Plugin Software Components

[Jon]

I once read a pretty good article using VB 6 on how to design a framework using MDI forms and ActiveX controls to display different documents. It was a pretty good tutorial and I have been looking for something similar for VB.NET. What I am trying to do is code a framework and by adding different components display different data. If I choose to have a component that displays TV schedules say I can add that component and start showing them along side say a calander of events component.

I am not be using the correct terms so any help would be greatly appreciated as I am pretty new to .NET.

Thanks,
Jon


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[Lloyd Sheen]

I once read a pretty good article using VB 6 on how to design a framework
using MDI forms and ActiveX controls to display different documents. It was
a pretty good tutorial and I have been looking for something similar for
VB.NET. What I am trying to do is code a framework and by adding different
components display different data. If I choose to have a component that
displays TV schedules say I can add that component and start showing them
along side say a calander of events component.

I am not be using the correct terms so any help would be greatly
appreciated as I am pretty new to .NET.

Thanks,
Jon


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I think what you want to look into are Interfaces. Lets suppose you have a
"framework" app. Now you define the app to have a menu (an Interface), a
toolbar (an Interface), a navigation area (an Interface) , a status bar (an
Interface) and a user form area (another Interface).

Now you can create usercontrols / forms (for MDI) that implement those
interfaces and you are on your way. Lots of work to create an interface but
that is the embryo of the idea. I have done this for a media player I
designed. The app provides services to play various media types and I can
use several navigators to provide the views of the media.

Lloyd Sheen