With each Windows update we can notice how some elements of the OS interface change. Menus and corners are evolving, the dark Windows theme is getting more refined and on all sides we can find improvements in the implementation of Fluent Design. However, the appearance of Windows, especially that of applications, is about to change radically. And it is that WinUI 3.0 is getting closer to its final version.
WinUI 3.0 is, according to Microsoft, the “modern native UI platform of Windows”, that is, the modern native interface of the entire Windows platform. In other words, the style rules that Microsoft wants to bring to each of the corners of its operating system. WinUI is the C ++ library that allows developers to implement all Fluent controls and styles in the new generation of applications. These controls and styles will apply to both UWP Store apps and Win32 apps.
Microsoft has been working on this version for a long time. And although it was expected to be ready for the spring 2021 update for the operating system, it seems that it is going to be delayed a little more than necessary. If all goes well, the new WinUI 3.0 will come to all users with Windows 10 21H2 , the second update this year. This new version will be one of the biggest updates seen so far, and it will radically change the aesthetics of the operating system and all its applications. How will do? Following the rules defined by this new WinUI 3.0.
How is WinUI 3.0 development going?
The second preview of this interface concept was launched in July 2020. This interface concept introduced a series of characteristics and rules when defining applications, such as:
- Bring WinUI to Win32 applications.
- Support for MSIX.
- Support for Windows 10 version 1803 and higher .
- .NET 5 for desktop applications.
- WebView 2 will be based on Chromium.
- Customizable title bars in desktop apps.
- Fluent shadows (partial).
- Validation of input boxes (partial).
- Support for multiple windows in desktop apps (partial).
Since then, Microsoft has continued to improve its style rules and expand the API. Preview 3, listed since November 2020, improved and expanded the features of this interface:
- Support for multiple windows in desktop apps (full)
- Multiple windows in desktop apps on ARM64 (partial).
- Support for ARM64 .
- Drag & Drop.
- SwapChainPaneles entry improvements.
- RenderTargetBitmap (partial)
- Mouse cursor customization.
- Support for animated GIFs.
The WinUI 3.0 Preview 4 is scheduled to arrive this month of February 2021. This new version continues to shape little by little what the system interface will be, and focuses on the following changes.
- Complete development of SwapChainPaneles.
- Add VSIS support.
The future of WinUI
Beginning with Preview 4, Microsoft changes the name of the various versions, or editions, to Reunion. Thus, 0.5 (March 2021) will be the first version of this new WinUI ready for production, although it will still be unfinished.
Reunion 0.8 will arrive in May with final revisions, and it won’t be until 1.0 that we see a new revolution in everything this new design API has to offer. Among other new features, what we will find from version 1.0 will be:
- Support for applications that do not use MSIX.
- .NET 5 for UWP apps.
- XAML.
- Support for Windows 10X.
- Support for other Windows systems, such as Xbox, HoloLens, IoT, Surface, etc).
- Customizable title bars for UWP apps.
- Acrylic effect.
- Rounded corners in all Windows , all applications and in multimedia controls.
When will we see the new Windows 10 interface
WinUI will play a very important role in the development of the apps and all the functions that we will see with Windows 10 21H2, an update that will also be known as ” Sun Valley “.
Microsoft is already considering bringing WinUI to many other elements of the operating system, such as the Start menu and the taskbar. So you can create a fully Fluent Design user interface experience.
We can learn much more about WinUI development from this link . And if we are developers, download the Preview to test the changes from its documentation .