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I have been searching these forums, but also the web at large. Can you tell me if WebParts for Webform applications are obsolete? Or, can you tell me if they are only designed to work with IE specifically? I really want to integrate the webparts functoinality but it needs to work across browsers. (this is not a sharepoint webpart)

Thanks.

jmorrissette
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  • There is a similar post here, http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2225226/asp-net-web-parts-drag-and-drop-support-in-non-ie-browsers, and this mentions support in non-IE. What framework are you using? – Christian Phillips Jan 07 '13 at 09:21
  • I am using asp.net 4.5 I read through that article earlier and it was the most helpful if any. But, most of the links are deadends and the post is a few years old. I get the impression that there was an asp.net futures extension available for a time but it is no longer available. Several people claim this was to be supported in 3.5, etc. Argh. – jmorrissette Jan 07 '13 at 23:57
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    I recently did the MCTS Web 4.0, and there was a question in there on Web Parts, and the MS Press book covered Web Parts so they are definitely still part of the framework. Also, if you take a look here, you might get some more help http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/a019833t.aspx. – Christian Phillips Jan 08 '13 at 08:50
  • For these controls to have any serious kind of adoption, it seems supporting Chrome, Safari, or Mozilla would be a serious endeavor for the asp.net development team. That is why I wondered if they are continuing to include them more out of backward compatibility and less because they expect them to become more widely adopted. Thanks for the link, that is definitley helpful information. I am newer to programming, so it helps to learn about these repositories of information. – jmorrissette Jan 09 '13 at 04:21

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As far as I can tell, they are not obsolete as they are supported in .Net 4.0 framework but you are right in that the rely on IE. Personally, if you require cross-browser support I would not be considering this functionality. If you need drag/drop features, date pickers etc, I would consider something like jQuery UI and individual libraries for rich, feed-based components e.g. Twitterizer.

Alternatively, there are paid solutions available like Telerik's Kendo UI which perform many similar and additional functions and are probably much better.

Digbyswift
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  • The libraries you mention are sharp. I really want the ability for users to configure/ personalize pages with customizable content. The drag and drop is a strong visual and practical ingredient. Webparts seem perfect. – jmorrissette Jan 07 '13 at 23:51
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    Digbyswift, I didn't want this to be the right answer. For the last week I have continued to google and research. I am abandoning webparts per lack of cross browser compatibility. – jmorrissette Jan 10 '13 at 05:07