Developers interested in Microsoft’s Composite UI Application Block (CAB) will find relevant resources here. Essentially, CAB is a type of glue for developers to use in constructing smart client applications using WinForms. At IdeaBlade, we have been developing expertise in CAB for several years, and although our DevForce product is not required for building functional and efficient CAB applications, DevForce can make CAB application development faster, easier, and more repeatable.

CAB Webinar

To get started with CAB, view our introductory Webinar: “Why CAB? A Business Manager’s Perspective on Microsoft Composite UI Application Block” featuring IdeaBlade’s Ward Bell and Cambar Solutions’ Murray Gordon. In this one-hour session, Ward and Murray cover the basic how, when and why of CAB for enterprise applications, and show some good CAB and Smart Client Software Factory (SCSF) example apps. Download here.

Cabana Sample App

The Cabana application is a simple smart client reference app with a crisp, feature-rich user experience that is easy to deploy and operate over the web. Cabana demonstrates:

• An easy approach to the Composite UI Application Block from Microsoft ’s Patterns & Practices Group.
• Maintainable, reusable code through UI composition.
• Separation of Model (business logic and data access) from Presentation.
• The Model-View-Presenter pattern.
• Performance tuning.
• And more.

Some parts of the code are deliberately naive. Other parts reveal architectural features and design patterns that are "over the top" for such a simple app but that become fruitful as your application grows.

To work with Cabana, follow these steps:

Additional CAB Resources:

• PowerPoint presentation from IdeaBlade’s one-day CAB training.
• Ward Bell’s Blog “Never in Doubt” – frequently covers CAB topics.
• IdeaBlade Discussion Forum, which has a running Cabana discussion.
• IdeaBlade webinars, which often cover CAB topics.
• Microsoft Patterns & Practices CAB site.