Siticone Animate Form

The SiticoneAnimateForm component brings professional, high-performance animations to Windows Forms. It handles form load/close transitions (Fade, Slide, Scale, Bounce), smooth form-to-form navigation, and sequential animation of child controls. It operates as a non-visual component that you drop onto your form to instantly modernize its behavior.

Core Animation Properties

Configure how the form appears and disappears.

Property	Type	Description & Usage Example
`TargetForm`	Form	animator.TargetForm = this; The form instance to animate. Typically set to 'this' in the constructor.
`AnimationTypeIn`	AnimationType	animator.AnimationTypeIn = AnimationType.Slide; Effect applied when the form loads: `Fade`, `Slide`, `Scale`, `Bounce`, `Rotate`, `Flip`, or `Blur`.
`AnimationTypeOut`	AnimationType	animator.AnimationTypeOut = AnimationType.Fade; Effect applied when the form closes.
`SlideDirection`	AnimationDirection	animator.SlideDirection = AnimationDirection.Right; Direction for slide animations: `Left`, `Right`, `Up`, or `Down`.
`AnimationDuration`	int	animator.AnimationDuration = 500; Time in milliseconds for the animation to complete.
`EasingType`	EasingType	animator.EasingType = FormAnimationEasingType.EaseOut; Mathematical curve for velocity: `Linear`, `EaseIn`, `EaseOut`, `Bounce`, `Elastic`, etc.

Behavior & Triggers

Control when and how animations are triggered automatically.

Property	Type	Description & Usage Example
`AnimateOnLoad`	bool	animator.AnimateOnLoad = true; Automatically trigger `AnimationTypeIn` when the form is shown.
`AnimateOnClose`	bool	animator.AnimateOnClose = true; Automatically trigger `AnimationTypeOut` (or reverse In) when the form closes.
`ReverseExitAnimation`	bool	animator.ReverseExitAnimation = true; If true, the exit animation will be the exact reverse of the entry (e.g., Slide In Right becomes Slide Out Left).

Child Control Animation

Animate buttons, panels, and inputs sequentially for a "staggered" entry effect.

Property	Type	Description & Usage Example
`AnimateChildControls`	bool	animator.AnimateChildControls = true; Enables sequential animation for all controls on the form.
`ChildControlDelay`	int	animator.ChildControlDelay = 50; Delay in milliseconds between each control's animation start.
`AnimateControlsOnly`	bool	animator.AnimateControlsOnly = false; If true, the form itself stays static/visible while only its contents animate in.

Methods & Transitions

Trigger animations manually or handle complex transitions.

TransitionControls(Control from, Control to, AnimationType type)

// Smoothly swap two panels (e.g., Wizard Pages)
animator.TransitionControls(panelStep1, panelStep2, AnimationType.Slide);

TransitionToForm(Form newForm, bool closeCurrent)

// Animate current form out, then new form in
animator.TransitionToForm(new DashboardForm(), true);

StartAnimation(bool isEntering)

// Manually trigger the entry animation
animator.StartAnimation(true);

Events

Event Handling

// 1. Animation Completed
animator.AnimationCompleted += (s, e) => 
{
                Console.WriteLine("Form is fully visible.");
                InitializeDataLoad();
};

// 2. Animation Progress
animator.AnimationProgress += (s, e) => 
{
                Console.WriteLine($"Progress: {e.Progress * 100}%");
};

Designer Support

Visual Studio Smart Tags allow quick testing and configuration.

Category	Features
`Animation Presets`	Instant configurations: Fade, Slide Right/Left/Up/Down, Scale, Bounce.
`Test Animation`	Preview Entry / Exit: Run the animation directly in the designer without compiling.
`Control Animation`	Toggle Enable Controls Animation to set up child control staggering.

Detailed Usage Examples

Example 1: Basic Smooth Form Load

A standard fade-in/fade-out setup for a login form.

C# - Login Form

public LoginForm()
{
                InitializeComponent();
    
                var animator = new SiticoneAnimateForm(this.components);
    animator.TargetForm = this;
    
                // Fade In
    animator.AnimationTypeIn = AnimationType.Fade;
    animator.AnimationDuration = 800;
    
                // Fade Out (Reverse)
    animator.ReverseExitAnimation = true;
    
                // Smooth movement
    animator.EasingType = FormAnimationEasingType.EaseOut;
}

Example 2: Wizard Page Transition

Swapping panels smoothly to simulate a multi-step wizard within one form.

C# - Wizard Transition

private void BtnNext_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
                // Move from Step 1 to Step 2
    siticoneAnimateForm1.SlideDirection = AnimationDirection.Left;
    siticoneAnimateForm1.TransitionControls(pnlStep1, pnlStep2, AnimationType.Slide);
}

private void BtnBack_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
                // Move back from Step 2 to Step 1
    siticoneAnimateForm1.SlideDirection = AnimationDirection.Right;
    siticoneAnimateForm1.TransitionControls(pnlStep2, pnlStep1, AnimationType.Slide);
}

Example 3: Staggered Dashboard Entry

Animating dashboard tiles sequentially for a premium look.

C# - Dashboard Entry

public DashboardForm()
{
                InitializeComponent();
    
                var animator = new SiticoneAnimateForm(this.components);
    animator.TargetForm = this;
    
                // Don't move the form, just the controls
    animator.AnimateControlsOnly = true;
    animator.AnimateChildControls = true;
    
                // Slide controls in from the bottom
    animator.AnimationTypeIn = AnimationType.Slide;
    animator.SlideDirection = AnimationDirection.Up;
    
                // Staggering effect
    animator.ChildControlDelay = 100; // 100ms between each tile
    animator.FadeChildControls = true;
}