3D GUI idea

[AndrewAPrice]

It should be perfectly possible to write a GUI manager using DirectX/OpenGL, programming all of the window handling functions and renderings, and make programs designed to use it.

Also, if there was some way to still allow normal programs to be handled through the default window manager, and have them draw their windows in a back buffer and still being able to handle the standard controls of that application having the DirectX GUI respond to the windows' requests, then it could be done.

Or making the normal programs and the Windows GUI allow the DirectX GUI to work as an intermediate layer, so that normal programs are drawn in back buffer, the DX GUI gets told, then there are events, and the DX GUI gets told, and then this DX GUI be capable of having the messages properly dispatched, not just being able to present the normal GUI but also still provide its graphical functionality.

A slow, but reliable method is to screenshot the window, or at least access it's texture through the compositer (it must be possible since Windows Explorer does it when you highlight a task).