Title: Move components from Delphi 5 to Delphi 6
Question: Moving components from Delphi 5 to 6 can be a problem. How can we do it?
Answer:
Have you tried to compile your components, or 3rd party components you have
in Delphi 5 into Delphi 6?
99% of them will not compile. However do not despare. It is only because of
a few changes Borland has implemented on their latest product.
This article covers the major changes.
First of all, you will discover that the unit dsgnintf.pas is missing.
Borland changed the name to Designintf.pas, moved the property editor
code to a new unit, called DesignEditors.pas, put the constants used
inside DesignConsts.pas and the menus inside DesignMenus.pas
Also the variants have moved from system.pas to their own unit called
Variants.pas
The IFormDesigner interface isn't there anymore. You should use the IDesigner
and typecast your variables. (this is a change probably made to accomodate
the CLX and I was unable to find any documentation on it from either Borland
or Delphi 6 Online help system. I only found that every IFormDesigner has been
repaced with IDesigner)
The IDesignerSelections interface has also changed. The most helpfull
change is the addition of a Get function that returns a TPersistent when
giving the index of the member.
On previous versions if you wanted the TPersistent of an object you wrote:
var
p:TPersistant;
...
P:=Selections[i] as TPersistant;
Now you only write:
var
p:TPersistant;
...
P:=Selections.get[i];
The IComponentDesigner interface is a new Interface located in
ComponentDesigner.pas as part of the Designide.dcp package and is not a
redistributable file. So you will have to include the DesignIde.dcp
package in the Design time package for the compilation to work if this file
is required.
That's about it. I have used these simple instructions to recompile all of
my third party tools, and all of my custom components.
P.S. Just remember... you have to have the source code to do this!!! :-)