Ribbon Custom Button Image Not Loading

Question

I am working on a ribbon addin for Outlook 2010 using XML and VB callbacks (I have not used the ribbon designer) in Visual Studio 2010.

What I want to do is add a custom image to a button loaded by another addin. Using the code below the image appears on a standard button but not on the button from the addin. The only difference seems to be using either the id or idQ properties, "idQ" does not work.

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

XML

<customUI xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2009/07/customui" xmlns:x1="MCSearch.Connect" xmlns:x2="VisionMerge.Connect" onLoad="Ribbon_OnLoad" loadImage="GetImage">
  <ribbon>
    <tabs>
 
 <tab idMso="TabReadMessage">

        <group idMso="GroupMailDelete" visible="false" />
        <group idMso="GroupRespond" visible="false" />
        <group idMso="GroupMoveActions" visible="false" />
        <group idQ="x2:IIRIS.Law" visible="false" />

        <group id="IIRIS.Law" label="IRIS Law" visible="true" insertBeforeMso="GroupRespond" autoScale="true">

          <button idQ="x2:SendSave.Email" image="SaveAndSend.jpg"/>         'this does NOT work
          <button id="Test" label ="Test"  image="SaveAndSend.jpg"/>     'this does work

        </group>

 </tab>
</tabs>
</ribbon>
</customUI>

 

'VB Callbacks

Public Function GetImage(ByVal imageName As String) As stdole.IPictureDisp
        Return PictureConverter.ImageToPictureDisp(My.Resources.SaveAndSend)
End Function

Friend Class PictureConverter
        Inherits AxHost

        Private Sub New()
            MyBase.New(String.Empty)
        End Sub

        Public Shared Function ImageToPictureDisp(ByVal image As Image) As stdole.IPictureDisp
            Return CType(GetIPictureDispFromPicture(image), stdole.IPictureDisp)
        End Function
End Class

Answer 1

Customization of ribbon from one add-in cannot be changed from another add-in. So what you want to achieve is not possible using VSTO/OOM.

Answer 2

Hi LCJ187,

Thanks for posting in the  MSDN Forum.

I recommend you to take a look following snippet.

Imports System
Imports System.Drawing
Imports System.Collections.Generic
Imports System.Runtime.InteropServices

Public Module PictureDispConverter

    Public iPictureDispGuid As Guid = GetType(stdole.IPictureDisp).GUID
    Public Function ToIPictureDisp(ByVal ico As Icon) As stdole.IPictureDisp

        Dim pictIcon As New PICTDESC.Icon(ico)
        Return PictureDispConverter.OleCreatePictureIndirect(pictIcon, iPictureDispGuid, True)
    End Function

    Public Function ToIPictureDisp(ByVal picture As Image) As stdole.IPictureDisp

        Dim bm As Bitmap
        If TypeOf picture Is Bitmap Then
            bm = picture
        Else
            bm = New Bitmap(picture)
        End If
        Dim pictBit As New PICTDESC.Bitmap(bm)
        Return PictureDispConverter.OleCreatePictureIndirect(pictBit, iPictureDispGuid, True)
    End Function


    <DllImport("OleAut32.dll", EntryPoint:="OleCreatePictureIndirect", ExactSpelling:=True, PreserveSig:=False)> _
    Private Function OleCreatePictureIndirect(<MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.AsAny)> ByVal picdesc As Object, ByRef iid As Guid, ByVal fOwn As Boolean) As stdole.IPictureDisp
    End Function

    Private ReadOnly hCollector As New HandleCollector("Icon handles", 1000)

    Private Class PICTDESC

        Public Const PICTYPE_UNINITIALIZED As Short = -1
        Public Const PICTYPE_NONE As Short = 0
        Public Const PICTYPE_BITMAP As Short = 1
        Public Const PICTYPE_METAFILE As Short = 2
        Public Const PICTYPE_ICON As Short = 3
        Public Const PICTYPE_ENHMETAFILE As Short = 4

        <StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)> _
        Public Class Icon

            Friend cbSizeOfStruct As Integer = Marshal.SizeOf(GetType(PICTDESC.Icon))
            Friend picType As Integer = PICTDESC.PICTYPE_ICON
            Friend hicon As IntPtr = IntPtr.Zero
            Friend unused1 As Integer = 0
            Friend unused2 As Integer = 0

            Friend Sub New(ByVal icon As System.Drawing.Icon)
                Me.hicon = icon.ToBitmap().GetHicon()
            End Sub

        End Class

        <StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)> _
        Public Class Bitmap

            Friend cbSizeOfStruct As Integer = Marshal.SizeOf(GetType(PICTDESC.Bitmap))
            Friend picType As Integer = PICTDESC.PICTYPE_BITMAP
            Friend hbitmap As IntPtr = IntPtr.Zero
            Friend hpal As IntPtr = IntPtr.Zero
            Friend unused As Integer = 0

            Friend Sub New(ByVal bitmap As System.Drawing.Bitmap)
                Me.hbitmap = bitmap.GetHbitmap()
            End Sub
        End Class

    End Class

End Module

I thinnk you need cast your image first.

Have a good day,

Tom

---

Tom Xu [MSFT]
MSDN Community Support | Feedback to us

Answer 3

Hi Tom_Xu MSFT and DamianD,

Thanks for your help on this.

Louis