As a developer you are likely painfully aware that not all features of an application can be anticipated when the software ships. In order to cope with these eventualities and save yourself time (and perhaps money), it makes sense to write your applications in such a way that end users can be made as independent of the developers as possible. Giving your users the power to make changes to the way the application operates once it has shipped gives them more control over the way the application works, while reducing the frequency with which you need to redistribute application files, creating a win-win situation.

This book explains how to give users the power to create additional data-entry fields, validation logic, and new reports without assistance from the application developer. You will learn how to do this for both desktop (C# and WPF) and web (ASP) applications.

What you'll learn

* How to allow the user to create validation logic at runtime
* How to define and instantiate controls at runtime and the pitfalls of doing so
* How to create data-driven reports using Excel, Crystal Reports, and SQL Server Reporting Services
* How to design a database structure for optimizing data-driven applications
* How to build a user interface that allows users to modify their application visually


Who is this book for?

This book is for anyone wanting to distribute an application in which the user needs to be as independent of the developer as possible. By using the techniques described in the book, the user will have the power to make modifications to his own applications, and the developer will reduce the frequency with which he needs to redistribute EXEs.