Contact Desaware and order today! 

Sign up for Desaware's Newsletter for the latest news and tech tips.

SpyWorks Features

Learn more about SpyWorks Features such as:

• Subclassing
• Windows and Keyboard Hooks
• Exporting Functions
• Other Features

Subclassing

Subclassing refers to the process of intercepting Windows messages that are normally processed behind the scenes. The .NET System.Windows.Forms namespace makes it unnecessary to subclass your own forms (you have direct access to the windows message function), however it is less trivial to subclass controls (or 3 rd party controls). There is no mechanism in .NET to subclass forms in other processes or AppDomains.

SpyWorks 8.0 introduces a new hook engine and anti-spyware technology that helps prevent use of Spyworks components for spyware.

For those migrating from Visual Basic, we also include primary interop assemblies for the dwsbc36.ocx control.

The Desaware Subclassers feature the following:

• Low level filtering minimizes cross-task calls to only those messages you request.
• Lean subclassing engine eliminates the need to map the entire .NET runtime to subclassed processes.
• Proven subclassing engine based on over 11 years of experience with subclassing and hooks.
• Synchronous or asynchronous message processing.
• Registered Message Support
• Functions to perform memory and string copy operations between processes, and to allocate memory in remote processes.

Below are some of the common uses for subclassing.

• Interprocess Communication - Use subclassing to allow application to establish private message based communications channels. These can be more efficient and easier to implement than remoting solutions.
• Create Add-Ins or Applets for other applications - Some applications do not provide extendability options. In many of these cases it is possible to create custom menu items in the other application, then use SpyWorks to detect when they have been selected.
• Override Context (Popup) Menus - Override the popup menu that appears when you right click on certain controls. Disable them or replace them with your own custom popup menu.
• Custom Captions - Customize the caption for your application. Select text alignment or font for your caption, even draw custom graphics onto your caption.
• Implement a TrayIcon - Add an icon to the system tray and detect when the mouse has been clicked on the icon or other mouse activity.
• Detect sizing changes to any Window - Detect when the size of any Window has changed. For certain cases, you can even do this while the user is dragging the Window size.

Windows and Keyboard Hooks

Windows hooks provide a mechanism to intercept messages (including mouse, system or keyboard messages) before they reach their target window. Desaware's hook technology allows you to reliably define the scope of the hook, from a specific thread or window, to the entire system.

SpyWorks 8.0 introduces a new hook engine and anti-spyware technology that helps prevent use of Spyworks components for spyware.

For those migrating from Visual Basic, we also include a primary interop assembly for the dwshk36.ocx control.

The SpyWorks hook components support the following features:

• Low level filtering minimizes cross-task notification to only those messages and keys you request.
• Lean hook engine eliminates the need to map the entire .NET runtime to subclassed processes. This is critical, as even a single system hook would try to map the .NET runtime to every process in your system!
• Proven hook engine based on over 11 years of experience with subclassing and hooks.
• Synchronous or asynchronous message processing.
• Registered Message Support.
• Preview or discard messages.
• Scope can be an individual form, thread or application, or systemwide.
• Functions to perform memory and string copy operations between processes, and to allocate memory in remote processes.

Below are some of the common uses for window and keyboard hooks.

• Log key and mouse activity for the entire system - great for productivity metrics and ergonomic applications.
• Macro recorders.
• Capture the Mouse - Set the mouse to "point" mode and identify any window that the mouse is currently over.
• Detect when any application is activated/deactivated
• Detect Window Creation - Ideal for determining when a message box or dialog has been shown by your application or another program. You can then use API techniques to modify or control that window.
• Detect System hot keys - Specify system wide hot keys with the Hook control. When these keys are pressed, the control's event will be triggered. Scope can also be limited to a particular process or thread.
• Detect the Ctrl+Alt+Del key - New hook support for detecting this key combination (however, this key cannot be disabled using a keyboard hook).
• Disable Ctrl+Esc, Alt+Tab and other special keys

Export Functions

There are three ways to expose functions from a dynamic link library: .NET lets you expose public objects to any .NET client. COM exposes functions through interfaces and automation. Function exports expose functions through a function table within a DLL. Visual Basic .NET and C# provide built-in support only for the .NET and COM approaches.

Desaware's Dynamic Export Technology allows you to export functions in a manner that is 100% compatible with Visual Basic .NET and C#. Your assemblies are not not modified in any way.

Low Level Function Library

The SpyWorks Function Library includes cross-process memory functions that allow you to allocate or access memory in another process. These are useful when you need to access memory belonging to another application while subclassing it. An example of this is when retrieving the data from multi-line edit or rich text controls in another process.

Buy SpyWorks as part of Desaware's .NET Universal Bundle for $649 or Buy COM AND .NET Universal packages for $995 .