. The following are some of the benefits of using the MFC framework.
i. It reduces the amount of time it takes to develop a product
ii. It improves the portability of cod
iii. It also gives you a lot of help without limiting your programming flexibility
iv. It makes the “hard to program” user-interface features and technologies accessible
Apart from all these MFC also makes the database and network programming easier with Data Access Objects (DAO) and Open Database Connectivity (ODBC), as well as Windows Sockets.
Conclusion
The Microsoft Foundation Class (MFC) is a programming framework for Microsoft Windows. MFC, which is written in C++, contains a lot of the code needed to manage windows, menus, and dialogue boxes, as well as perform basic input/output, store collections of data objects, and so on. If you are having an existing product that has MFC as UI framework, OdiTek’s expertise will be useful to upgrade the GUI. Both for the upgrade and migration of user interfaces, we can help utilize our experience with MFC. For more information, please drop an email to info@oditeksolutions.com
