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Announcement: 13

Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) announcements

  • Link
    New release of VSTO run-time fixes issues
    Cindy Meister MVP

    For details, see the blog article http://blogs.msdn.com/b/vsto/archive/2014/04/10/vsto-runtime-update-to-address-slow-shutdown-and-unknown-publisher-for-sha256-certificates.aspx

    This release fixes:

    1. For VSTO add-ins using WPF controls, customers using touch-enabled
    devices experienced a 15-20 second lag when closing Office applications

    2. for developers using SHA256 code-signing certificates, the installation
    Trust Prompt would erroneously display “Unknown Publisher” even when the
    publisher was fully trusted.

  • Link
    Roadmap for Apps for Office, VSTO, and VBA
    Cindy Meister MVP

    Many folks have been asking about the emerging "apps for Office" model, and what it means for the future of VSTO.  Rest assured that VSTO continues to be alive and well.  In fact, many existing automation scenarios continue to be best served by VSTO for now.  At the same time, there are many exciting opportunities to look forward in apps for Office: for example, the ability to better integrate with web content and JavaScript/CSS libraries, support for additional programming languages and platforms, support for host applications beyond the desktop versions of Office, and new distribution, lifecycle management, and monetization opportunities through the Office Store.

    To learn more, please see the blog post:  "Roadmap for Apps for Office, VSTO, and VBA".

  • Link
    Office Tools for Visual Studio 2015
    Cindy Meister MVP

    The newest version of Visual Studio - 2015 - is now available.

    The Community edition of Visual Studio also supports "Office Tools", including VSTO and "Apps for Office" templates. Both can be downloaded at
    https://www.visualstudio.com/features/office-tools-vs

    What was new in VS 2013 for Office:

    For VSTO developers in particular, new in this release is the ability to code-sign VSTO solutions with SHA-256 certificates.  The latest release also supports Office 2013 right-out-of-the-box without requiring a separate download, and the Office 2013 templates can now target the latest .NET Framework 4.5.1.

    Visual Studio 2013 also delivers a broad set of tooling for the new apps for Office and apps for SharePoint.  Some highlights include the ability to create MVC SharePoint apps, enhancements around app-publishing, and a new set of tooling around Cloud Business Apps that integrate seamlessly with Office 365 services.  Learn more on the apps for Office and SharePoint blog.

    Tip: 
    Just like Visual Studio 2012, Visual Studio 2013 continues to support the Office 2010 templates.  However, to reduce clutter, we have re-categorized the project templates according to the .NET Framework version that they support.  So, if you're looking for the Office 2010 templates, be sure to adjust the ".NET Framework" dropdown to ".NET Framework 4.0".

    We hope you enjoy Visual Studio 2013 and the many great features that this IDE has to offer!

    ~ Michael Zlatkovsky | Program Manager, Visual Studio Tools for Office & Apps for Office


  • Link
    Documentation for Office 2013 Ribbon controls now available
    Cindy Meister MVP

    I know the documentation for Office 2013 is still somewhat limited, but hopefully the following link will help.

    Microsoft Office Document: [MS-CustomUI2] Supporting Documentation - http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=727

    From here, you should be able to download the *.txt files for Word, Excel and PowerPoint, plus the imageMso information. Once a file is downloaded, it can be opened in Excel to make it easier to look through all the controls.

    Best Regards,
    Nathan O.
    Microsoft Online Community Support

Visual Studio LightSwitch Extensibility announcements

Visual Studio LightSwitch - General Questions announcements

Visual Studio Visualization announcements

Visual Studio Tools for Applications (VSTA) announcements

  • Link
    Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for Applications 2015 released!
    Xiaoying Guo

    You can get the VSTA 2015 and VSTA 2015 SDK through the links below:

    The overall summary of VSTA 2015:

    Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for Applications lets you enable end users to customize your existing applications using Visual Basic and Visual C#. Since the VSTA 2012 release, several changes have been introduced to the licensing model as well as to how you integrate VSTA into your applications: 

    • There is no longer a licensing fee for the VSTA redistributable components. Your organization can distribute and use the VSTA redistributable components free of charge.
    • VSTA no longer provides its own Visual Studio Environment for authoring macros. Instead, a supported version of Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) is required to develop VSTA macros and add-ins. VSTA has two primary modes of operation: with Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) installed and standalone. In standalone mode, VSTA provides your application with the means to load, compile, and run end user customizations. With a supported version of Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) installed on your user’s machine, VSTA extends that functionality with the means to edit and debug those customizations.
    • VSTA 2015 supports .NET Framework 4.5.1.
    • VSTA 2015 presents a simplified API for integrating design-time experiences into your application using either managed (Visual C# or Visual Basic .NET) or unmanaged (Visual C++) code. It simplifies tasks such as finding the installation of Visual Studio, launching the external process, and synchronizing save state, making integration significantly easier than previous versions.
    • VSTA 2015 provides the ability to upgrade VSTA projects from Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008, compile, and run them. It also maintains compatibility with VSTA 2012 and VSTA 2013 projects.
    • VSTA no longer requires your application host to provide a runtime library in order to run. This gives you the flexibility to choose the method of running user code best tailored to the host application.

    System Requirement:

    • Windows 7 Service Pack 1
    • Windows 8
    • Windows 8.1
    • Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1
    • Windows Server 2012
    • Windows 10

    Runtime requirement for VSTA 2013:

    Requirement to enable editing and debugging for VSTA customization:

    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 (Professional Edition or above)
    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2013 (Community Edition or above)
    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2015 (Community Edition or above)
  • Link
    VSTA API reference documentation is now available at MSDN!
    Xiaoying Guo
    Now you can access the VSTA API references at anytime using any Internet connected device through https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dn707392.aspx.

Tools for Apache Cordova announcements

Found 39851 threads
Announcement: 13

Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) announcements

  • Link
    New release of VSTO run-time fixes issues
    Cindy Meister MVP

    For details, see the blog article http://blogs.msdn.com/b/vsto/archive/2014/04/10/vsto-runtime-update-to-address-slow-shutdown-and-unknown-publisher-for-sha256-certificates.aspx

    This release fixes:

    1. For VSTO add-ins using WPF controls, customers using touch-enabled
    devices experienced a 15-20 second lag when closing Office applications

    2. for developers using SHA256 code-signing certificates, the installation
    Trust Prompt would erroneously display “Unknown Publisher” even when the
    publisher was fully trusted.

  • Link
    Roadmap for Apps for Office, VSTO, and VBA
    Cindy Meister MVP

    Many folks have been asking about the emerging "apps for Office" model, and what it means for the future of VSTO.  Rest assured that VSTO continues to be alive and well.  In fact, many existing automation scenarios continue to be best served by VSTO for now.  At the same time, there are many exciting opportunities to look forward in apps for Office: for example, the ability to better integrate with web content and JavaScript/CSS libraries, support for additional programming languages and platforms, support for host applications beyond the desktop versions of Office, and new distribution, lifecycle management, and monetization opportunities through the Office Store.

    To learn more, please see the blog post:  "Roadmap for Apps for Office, VSTO, and VBA".

  • Link
    Office Tools for Visual Studio 2015
    Cindy Meister MVP

    The newest version of Visual Studio - 2015 - is now available.

    The Community edition of Visual Studio also supports "Office Tools", including VSTO and "Apps for Office" templates. Both can be downloaded at
    https://www.visualstudio.com/features/office-tools-vs

    What was new in VS 2013 for Office:

    For VSTO developers in particular, new in this release is the ability to code-sign VSTO solutions with SHA-256 certificates.  The latest release also supports Office 2013 right-out-of-the-box without requiring a separate download, and the Office 2013 templates can now target the latest .NET Framework 4.5.1.

    Visual Studio 2013 also delivers a broad set of tooling for the new apps for Office and apps for SharePoint.  Some highlights include the ability to create MVC SharePoint apps, enhancements around app-publishing, and a new set of tooling around Cloud Business Apps that integrate seamlessly with Office 365 services.  Learn more on the apps for Office and SharePoint blog.

    Tip: 
    Just like Visual Studio 2012, Visual Studio 2013 continues to support the Office 2010 templates.  However, to reduce clutter, we have re-categorized the project templates according to the .NET Framework version that they support.  So, if you're looking for the Office 2010 templates, be sure to adjust the ".NET Framework" dropdown to ".NET Framework 4.0".

    We hope you enjoy Visual Studio 2013 and the many great features that this IDE has to offer!

    ~ Michael Zlatkovsky | Program Manager, Visual Studio Tools for Office & Apps for Office


  • Link
    Documentation for Office 2013 Ribbon controls now available
    Cindy Meister MVP

    I know the documentation for Office 2013 is still somewhat limited, but hopefully the following link will help.

    Microsoft Office Document: [MS-CustomUI2] Supporting Documentation - http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=727

    From here, you should be able to download the *.txt files for Word, Excel and PowerPoint, plus the imageMso information. Once a file is downloaded, it can be opened in Excel to make it easier to look through all the controls.

    Best Regards,
    Nathan O.
    Microsoft Online Community Support

Visual Studio LightSwitch Extensibility announcements

Visual Studio LightSwitch - General Questions announcements

Visual Studio Visualization announcements

Visual Studio Tools for Applications (VSTA) announcements

  • Link
    Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for Applications 2015 released!
    Xiaoying Guo

    You can get the VSTA 2015 and VSTA 2015 SDK through the links below:

    The overall summary of VSTA 2015:

    Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for Applications lets you enable end users to customize your existing applications using Visual Basic and Visual C#. Since the VSTA 2012 release, several changes have been introduced to the licensing model as well as to how you integrate VSTA into your applications: 

    • There is no longer a licensing fee for the VSTA redistributable components. Your organization can distribute and use the VSTA redistributable components free of charge.
    • VSTA no longer provides its own Visual Studio Environment for authoring macros. Instead, a supported version of Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) is required to develop VSTA macros and add-ins. VSTA has two primary modes of operation: with Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) installed and standalone. In standalone mode, VSTA provides your application with the means to load, compile, and run end user customizations. With a supported version of Visual Studio Professional (Premium, or Ultimate) installed on your user’s machine, VSTA extends that functionality with the means to edit and debug those customizations.
    • VSTA 2015 supports .NET Framework 4.5.1.
    • VSTA 2015 presents a simplified API for integrating design-time experiences into your application using either managed (Visual C# or Visual Basic .NET) or unmanaged (Visual C++) code. It simplifies tasks such as finding the installation of Visual Studio, launching the external process, and synchronizing save state, making integration significantly easier than previous versions.
    • VSTA 2015 provides the ability to upgrade VSTA projects from Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008, compile, and run them. It also maintains compatibility with VSTA 2012 and VSTA 2013 projects.
    • VSTA no longer requires your application host to provide a runtime library in order to run. This gives you the flexibility to choose the method of running user code best tailored to the host application.

    System Requirement:

    • Windows 7 Service Pack 1
    • Windows 8
    • Windows 8.1
    • Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1
    • Windows Server 2012
    • Windows 10

    Runtime requirement for VSTA 2013:

    Requirement to enable editing and debugging for VSTA customization:

    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 (Professional Edition or above)
    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2013 (Community Edition or above)
    • Microsoft Visual Studio 2015 (Community Edition or above)
  • Link
    VSTA API reference documentation is now available at MSDN!
    Xiaoying Guo
    Now you can access the VSTA API references at anytime using any Internet connected device through https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dn707392.aspx.

Tools for Apache Cordova announcements