.net doing BHO's Choice of platform question - Maybe experts

Hi There,

I want to rewrite an application I originally wrote in VB and because of
annoying limitations that are not worth taking time to code around.

But what language do I use? The application is intended to be a mass market
application so I want it to have wide appeal. In summary my criteria is as
follows:

* I want it to be as compatible as possible (as in Windows 98 etc.). Even
with the option to run on Pocket PC later in it's life is desirable. But I
do not really want users to have to install large libraries to run the
software.
* The application needs to use Browser Helper Objects (BHO's) and browser
bands. In the early version it was a real hindrance that I had chosen VB
because it was not great for developing BHO's. I know it was possible but it
caused major headaches. So what I choose now needs to easily be able to work
with BHO's. In hindsight I should have learnt Visual C++ and the windows
API. Could have had complete control then.
* Although I am essentially writing my application from scratch (quite a big
job) if I can use any of my VB routines for various tasks this is a great
bonus.

Bearing the above in mind I know it seems that Visual Studio.net would be
the obvious choice. But I am not sure if I will be able to build BHO's using
..net and also having to make my users install the .net framework. I am not
sure what the current penetration of this is yet, but it is off putting if
my users first have to do a 20mb download.

So does anyone have any suggestions. Do I perhaps just do the application in
Visual C++ 6 for the time being, and when it comes time to port it to Visual
Studio.net, as I have used C++ it should be easy to port over, right?

It is possible to build the main application in Visual Studio.net and then
have my BHO's coded in Visual C++ and have them talking to each other.

Sorry that this is not the most well structured postings. But I feel I am in
a Limbo stage. Crazy to code with the old stuff, but limit myself with the
new.

Any thoughts?

Regards

Dave.

re: .net doing BHO's Choice of platform question - Maybe experts

Dave,

For me it is normally that

I find out what I have to build (for who, on what platform etc).
(For the mass market we want to built all).

Than I think what tool I want or am able to use.

Than I think what part of the tool I want to use and if it fits

From you I get the idea that you work in the opposite direction. My
expirience is that it moslty leads for me to nothing.

Cor

re: .net doing BHO's Choice of platform question - Maybe experts

"Cor Ligthert" <notmyfirstname@planet.nl> wrote in message news:eX66jJu%>
Dave,[color=blue]
>
> For me it is normally that
>
> I find out what I have to build (for who, on what platform etc).
> (For the mass market we want to built all).
>
> Than I think what tool I want or am able to use.
>
> Than I think what part of the tool I want to use and if it fits
>
> From you I get the idea that you work in the opposite direction. My
> expirience is that it moslty leads for me to nothing.
>
> Cor[/color]
OK. Well I know what I want to build. I guess the mail problem is the BHO
issue. Having hit brick walls with my previous attempt using VB, I guess it
would be good to know if I can build a no resource intensive BHO in .net in
the same way that one could have been build in C++.
IF I knew this at least the .net platform would look more appealing to me.

Also having an idea of what the penetration of the .net frame work is. For
example, if someone buys Windows XP now, does it already come with the .net
framework installed?

Regards

Dave

re: .net doing BHO's Choice of platform question - Maybe experts

Dave,

You know that Microsoft is doing a war against spyware. Which means that
even the in past so often named sollution for everything ActiveX is become
for me in a kind of banned situation.

However you can forever check the MSDE site, that it the best resource for
this.
One of the links to start with can be this.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/de...n/html/bho.asp

I hope this helps?

Cor