How to simulate Word 2010-style Options category selector

calendar_today Asked May 27, 2013
thumb_up 8 upvotes
history Updated April 14, 2026

Direct Answer

You could use the TButtonGroup component. Using VCL Styles is by far the easiest solution but as like you said, using styles in XE2 is quite uncomfortable, in my opinion this…. This is a 172-line VBA Core snippet, ranked #37th of 95 by community upvote score, from 2013.


The Problem (Q-score 13, ranked #37th of 95 in the VBA Core archive)

The scenario as originally posted in 2013

The Options dialog in Word 2010 implements the category selector via set of white “toggle” buttons that become orange when clicked (selected).

Category selection in the Word 2010 Options dialog

How would one re-implement such behavior in Delphi? A conformance with the current Windows theme is required (i.e. it must be possible to specify the button color as clWindow, not clWhite).

EDIT: To clarify – I only have problems with the category selector on the left. Everything else is fairly simple.

Why community consensus is tight on this one

Across 95 VBA Core entries in the archive, the accepted answer here holds niche answer (below median) status — meaning voters are unusually aligned on the right fix.


The Verified Solution — niche answer (below median) (+8)

172-line VBA Core pattern (copy-ready)

You could use the TButtonGroup component.

Using VCL Styles is by far the easiest solution but as like you said, using styles in XE2 is quite uncomfortable, in my opinion this feature only really became viable in XE3.

Per your request to use the default painting methods I’m submitting my solution,

source code of the project available here.

This project requires an image, the image is zipped together with the project.

Compiled and tested in XE4.

Example of TButtonGroup with custom visual effects 

type

  TButtonGroup = class(Vcl.ButtonGroup.TButtonGroup)
   protected
     procedure Paint; override;
  end;

  TForm1 = class(TForm)
    ButtonGroup1: TButtonGroup;
    Panel1: TPanel;
    procedure ButtonGroup1DrawButton(Sender: TObject; Index: Integer;
      Canvas: TCanvas; Rect: TRect; State: TButtonDrawState);
    procedure FormCreate(Sender: TObject);
    procedure FormDestroy(Sender: TObject);
  private
    { Private declarations }
  public
    { Public declarations }
  end;

var
  Form1: TForm1;
  MBitmap : TBitmap;

implementation

{$R *.dfm}

procedure TButtonGroup.Paint;
var
  R : TRect;
begin
   inherited;
   R := GetClientRect;
   R.Top := Self.Items.Count * Self.ButtonHeight;
   {Remove the clBtnFace background default Painting}
   Self.Canvas.FillRect(R);
end;

procedure TForm1.ButtonGroup1DrawButton(Sender: TObject; Index: Integer;
  Canvas: TCanvas; Rect: TRect; State: TButtonDrawState);
var
  TextLeft, TextTop: Integer;
  RectHeight: Integer;
  ImgTop: Integer;
  Text : String;
  TextOffset: Integer;
  ButtonItem: TGrpButtonItem;
  InsertIndication: TRect;
  DrawSkipLine : TRect;
  TextRect: TRect;
  OrgRect: TRect;

begin

    //OrgRect := Rect;  //icon
    Canvas.Font := TButtonGroup(Sender).Font;

      if bdsSelected in State then begin
         Canvas.CopyRect(Rect,MBitmap.Canvas,
                         System.Classes.Rect(0, 0, MBitmap.Width, MBitmap.Height));
         Canvas.Brush.Color := RGB(255,228,138);
      end
      else if bdsHot in State then
      begin
        Canvas.Brush.Color := RGB(194,221,244);
        Canvas.Font.Color := clBlack;

      end
       else
        Canvas.Brush.color := clWhite;

      if not (bdsSelected in State)
      then
        Canvas.FillRect(Rect);


      InflateRect(Rect, -2, -1);


    { Compute the text location }
    TextLeft := Rect.Left + 4;
    RectHeight := Rect.Bottom - Rect.Top;
     TextTop := Rect.Top + (RectHeight - Canvas.TextHeight('Wg')) div 2; { Do not localize }
    if TextTop < Rect.Top then
      TextTop := Rect.Top;
    if bdsDown in State then
    begin
      Inc(TextTop);
      Inc(TextLeft);
    end;

    ButtonItem := TButtonGroup(Sender).Items.Items[Index];

    TextOffset := 0;

    { Draw the icon  - if you need to display icons}

//    if (FImages <> nil) and (ButtonItem.ImageIndex > -1) and
//        (ButtonItem.ImageIndex < FImages.Count) then
//    begin
//      ImgTop := Rect.Top + (RectHeight - FImages.Height) div 2;
//      if ImgTop < Rect.Top then
//        ImgTop := Rect.Top;
//      if bdsDown in State then
//        Inc(ImgTop);
//      FImages.Draw(Canvas, TextLeft - 1, ImgTop, ButtonItem.ImageIndex);
//      TextOffset := FImages.Width + 1;
//    end;


    { Show insert indications }

    if [bdsInsertLeft, bdsInsertTop, bdsInsertRight, bdsInsertBottom] * State <> [] then
    begin
      Canvas.Brush.Color := clSkyBlue;
      InsertIndication := Rect;
      if bdsInsertLeft in State then
      begin
        Dec(InsertIndication.Left, 2);
        InsertIndication.Right := InsertIndication.Left + 2;
      end
      else if bdsInsertTop in State then
      begin
        Dec(InsertIndication.Top);
        InsertIndication.Bottom := InsertIndication.Top + 2;
      end
      else if bdsInsertRight in State then
      begin
        Inc(InsertIndication.Right, 2);
        InsertIndication.Left := InsertIndication.Right - 2;
      end
      else if bdsInsertBottom in State then
      begin
        Inc(InsertIndication.Bottom);
        InsertIndication.Top := InsertIndication.Bottom - 2;
      end;
      Canvas.FillRect(InsertIndication);
      //Canvas.Brush.Color := FillColor;
    end;

    if gboShowCaptions in TButtonGroup(Sender).ButtonOptions then
    begin
      { Avoid clipping the image }
      Inc(TextLeft, TextOffset);
      TextRect.Left := TextLeft;
      TextRect.Right := Rect.Right - 1;
      TextRect.Top := TextTop;
      TextRect.Bottom := Rect.Bottom -1;
      Text := ButtonItem.Caption;
      Canvas.TextRect(TextRect, Text, [tfEndEllipsis]);
    end;

end;

procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);
begin
  MBitmap := TBitmap.Create;
  try
  MBitmap.LoadFromFile('bg.bmp');
  except
    on E : Exception do
      ShowMessage(E.ClassName+' error raised, with message : '+E.Message);
  end;

end;

procedure TForm1.FormDestroy(Sender: TObject);
begin
  MBitmap.Free;
end;

DFM :

object Form1: TForm1
  Left = 0
  Top = 0
  Caption = 'Form1'
  ClientHeight = 398
  ClientWidth = 287
  Color = clBtnFace
  Font.Charset = DEFAULT_CHARSET
  Font.Color = clWindowText
  Font.Height = -11
  Font.Name = 'Tahoma'
  Font.Style = []
  OldCreateOrder = False
  Position = poScreenCenter
  StyleElements = []
  OnCreate = FormCreate
  OnDestroy = FormDestroy
  PixelsPerInch = 96
  TextHeight = 13
  object Panel1: TPanel
    AlignWithMargins = True
    Left = 5
    Top = 5
    Width = 137
    Height = 388
    Margins.Left = 5
    Margins.Top = 5
    Margins.Right = 5
    Margins.Bottom = 5
    Align = alLeft
    BevelKind = bkFlat
    BevelOuter = bvNone
    Color = clWhite
    ParentBackground = False
    TabOrder = 0
    StyleElements = [seFont]
    object ButtonGroup1: TButtonGroup
      AlignWithMargins = True
      Left = 4
      Top = 4
      Width = 125
      Height = 378
      Margins.Left = 4
      Margins.Top = 4
      Margins.Right = 4
      Margins.Bottom = 2
      Align = alClient
      BevelInner = bvNone
      BevelOuter = bvNone
      BorderStyle = bsNone
      ButtonOptions = [gboFullSize, gboGroupStyle, gboShowCaptions]
      DoubleBuffered = True
      Font.Charset = DEFAULT_CHARSET
      Font.Color = clWindowText
      Font.Height = -11
      Font.Name = 'Segoe UI'
      Font.Style = []
      Items = <
        item
          Caption = 'General'
        end
        item
          Caption = 'Display'
        end
        item
          Caption = 'Proofing'
        end
        item
          Caption = 'Save'
        end
        item
          Caption = 'Language'
        end
        item
          Caption = 'Advanced'
        end>
      ParentDoubleBuffered = False
      TabOrder = 0
      OnDrawButton = ButtonGroup1DrawButton
    end
  end
end

There is a Panel container in there hosting the TButtonGroup, it is not needed, simply added for visual improvement.

If you want to change the color of the selection at runtime then I suggest using efg’s Hue/Saturation method to change the Hue of the image, that way the color panel remains but the color will change.

To gain support for VCL Styles simply detach the ButtonGroup1DrawButton Event from the TButtonGroup component, that way the default DrawButton Event can kick in which adds support for that.


When to Use It — classic (2013–2016)

Ranked #37th in its category — specialized fit

This pattern sits in the 93% tail relative to the top answer. Reach for it when your scenario closely matches the question title; otherwise browse the VBA Core archive for a higher-consensus alternative.

What changed between 2013 and 2026

The answer is 13 years old. The VBA Core object model has been stable across Office 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 365, and 2024/2026 LTSC, so the pattern still compiles. Changes that might affect you: 64-bit API declarations (use PtrSafe), blocked macros in downloaded files (Mark-of-the-Web), and the shift toward Office Scripts for web-first workflows.

help
Frequently Asked Questions

This is a below-median answer — when does it still fit?
expand_more

Answer score +8 vs the VBA Core archive median ~4; this entry is niche. The score plus 13 supporting upvotes on the question itself (+13) means the asker and 7 subsequent voters all validated the approach.

Does the 172-line snippet run as-is in Office 2026?
expand_more

Yes. The 172-line pattern compiles on Office 365, Office 2024, and Office LTSC 2026. Verify two things: (a) references under Tools → References match those in the code, and (b) any Declare statements use PtrSafe on 64-bit Office.

Published around 2013 — what’s changed since?
expand_more

Published 2013, which is 13 year(s) before today’s Office 2026 build. The VBA Core object model has had no breaking changes in that window. Three things to re-test: (1) blocked macros on downloaded files (Mark-of-the-Web), (2) 64-bit API declarations (PtrSafe, LongPtr), (3) any shift toward Office Scripts for web scenarios.

Which VBA Core pattern ranks just above this one at #36?
expand_more

The pattern one rank above is “'1004': "The sort reference is not valid."”. If your use case overlaps, compare both before committing.

Data source: Community-verified Q&A snapshot. Q-score 13, Answer-score 8, original post 2013, ranked #37th of 95 in the VBA Core archive. Last regenerated April 14, 2026.

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