In Xojo 2012r2 we released the Web Control SDK, making it easy for anyone to create custom web controls for use with the web framework. Prior to that, some of you created web controls using a method that was not officially supported. The purpose of the Web Control SDK is to provide a way to create controls that is supported and will continue to be supported in the future.
As you probably know, later this year we will ship support for iOS. You will then be able to create apps for iPhone and iPad. At that time, we will be introducing a new framework called the Xojo framework. The current framework will then be referred to as the Classic framework. The Xojo framework is being designed to be very much like the Classic framework but with some changes made to make it more consistent, more explicit, more powerful and easier to use. To create apps for iOS, you will have to use the Xojo framework.
After we ship support for iOS, we will be bringing the Xojo framework to the web. At that point, you will be able to share just about all code including controls and UI code between iOS and web projects. The Xojo web framework will only support web custom controls created with the Web Control SDK. So if you have created web controls without using the Web Control SDK, I strongly advise you to convert them so that you can continue to use them today and have them be compatible with the new Xojo framework. If you are using third party web controls created by others, please encourage those developers to convert them to use the Web Control SDK to help your transition from the Classic framework to the upcoming Xojo framework as smooth as possible.
Are you creating custom controls for your web applications today? Tell me what kinds of controls you are creating and what sorts of controls you’d like to see us add in the future.