GetTabbedTextExtent

The GetTabbedTextExtent function computes the width and height of a character string. If the string contains one or more tab characters, the width of the string is based upon the specified tab stops. The GetTabbedTextExtent function uses the currently selected font to compute the dimensions of the string.

DWORD GetTabbedTextExtent(
  HDC hDC,                    // handle to device context
  LPCTSTR lpString,           // pointer to character string
  int nCount,                 // number of characters in string
  int nTabPositions,          // number of tab positions
  LPINT lpnTabStopPositions   // pointer to array of tab positions
);
 

Parameters

hDC

Handle to the device context.

lpString

Pointer to a character string.

nCount

Specifies the number of characters in the text string.

nTabPositions

Specifies the number of tab-stop positions in the array pointed to by the lpnTabStopPositions parameter.

lpnTabStopPositions

Pointer to an array containing the tab-stop positions, in device units. The tab stops must be sorted in increasing order; the smallest x-value should be the first item in the array.

Return Values

If the function succeeds, the return value is the dimensions of the string. The height is in the high-order word and the width is in the low-order word.

If the function fails, the return value is 0. GetTabbedTextExtent will fail if hDC is invalid and if nTabPositions is less than 0.

Windows NT: To get extended error information, call GetLastError.

Remarks

The current clipping region does not affect the width and height returned by the GetTabbedTextExtent function.

Because some devices do not place characters in regular cell arrays (that is, they kern the characters), the sum of the extents of the characters in a string may not be equal to the extent of the string.

If the nTabPositions parameter is zero and the lpnTabStopPositions parameter is NULL, tabs are expanded to eight times the average character width.

If nTabPositions is 1, the tab stops are separated by the distance specified by the first value in the array to which lpnTabStopPositions points.

QuickInfo

  Windows NT: Requires version 3.1 or later.
  Windows: Requires Windows 95 or later.
  Windows CE: Unsupported.
  Header: Declared in winuser.h.
  Import Library: Use user32.lib.
  Unicode: Implemented as Unicode and ANSI versions on Windows NT.

See Also

Fonts and Text Overview, Font and Text Functions, GetTextExtentPoint32, HIWORD, LOWORD, TabbedTextOut