Messages (Design basics)

Note

This design guide was created for Windows 7 and has not been updated for newer versions of Windows. Much of the guidance still applies in principle, but the presentation and examples do not reflect our current design guidance.

Messages are any kind of message users need or want to see as they use your app. Learn how to present errors, warning, confirmations, and notifications in your app.

In this section

Topic	Description
Error Messages	An error message alerts users of a problem that has already occurred. By contrast, a warning message alerts users of a condition that might cause a problem in the future. Error messages can be presented using modal dialog boxes, in-place messages, notifications, or balloons.
Warning Messages	A warning message is a modal dialog box, in-place message, notification, or balloon that alerts the user of a condition that might cause a problem in the future.
Confirmations	A confirmation is a modal dialog box that asks if the user wants to proceed with an action.
Notifications	A notification informs users of events that are unrelated to the current user activity, by briefly displaying a balloon from an icon in the notification area. The notification could result from a user action or significant system event, or could offer potentially useful information from Microsoft Windows or an application.