"dynamic addons" is this the right term?

Question

i'm assigned to research something about how to use “addons” on building a program.

Basically, I have one main program that checks for the available components (ocx, dll, etc). Depending on what components there are, it will dynamically create the menus and load the components.

is this possible using .net Framework 2.0 or later

Answer 1

I think you might be looking for the word "plugin" and it is definitely possible with .Net.

For example: http://www.codeproject.com/KB/dotnet/PluginManagerClassBrk.aspx

Answer 2

One thing you could check out is the Microsoft Enterprise Library "Composite UI Application Block." This framework is designed to help build GUIs by combining separate UI components by composing them together based on various conditions.

I'm not sure if I'm a huge fan - it's pretty complicated and seems clunky to work with, but if you work through some of the examples, it might be worth looking into.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa480450.aspx