Visual studio 2010 WPF/Silverlight designer default background

Question

Is there a way to change the default background of WPF/Silverlight designer (Cider)? Or maybe some "IsInDesignMode"/ignorable hack to do so.

The problem is, I have transparent backgrounds in my user controls, my texts are mostly white (my shell is dark). And I don't see them in designer.

Answer 1

.First, you should create yourself an IsDesignMode:

static public class ApplicationExtensions
{
    public static bool IsDesignMode(this Application app)
    {
        return System.ComponentModel.DesignerProperties.GetIsInDesignMode(app.RootVisual);
    }
}

Now, in your control's constructor, after the InitalizeComponents call, try something like:

if (Application.IsDesignMode)
   LayoutRoot.Background = Colors.Black; // Or whatever control