I need to know where to start. I have a request to create a .NET plug
in for an existing application.

I have written many Microsoft Visual Basic programs in the past
(versions 1, 2, 3, 4) but am not up to date with what is available
now.

I want to program in basic. 

I need to use OLE Automation. (I know how to do that in basic so
assume it will be easy to do in .NET basic or whatever is available)

What I need to know is what software I need?
(Or if there free .NET software that will allow me to do it)
What I can read up on to get the general of what .NET is?
If I need to go out and buy a book and spend 4 hours reading that’s OK
but I want to fast track it.

My main concern is creating the application. I believe most of the
work is doing  that and I am familiar with basic and other
technologies/languages (like HTML, JavaScript, ASP, C).

I may need to create complied object libraries??? I am not sure how
that works.

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Clarification of Question by whatshisname-ga on 28 Apr 2003 22:12 PDT

I may have also been unclear in my initial post last comment "My main
concern is creating the application. I believe most of the work is
doing  that and I am familiar with basic and other...".

This the part I understand and don't need help with. I was trying to
say that the actual coding work is quite large and should take most
effort. Therefore I just need to figure out/understand and find oiut
what to buy or learn to get the .NET part out of the way first.

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Request for Question Clarification by mathtalk-ga on 29 Apr 2003 10:03 PDT

Hi, whatshisname-ga:

What is the name of the existing application, for which you've been
requested to create a .NET "plug-in"?

Some .NET software is available as a free download, but I don't
believe this includes the Visual Basic .NET development environment.

regards, mathtalk-ga

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Clarification of Question by whatshisname-ga on 30 Apr 2003 05:27 PDT

The initial application is a custom app design by my client that does
file conversion (Converts file formats). My part is converting to MS
Word and special functions within that. My functions/DLL/Assembly will
be called by the main application and written to supplied
specifications.

Hi, whatshisname-ga:

I think there's enough information to answer your question now.  It
sounds like your client has a custom application written in the .Net
framework.  It really doesn't matter which language was used there,
anything you write as a Visual Basic.Net module ("class library"),
which will essentially look like a DLL to the Windows operating
system, can then be called from the client's application.

The interoperability between .Net languages is not 100% perfect
because of some uppercase/lowercase issues, but it does work in the
direction you are planning to go (module written in VB.NET).  This is
a central design goal of the .Net framework, and one of its most
attractive points.

I'd give a little consideration to where you plan to install the
VB.Net development environment.  I personally prefer to use Windows XP
Professional as the OS platform.  For one thing it allows me to set up
a database server (SQL Server 2000) and Visual SourceSafe server on
the same box (a laptop), and then I'm pretty well self-contained. 
However I didn't see any requirements in your project that are
database related, and of course versioning of code can be handled in a
number of ways as long we manage to be diligent about it.

What you would get with Visual Basic.Net will be sufficient to do the
sort of programming assignment described.  There shouldn't be any
"add-on" purchases.  However the differences between VB.Net and VB4
will pose a steep learning curve to master.

For one thing the VB.Net language is heavily object oriented.  I don't
think of any of the languages you named (HTML, JavaScript, ASP, C) as
being "paragons" of object-orientation.  Java or C++ would certainly
qualify.

The nicest thing about this programming assignment will be the relief
from fiddling with registery entries and "DLL hell".  Probably you can
package all of your functionality into single DLL, which the client
then simply copies into the same directory as their application.  When
the client application is modified to instantiate an object that is
supplied by your library module, the .Net framework takes care of
recompiling and linking the code together.  This part of the .Net
framework (simplifying code dependency) is very attractive.

In hunting for the proper .Net framework class (such as String) to use
for a given purpose, you'll want to use the copy of MSDN Library that
comes with VB.Net.  Even though Microsoft has essentially all of this
material and more on their MSDN Web site:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/default.aspx

the search engine for the Library is better than the search engine on
the Web.  Google has indexed a good bit of the Microsoft Web
documentation, but not all of it, so I use a combination of the two
resources.

For Visual Basic.Net stuff you can start here:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/vbasic/

In my own mind the .Net framework is so huge that the two years I've
been trying to learn it have only brought me, in comparative terms, to
a journeyman stage.  It's a very exciting challenge, but even with a
very focused programming specification in hand, you'll want to have
some support resources.  Friends who are working in .Net are great for
this, as are the various articles in the MSDN Web site (like Dr.
GUI.Net):

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnguinet/html/drguinetnhp.asp

Microsoft also has a number of public newsgroups, which are really
helpful when you get stumped on a specific technical issue.

I hope that VB.Net will be a stimulating challenge for you and that
the investment in updating your technical knowledge from VB4 to VB.Net
provides an immediate payoff... it's definitely the best to have a
paying client!  Let me know if I can be assistance with getting
started in creating a project in the development environment once you
get it installed.

regards, mathtalk-ga

I now have all the information I need to start my project. Question
answered quickly and thoroughly. Thanks very much!

Hi, whathisname-ga:

I'd suggest that if you want to create an OLE automation server for an
existing application that can act as a "container" for such objects,
you stick to using VB6.

.NET can supply "wrappers" for COM objects, and you can build COM
objects in VS.NET with C++, but there is no intrinsic support for
COM/OLE Automation in VB.NET.

I can supply more detailed explanations as an answer, I you wish.

regards, mathtalk-ga

I may be misunderstanding your terminology so please forgive me if I
am.

Also I may not understand the term plug-in. I am using the term to
describe a module I will supply. I don't know how it fits in. It could
just be a complied DLL or raw script??

I don't believe it's an OLE automation server I am trying to create.
It is just a small part of the application that need to interact with
another application. For example I may want to open a MS Word file
perform some function on using automation it and save the resulting
file to another location.

Are you saying that I can't automate an by doing something like:

Set Application = CreateObject("Word.Application")

Also, I don't believe the application is web based but the standard
used to create it is .NET???

To me a "plug-in" is a module that is developed to work with an
existing application.  For example, Adobe Acrobat Reader is supplied
as a "plug-in" for Internet Explorer using COM interfaces, but
different files are required to have this support in a Netscape
browser.  So a "plug-in" is not a complete standalone application in
this sense; rather it supplies functionality to a "containing"
application (like MS Word or a browser).

If you wanted to build an application in VB.NET that would create an
instance of MS Word and use it to (for example) open a file and print
it, then that would be possible.  This is what I referred to as .NET
supplying "wrappers" for the COM interfaces ("objects").

On the other hand, if you wanted to create a DLL that would perform
(for example) encryption of strings, and you wanted to be able to
invoke such methods using COM/OLE Automation from within an existing
application like MS Word that allows for "embedded objects" and other
ways to expose the "new" functionality in said DLL, then it would be a
bad idea to program that DLL in VB.NET.  VB.NET will indeed create
DLLs and EXEs, but it does not support the creation of COM interfaces
(objects) through these DLLs or EXEs.

The .NET architecture provides backward compatibility with COM
libraries, but for a variety of design reasons it does not try to
continue in that approach to code reuse and interprocess
communication/interoperability.  It is an entirely new framework which
emphasizes safe memory management and XML/SOAP protocols for
interoperability across platforms.

Some of this may be of little interest to you in building a DLL that
will only run in the context of a standalone machine.  However the
Visual Studio.Net tools, and Visual Basic.Net in particular, are
dependent on a "common runtime" environment.  As Microsoft moves
forward with new operating systems, this new runtime support (which is
intended to work with a number of compliant languages including VB.Net
and C#) will be provided by the OS rather than the .NET SDK framework.

Hope this helps,
mathtalk-ga

I appreciate the response. You have given me some good general
information but I am not sure if it has answered my main question.
Possibly I should have clarified what I already know. I am aware of
visual studio and also VB.NET but I don't know much about either’s
capabilities or which is more appropriate.

I need to know if I create a DLL that become a plug in that I can pass
on to someone else. Or Do I need to pass on a script file.

I also don't know how best to get started. 

It may be as easy as just buying the VB.Net software. But I am worried
that I will buy and find I need a whole swag of other things and then
need to go off and learn NET.NET architecture before I can start.

Hi, whatshisname-ga:

I'm sure I haven't answered your question.  Let's backtrack a bit. 
What are you trying to program?  You've said it might be a DLL or
"script", but what application is this going to "plug-in" to?  What is
it going to do?

Microsoft spent a long time between Visual Studio 6.0 and Visual
Studio .Net, and a lot has changed.  If you are simply wondering if
you can write a "module" in Visual Basic .Net that can be used by
other programmers, this is certainly true.  The usual unit of "code"
produced in .Net is called an "assembly," and it will implement one or
more "classes" (in the object-oriented programming sense) that build
on the .Net framework.  This code is ordinarily not actually compiled
until it is actually called by the .Net runtime, a phenomenon known as
"just in time" complilation (or JIT).  This allows for different
platforms to take advantage of platform specific optimizations.

regards, mathtalk-ga

Sorry for being a little slow responding I am still waiting for
feedback from my client. None yet. I hope my clarification answers you
question anyway.

I have used VB 5 and 6 a little but not for anything serious. I also
do know a little about OOP so should be a good project.

Thanks for all of the information you have supplied. You have
certainly answered my question now. I appreciate it greatly.