Microsoft has updated its WinUI Gallery application to version 3.0. The main innovation is the ability for developers to test experimental interface elements much earlier and influence their final appearance.
Microsoft has updated its WinUI Gallery application to version 3.0. The main innovation is the ability for developers to test experimental interface elements much earlier and influence their final appearance.
WinUI Gallery is a showcase app from Microsoft that shows how Windows 11's user interface (UI) components work and provides code samples to ensure apps meet the company's official guidelines, Windows Central reports .
Previously, new controls would only make it to the WinUI Gallery after they had passed all the validation checks and were released in the stable release of the Windows App SDK. This limited Microsoft's ability to change elements based on community feedback.
In WinUI Gallery 3.0, the company changed its approach: the application now includes experimental Windows App SDK components. This allows developers to try out new tools at an early stage and provide feedback in advance.
In addition to experimental components, the release received several useful interface and functionality improvements.
Convenient navigation: The Back and Forward buttons on your mouse now work within the application just like they do in a browser.
Improved search: Each element page has been given search tags. Now, searching for terms like “context menu,” “carousel,” or “WCAG” will find the element you’re looking for, even if its name doesn’t match the query.
No "dead ends" in the search: if nothing is found for your query, the application will show the entered text, search suggestions, and a button to view all available examples.
While it's unlikely that regular PC users will ever download WinUI Gallery, this update plays an important role in the development of the entire ecosystem. Thanks to faster feedback from developers, Windows 11 apps will become better, more convenient, and more harmoniously integrated into the system.
WinUI Gallery has been around since 2018 (previously, the application had different names). WinUI Gallery 3.0 should not be confused with the WinUI 3 framework - they are different concepts, although they have similar names.
