How can COM control be extended in .NET (C#)?

Question

I am using MapPoint COM in small tool for work. It takes addresses from text file and imports as stops to MapPoint.

As far as I know there are not many features or methods I can work with to get more out of MapPoint COM. Which brings me to a questions, how, if I may, extend COM to get more out of it?

Here are few ideas what I mean by extend

External list (DataSource) for Waypoints
Custom events for MapPoint.ActiveMap.ActiveRoute.Waypoints (i.e. when waypoint added, deleted, selection changed, etc) {not important if custom List can be set as datasource, see aove}
Custom MapPoint.Waypoint Objects

Mapoint COM?!? I couldn't even find it in google. AFAIK MapPoint is a technology by Microsoft that provides a programmable web service, http://www.codeproject.com/KB/cs/mappoint.aspx - whats this about it being a COM object? — Jeremy Thompson, Dec 07 '11 at 02:20
Microsoft provides MapPoint SDK which has something to do with map point web services. With map point standalone software installation you can include COM object in reference. More here http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg674771.aspx — jM2.me, Dec 07 '11 at 02:33
Only Microsoft can do this. They implemented the COM server, it is not extensible by you. — Hans Passant, Dec 07 '11 at 02:33
Alright, In the COM there is interface for MapPoint.Location which I need modified at least. I know little about inheritance but yet I fail to see how I can extend it — jM2.me, Dec 07 '11 at 02:36
@Jeremy, Your Google is broken (or you mis-spelt something!). MapPoint Web Service was discontinued in the past month or so. The desktop MapPoint application has been around much longer and is still maintained (2011 is the latest version) it is a big brother of Streets & Trips, provides business extensions and a COM API - and still turns a profit for Microsoft. See MP2KMag.com for a community site; also MSDN has lots of coverage; and I run a commercial site for MapPoint extensions. — winwaed, Dec 07 '11 at 13:25

score 0 · Answer 1 · edited May 23 '17 at 11:55

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Write a wrapper COM control or library which exposes the MapPoint COM object's features as well as new features you write yourself.

Edit: Here's more on wrapper classes: What is a wrapper class?

edited May 23 '17 at 11:55

Community

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answered Dec 07 '11 at 02:15

Richard Brightwell

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score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 07 '11 at 13:29

@Richard Brightwell's wrapper classes might help provide some of what you want but I think overall you are going to be limited. As @Hans Passant says, only Microsoft can change the innards of the MapPoint application.

It is unclear what you mean by your waypoint data source, but you could easily write code that reads waypoint data from somewhere (anywhere) and then uses it to create waypoints (and/or pushpins) one at a time, in MapPoint.

You are never going to be able to add your own event types, unless your wrapper classes fire intermediate events. Eg. Class method X might do X. X contains steps a,b,c and step b fires an event in your code.

How can COM control be extended in .NET (C#)?

2 Answers2