# Windows Forms Controls by Function

The Windows Forms controls are listed here according to general function.

Function | Control | Description
Text edit | TextBox | Displays text entered at design time that can be edited by users at run time, or changed programmatically.
| RichTextBox | Enables text to be displayed with formatting in plain text or rich-text format (RTF).
Text display (read-only) | Label | Displays text that users cannot directly edit.
| LinkLabel | Displays text as a Web-style link and triggers an event when the user clicks the special text. Usually the text is a link to another window or a Web site.
| StatusBar | Displays information about the application's current state using a framed window, usually at the bottom of a parent form.
Selection from a list | CheckedListBox | Displays a scrollable list of items, each accompanied by a check box.
| ComboBox | Displays a drop-down list of items.
| DomainUpDown | Displays a list of text items that users can scroll through with up and down buttons.
| ListBox | Displays a list of text and graphical items (icons).
| ListView | Displays items in one of four different views. Views include text only, text with small icons, text with large icons, and a report view.
| NumericUpDown | Displays a list of numerals that users can scroll through with up and down buttons.
| TreeView | Displays a hierarchical collection of node objects which can consist of text with optional check boxes or icons.
Graphics display | PictureBox | Displays graphical files, such as bitmaps and icons, in a frame.
Graphics storage | ImageList | Serves as a repository for images. ImageList controls and the images they contain can be reused from one application to the next.
Value setting | CheckBox | Displays a check box and a label for text. Generally used to set options.
| CheckedListBox | Displays a scrollable list of items, each accompanied by a check box.
| RadioButton | Displays a button that can be turned on or off.
| Trackbar | Allows users to set values on a scale by moving a "thumb" along a scale.
Date setting | DateTimePicker | Displays a graphical calendar to allow users to select a date or a time.
| MonthCalendar | Displays a graphical calendar to allow users to select a range of dates.
Dialog boxes | ColorDialog | Displays the color picker dialog box that allows users to set the color of an interface element.
| FontDialog | Displays a dialog box that allows users to set a font and its attributes.
| OpenFileDialog | Displays a dialog box that allows users to navigate to and select a file.
| PrintDialog | Displays a dialog box that allows users to select a printer and set its attributes.
| PrintPreviewDialog | Displays a dialog box that displays how a PrintDocument object will appear when printed.
| SaveFileDialog | Displays a dialog box that allows users to save a file.
Menu controls | MainMenu | Provides a design-time interface for creating menus.
| ContextMenu | Implements a menu that appears when the user right-clicks an object.
Commands | Button | Used to start, stop, or interrupt a process.
| LinkLabel | Displays text as a Web-style link and triggers an event when the user clicks the special text. Usually the text is a link to another window or a Web site.
| NotifyIcon | Displays an icon in the status notification area of the taskbar that represents an application running in the background.
| ToolBar | Contains a collection of button controls.
Grouping other controls | Panel | Groups a set of controls on an unlabeled, scrollable frame.
| GroupBox | Groups a set of controls (such as radio buttons) on a labeled, nonscrollable frame.
| TabControl | Provides a tabbed page for organizing and accessing grouped objects efficiently.

See Also

Controls You Can Use on Windows Forms | Developing Windows Forms Controls