Hi,

can I use VSTO 2005 SE to create one Add-In per Office application which supports the versions 2003 and 2007 in one single assembly? I would like to query the given Application object which type or which version of a type it is to e.g. create a ribbon element in Word 2007 or a command bar in Word 2003.

How would I set up my dev machine if I want to develop for Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007, as it is not supported to have both versions installed on one machine?

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SvenC

I am bumping this because I'd like a response to.

We want to use VSTO 2005 SE to target 2003 and 2007 with a global managed add-in (in Word). In 2003, we'll want to do some CommandBar stuff (and would love to do some actions pane stuff if MS decides to support this from a global add-in). In 2007, we'll want to do some ribbonX and custom task pane stuff.

What's the best way to do this without writing two separate code bases. One assembly with conditional code (like SvenC mentions above)? One base assembly that dynamically loads a plug-in assembly that contains Word version-specific code (i.e., in 2003, dynamically load a MyAddin.Word2003.dll ... in 2007, dynamically load a MyAddin.Word2007.dll).

Can anyone put a simple example out there that minimizes redundant code and supports both 2003 and 2007?

Thanks in advance for the input.

There 2 questions here:

Can you develop an add-in for Office 2007 and Office 2003 and be able to take advantage of the 2007 capability. The second question is "can I debug/test both Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007 on the same machine".

The second question is easier, Office doesn't support Side-by-Side installation of Outlook, so there isn't a way for us to provide the ability to debug in both on the same machine.

The answer to the first question is a little more invloved:

Basically: No, you can't have an add-in that is targeted to both Office 2007 and Office 2003. If you want to have an add-in that works in both, you can develop a 2003 solution and it will continue to run in 2007 but you don't get the snazzy functionality of ribbons, etc. Potentially if you want to provide similar functionality in both: you could build a shared library that holds the core functionality and then reference the library in an addin from each Office Addin, and hook up to the appropriate gui controls/events.

Hi Kris,

Could you clarify one point for me before I consider installing VSTO 2005 SE, the download notes say that you cannot install this product if you have side-by-side versions of Office. You seem to further qualify this as side-by-side versions of Outlook.

I have side-by-side versions of Access but only one version of Outlook (and other office apps) 2007 B2TR. Could you please clarify the nature of this restriction and exactly which parts of Office it pertains to and what it will do or not do in this scenario.

If this is totally restrictive, when or will this be changed??

Cheers Simon