Announcing the Windows SideShow Managed API SDK and Runtime releases!

Question

Download Locations

Windows SideShow Managed API 1.0 SDK (for developers writing gadgets using managed code)

Windows SideShow Managed Runtime 1.0 (for running gadgets built using managed code)

 

It has been 16 months since the release of our Managed API Beta. We’re excited to have these RTM releases now available, and cannot wait to see what creative gadgets you build based on this! We look forward to seeing new gadgets up on the Windows Live Gallery!

 

The SDK installs the runtime and development components that are required to build and run gadgets for Windows SideShow in managed code using the .NET Framework.  Windows SideShow project templates in C# and Visual Basic have been integrated with Visual Studio (supporting 2005 and 2008) to give you a great starting place when developing gadgets.

 

Updated documentation is included with the SDK and is integrated with Visual Studio. Among many other updates, the documentation includes a walkthrough of building a setup package for a gadget that depends on the managed API.

 

The runtime package is targeted for end users. It installs the runtime components that are required to run gadgets for Windows SideShow built on this SDK.

 

 

-Darryl

Answer 1

I've installed the SideShow managed API 1.0 SDK and the SideShow Managed Runtime 1.0, but I'm not seeing any Sideshow Templates in Visual Studio 2005.

Is anything else required? (Compact Framework for instance?)

Answer 2

When you installed the SDK, you should have seen a window open for the Visual Studio Installer to install the templates. Did you see it? Perhaps closed it by accident?

 

You can run the VSI again from C:\Program Files\Windows SideShow\Managed API 1.0 SDK\VisualStudioTemplates (or whatever drive you installed on). Just double-click SideShowVSTemplates.vsi and run through the installation wizard for the templates.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Answer 3

Thanks, I finally found the templates, they're at the root level of the languages in Visual Studio 2005 (ie, Directly attached to Visual Basic, or Visual C# in the project types tree), not under any of the project sub-types.

 

 

Answer 4

Correct!

 

Answer 5

I installed the SDK and the runtime. When I try to open Documentation, the documentation fails to open and the following dialog is displayed:

 

Microsoft Document Explorer cannot be shown because the specified help collection 'ms-help://ms.vscc.v90' is invalid.

 

I'm not sure how to fix this problem. Is the same documentation available on MSDN by any chance?