CreatePen function (wingdi.h)

Article
08/23/2022

The CreatePen function creates a logical pen that has the specified style, width, and color. The pen can subsequently be selected into a device context and used to draw lines and curves.

Syntax

HPEN CreatePen(
  [in] int      iStyle,
  [in] int      cWidth,
  [in] COLORREF color
);

Parameters

[in] iStyle

The pen style. It can be any one of the following values.

Value	Meaning
PS_SOLID	The pen is solid.
PS_DASH	The pen is dashed. This style is valid only when the pen width is one or less in device units.
PS_DOT	The pen is dotted. This style is valid only when the pen width is one or less in device units.
PS_DASHDOT	The pen has alternating dashes and dots. This style is valid only when the pen width is one or less in device units.
PS_DASHDOTDOT	The pen has alternating dashes and double dots. This style is valid only when the pen width is one or less in device units.
PS_NULL	The pen is invisible.
PS_INSIDEFRAME	The pen is solid. When this pen is used in any GDI drawing function that takes a bounding rectangle, the dimensions of the figure are shrunk so that it fits entirely in the bounding rectangle, taking into account the width of the pen. This applies only to geometric pens.

[in] cWidth

The width of the pen, in logical units. If nWidth is zero, the pen is a single pixel wide, regardless of the current transformation.

CreatePen returns a pen with the specified width but with the PS_SOLID style if you specify a width greater than one for the following styles: PS_DASH, PS_DOT, PS_DASHDOT, PS_DASHDOTDOT.

[in] color

A color reference for the pen color. To generate a COLORREF structure, use the RGB macro.

Return value

If the function succeeds, the return value is a handle that identifies a logical pen.

If the function fails, the return value is NULL.

Remarks

After an application creates a logical pen, it can select that pen into a device context by calling the SelectObject function. After a pen is selected into a device context, it can be used to draw lines and curves.

If the value specified by the nWidth parameter is zero, a line drawn with the created pen always is a single pixel wide regardless of the current transformation.

If the value specified by nWidth is greater than 1, the fnPenStyle parameter must be PS_NULL, PS_SOLID, or PS_INSIDEFRAME.

If the value specified by nWidth is greater than 1 and fnPenStyle is PS_INSIDEFRAME, the line associated with the pen is drawn inside the frame of all primitives except polygons and polylines.

If the value specified by nWidth is greater than 1, fnPenStyle is PS_INSIDEFRAME, and the color specified by the crColor parameter does not match one of the entries in the logical palette, the system draws lines by using a dithered color. Dithered colors are not available with solid pens.

When using an iStyle parameter of PS_DASH, PS_DOT, PS_DASHDOT or PS_DASHDOTDOT, in order to make the gaps between the dashes or dots transparent, use SetBkMode to set the mode to TRANSPARENT.

When you no longer need the pen, call the DeleteObject function to delete it.

ICM: No color management is done at creation. However, color management is performed when the pen is selected into an ICM-enabled device context.

Examples

For an example, see Creating Colored Pens and Brushes.

Requirements

Requirement	Value
Minimum supported client	Windows 2000 Professional [desktop apps only]
Minimum supported server	Windows 2000 Server [desktop apps only]
Target Platform	Windows
Header	wingdi.h (include Windows.h)
Library	Gdi32.lib
DLL	Gdi32.dll

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