ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies®

2.4. Working with the Toolbox

The Toolbox is where you store, um, tools. You use the Toolbox frequently in this book, so it helps to know its tricks.

2.4.1. Auto Hide and the pushpin

By default, the Toolbox plays peeka-boo to give you the maximum screen real estate as you work in the page editor. If you want the Toolbox to remain visible, pass your mouse over the Toolbox tab and click the pushpin so the pushpin becomes vertical, as shown in Figure 2-12.

Figure 2-12. The Auto Hide button controls the peeka-boo setting of the Toolbox.

NOTE

If the Toolbox disappears completely, choose ViewToolbox.

2.4.2. Adding controls to the VWDE Toolbox

Visual Web Developer Express doesn't support higher-end automation features that let third-party installers fill the Toolbox for you. You can still use controls that you build or buy, but you need to add components manually. As you see in the following sections, adding stuff to the Toolbox is no big deal.

2.4.2.1. Obtaining the AJAX Control Toolkit

This section shows how to add controls to the Toolbox by using the free AJAX Control Toolkit as an example. These same steps apply to other non-Microsoft controls but because I show you how to use the AJAX Control Toolkit extensively in Chapter 15, it's handy to have it ready.

Here's how to obtain ...