Converting a VCL Style to a FireMonkey Style

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VCL styles vs. FireMonkey styles

VCL styles are raster-based, consisting of bitmaps. Each object in a VCL style is a sub-image of the image assigned to that style. You can change these images using the Bitmap Style Designer.

FireMonkey styles, on the other hand, can use both bitmaps and vectorial shapes such as TEllipse or TRectangle. A FireMonkey style can be entirely created with bitmaps, using TCustomStyleObject and TImage objects. For this reason, a VCL style can be converted to a FireMonkey style.

Creating a VCL style

To create a VCL style, follow the steps provided in Creating a Style using the Bitmap Style Designer.

Converting a VCL style to a FireMonkey style

Just open the VCL style in the Bitmap Style Designer, and save the style as a FireMonkey style (.style file):

1. Select Tools > Bitmap Style Designer.
2. In the Bitmap Style Designer, select File > Open and select the VCL style that you want to convert.

   Tip: In the RAD Studio product installation:

   • VCL styles are located in C:\Program Files (x86)\Embarcadero\Studio\21.0\Redist\styles\vcl.
   • FireMonkey styles are located in C:\Program Files (x86)\Embarcadero\Studio\21.0\Redist\styles\Fmx.

3. Choose File > Save As from the menu.
4. Set Save as type to FireMonkey Style (*.style).
5. The default file name is Style. If you want to change the file name, specify a different name for the style.
6. Click Save.

The FireMonkey file is saved to disk as a .style file, and the original VCL style file (.vsf file) remains open in the Bitmap Style Designer.

See Also

• Creating a Style using the Bitmap Style Designer
• Bitmap Style Designer
• FireMonkey Style Designer
• Customizing FireMonkey Applications with Styles