Console Fonts PBCC 5.01

[Charles Perry]

Can you control font size or attribute such as bold italic etc in the console window?

PBCC 5.01

[Steve Rossell]

To control the font that the console window uses you need to right-click on the console windows title bar and select properties then the font tab. Another option is to use a product called Console tools by Perfect Sync Software (http://www.powerbasic.com/products/contools/) has a utility that can be ran before you run your actual console application to set the console's font.

Console tools does this by changing the systems registry (I am guessing that it does), if you are comfortable changing the registry programatically, here are the registry keys that control the console font and size.

The Console key contains several subkeys that define screen size and buffer size for character-based screens in Windows NT. These subkeys appear under the following Registry path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Console\subkeyNames

The Command Prompt subkey does not appear unless the current user has changed the screen colors or font for the command prompt and also checked the Save Configuration options. Use the commands on the Control menu in the command prompt to change these values.

Console subkey          Default value entries
------------------------------------------

Command Prompt         FontFamily=0x30
(All data types        FontSize=0xc0008
are REG_DWORD)         FullScreen=0x1
                       PopupColors=0xf5
                       QuickEdit=0
                       ScreenBufferSize=0x190050
                       ScreenColors=0x9f
                       WindowsPosition=0x150004
                       WindowSize=0x190050
Configuration          CommandRecallBufferSize=50
(All data types        FillAttr=0x07
are REG_SZ)            ScreenBufferColumns=80
                       ScreenBufferRows=25
                       WindowColumns=80
                       WindowRows=25
Introducing            FullScreen=0x1
Windows NT
Microsoft QBASIC       FullScreen0x1

If you want to use a specific font or color, you might consider using a graphic window instead of the console window, which will let you use any font, at any angle, and at any color. With the new graphic input statements in version 5, this can be done very easily.

[Eric Pearson]

> Console tools does this by changing the systems registry
> (I am guessing that it does),

FWIW, it depends on the Windows version. Some versions of Windows use the registry, others don't. CWC (a utility program that is included with Console Tools) is designed to detect the Windows version and automatically configure the console font accordingly.

-- Eric Pearson, Perfect Sync, Inc.

[Guy Dombrowski]

Graphic Console Menu

Charles,

Go the graphic way, you will never regret it.

[Steve Rossell]

FWIW, it depends on the Windows version. Some versions of Windows use the registry, others don't. CWC (a utility program that is included with Console Tools) is designed to detect the Windows version and automatically configure the console font accordingly.

Thanks Eric. You are correct this will only work on NT based systems and not on 95, 98, or ME. I do not know how it is done on those OS's, which is a good reason to purchase Console Tools.

[Michael Mattias]

I do not know how [changing fonts is done] on those OS's, which is a good reason to purchase Console Tools.

... or learn how to create GUI applications?

[Jerry Fielden]

For those who don't know about setting up the console using shortcuts:

In XP, Vista and Win7, you can create shortcuts for your console EXEs that lets you choose the background color, font size, fonts, etc... XP and Vista has Raster and Lucide Console fonts you can choose. Win7 has an extra one called Consolas. Its sizes go all the way up to 72 points like the Lucida Console. The Raster's sizes has jumped up to 10x20 starting with Vista.

It won't do Italics, only sizes and a couple of fonts.

To create a Shortcut, just right click on your EXE and click on Create a Shortcut.

After you create one of these Shortcuts, you can right click on them and go to properties to make the necessary changes. The changes will stick for that EXE as long as you use that shortcut. If you don't use the Shortcut for the program it was created for, you will get the default console settings.

[Arie Verheul]

SetCurrentConsoleFontEx in Vista

For use with Vista an API function SetCurrentConsoleFontEx

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms686200(VS.85).aspx

was added, which seems to allow configuration of the console
font by the application.

However, as i do not use Vista i never actually used this function.

Arie Verheul