What are these strange values returned from GWLP_WNDPROC?
GetWindowLongPtr(hwnd, GWLP_WNDPROC)
[or GetWindowLong(hwnd, GWL_WNDPROC) if you haven't yet made
your code 64-bit compatible]
is supposed to return the
current window procedure. Why do I sometimes get wacko values?
Because sometimes "you can't handle the truth".
If the current window procedure is incompatible with the
caller of GetWindowLongPtr, then the real function pointer
cannot be returned since you can't call it.
Instead, a "magic cookie" is returned.
The sole purpose of this cookie is to be recognized by
CallWindowProc so it can translate the message parameters
into the format that the window procedure expects.
For example,
suppose that you are running Windows XP and
the window is a UNICODE window, but a component
compiled as ANSI calls GetWindowLong(hwnd, GWL_WNDPROC).
The raw window procedure can't be returned, because
the caller is using ANSI window messages, but
the window procedure expects UNICODE window messages.
So instead, a magic cookie is returned.
When you pass this magic cookie to CallWindowProc,
it recognizes it as a "Oh, I need to convert the message
from ANSI to UNICODE and then give the UNICODE message
to that window procedure over there."
As another example, suppose that you are running Windows 95
and the window was created by a 32-bit component,
but a 16-bit component calls GetWindowLong(hwnd, GWLP_WNDPROC).
Again, the raw 32-bit window procedure can't be returned since
the message needs to be converted from 16-bit to 32-bit.
(And besides, a 16-bit program can't jump to a 32-bit flat address.)
So instead, again, a magic cookie is returned
which CallWindowProc recognizes as a "Oh, I need to convert
the message from 16-bit to 32-bit and then give the converted
message to that window procedure over there."
(These conversions are known as "thunks".)
So remember, the only things you can do with the values
you get from GetWindowLongPtr(hwnd, GWLP_WNDPROC) are to
(1) pass them to CallWindowProc, or (2) pass them
back to SetWindowLongPtr(hwnd, GWLP_WNDPROC).
