When you create a new add-in project using the Visual Studio Tools for ArcGIS Explorer, an XML manifest file called AddIns.xml is added to the project, which contains information about the contents of the add-in. It is read by ArcGIS Explorer when the application starts up, and used to display the add-in in the Ribbon and in the ArcGIS Explorer Add-Ins dialog box. An example of the contents of an AddIns.xml file is shown below.
[XML]
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<ExplorerAddIns
name="My Explorer AddIns"
description=""
publisher="ESRI"
groupCaption="My Add-Ins"
xmlns="http://www.esri.com/schemas/ArcGISExplorer/1500/Addins">
<button
id="AddInsProject3.Button1"
assembly="AddInsProject3.dll"
className="AddInsProject3.Button1"
caption="My Button"
largeImage="Images\Button1.png"/>
<extension
id="AddInsProject3.Extension1"
assembly="AddInsProject3.dll"
className="AddInsProject3.Extension1"/>
</ExplorerAddIns>
When you use the Visual Studio Tools for ArcGIS Explorer to add a new Button, CheckBox, ComboBox, DockWindow, Extension or Gallery to an add-in project, this file will automatically be updated with the appropriate information.
You can also directly edit this file if required. For example, you can edit the tooltip of a Button in order to add line breaks by specifying 

 in the tooltip string.
The contents of the AddIns.xml file are described below, and the default entries created by the Visual Studio Tools for ArcGIS Explorer are also listed.
Note: Some elements and attributes only apply to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions, reflecting the new ComboBox and CheckBox add-in types introduced. These are noted in the table below.
Element |
Attributes |
Relations |
Description |
|
ExplorerAddIns
(root)
|
name
groupCaption
description
publisher
xmlns
|
Parent:
None
Children:
button
dockWindow
extension
gallery
|
Root element, containing all add-in class definitions.
Four attributes define information that applies to all add-in classes contained in the add-in. Although only name is required, it is recommended that all four attributes are present and completed with information useful to the user.
May have one or more child elements defining the add-in classes in the add-in.
|
|
button (optional)
|
id
assembly
className
caption
tooltip
helpString
largeImage
smallImage
condition
|
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
A button element is required for each Button class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
Although only id, assembly, className and caption are required, it is recommended that tooltip, largeImage and smallImage are all present and completed with useful information in order to present the correct user interface. The condition attribute may not apply to all cases.
|
|
checkBox
(optional)
|
id
assembly
className
caption
tooltip
helpString
condition
|
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
A checkBox element is required for each checkBox class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
Although only id, assembly, className and caption are required, it is recommended that the tooltip and helpString are present and completed with useful information in order to present the correct user interface. The condition attribute may not apply to all cases.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
comboBox
(optional)
|
id
assembly
className
caption
tooltip
helpString
largeImage
smallImage
condition
editable
resizeable
sizeString
rows
|
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
A comboBox element is required for each comboBox class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
Although only id, assembly, className, caption and editable are required, it is recommended that tooltip, largeImage and smallImage are all present and completed with useful information in order to present the correct user interface.
The condition attribute may not apply to all cases. The resizeable, sizeString, and rows attributes are all optional, and allow you to change how users interact with the comboBox displayed in the Ribbon.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
dockWindow (optional)
|
id
assembly
className
caption
tooltip
helpString
largeImage
smallImage
condition
|
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
A dockWindow element is required for each DockWindow class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
Although only id, assembly, className and caption are required, it is recommended that tooltip, largeImage and smallImage are all present and completed with useful information in order to present the correct user interface.
The condition attribute may not apply to all cases.
|
|
extension (optional)
|
id
assembly
className
caption
|
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
An extension element is required for each Extension class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
The four attributes (id, assembly, className and caption) are all required in order to load the extension and display details in the ArcGIS Explorer Add-Ins dialog.
However as an Extension has no user interface, this element lacks the optional attributes found on the button, dockWindow and gallery elements.
|
|
gallery (optional)
|
id
assembly className caption tooltip helpString largeImage smallImage condition imageSize itemSizeString showItemCaption
showItemCaptionBelow
rows columns inline |
Parent:
ExplorerAddIns
Children:
None
|
A gallery element is required for each Gallery class in the add-in. Using the Visual Studio wizards will automatically add this element to the AddIns.xml file.
Although only id, assembly, className and caption are required, it is recommended that tooltip, largeImage and smallImage are all present and completed with useful information in order to present the correct user interface.
The condition attribute may not apply to all cases. The imageSize, itemSizeString, showItemCaption, showItemCaptionBelow, rows, columns, and inline attributes are all optional, and allow you to change how the gallery is displayed in the Ribbon.
|
Attribute |
Details |
Element |
Description |
|
xmlns
|
string
|
ExplorerAddins
|
Namespace of the add-in schema. The value of this attribute is http://www.esri.com/schemas/ArcGISExplorer/1500/Addins.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
name
|
string, required
|
ExplorerAddins
|
Name of the add-in file, shown in the ArcGIS Explorer Add-Ins dialog. Applies to all add-in classes in the add-in. The default is the same as the project name.
|
|
groupCaption
|
string, required
|
ExplorerAddins
|
Caption of the Ribbon group in which controls in the add-in will be shown. Applies to all add-in classes in the add-in. The default is the same as the project name.
|
|
description
|
string, required
|
ExplorerAddins
|
Description of the add-in file, shown in the ArcGIS Explorer Add-Ins dialog. Applies to all add-in classes in the add-in. The default is an empty string. The New Item and Project wizards will add a default description equalling the name of the add-in.
|
|
publisher
|
string, required
|
ExplorerAddins
|
Publisher of the add-in file, shown in the ArcGIS Explorer Add-Ins dialog. Applies to all add-in classes in the add-in. The default is the current visual studio user.
|
|
id
|
string, required |
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
extension
gallery
|
Unique identifier for the add-in class. The default is the fully-qualified name of the class.
|
|
assembly
|
string, required
|
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
extension
gallery
|
Name of the assembly in which the add-in class is defined, which is present in the add-in file.
|
|
className
|
string, required |
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
extension
gallery
|
Class name of the add-in, fully qualified by namespace. The default namespace is the project name.
|
|
caption
|
string, required |
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
extension
gallery
|
Caption used to display the control in the application Ribbon. The default is the same as the className.
|
|
tooltip
|
string, optional
|
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
gallery
|
Tooltip displayed when the mouse hovers over the control on the Ribbon. By default this attribute is not present.
|
|
helpString
|
string, optional
|
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
gallery
|
URL of a help topic which should be displayed if the user presses F1 when the mouse is over the control on the Ribbon. By default this attribute is not present.
|
|
largeImage
|
string, optional
|
button
comboBox
dockWindow
gallery
|
Relative path to an image file within the add-in .eaz file, to be displayed on the Ribbon when an icon size of 32 x 32 pixels is required. By default a standard image is added and referenced.
|
|
smallImage
|
string, optional
|
button
comboBox
dockWindow
gallery
|
Relative path to an image file within the add-in .eaz file, to be displayed on the Ribbon when an icon size of 16 x 16 pixels is required. By default a standard image is added and referenced.
|
|
condition
|
ST_Condition, optional
|
button
checkBox
comboBox
dockWindow
gallery
|
Application condition upon which the button, check box, combo box, dockable window, or gallery should be enabled. By default this attribute is not present.
See the How to use ArcGIS Explorer application conditions topic for more information on the different conditions available. |
|
editable
|
boolean,
required
|
comboBox
|
If true, the user may edit the text in the comboBox in addition to selecting items from the drop down list. By default, this attribute is false.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
resizeable
|
boolean,
optional
|
comboBox
|
If true, this adds a strip along the bottom of the dropdown that you can drag with the mouse to resize, changing the number of items shown in the dropdown. It does not affect combo width. By default, this attribute is false.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
sizeString
|
string,
optional
|
comboBox
|
A representative string of characters used to compare gallery item caption length; captions longer than this string will be truncated in the display. By default this attribute is not present, in which case captions are truncated to the maximum standard width for the application.
This attribute applies to ArcGIS Explorer 1500 and later versions.
|
|
rows
|
string,
optional
|
comboBox, gallery
|
Contains an integer number, indicating the number of rows to display in the drop down portion of the comboBox or gallery. By default this attribute is not present, in which case a default value of 4 rows is used for a comboBox, and 10 rows for a gallery.
|
|
imageSize
|
string, optional
|
gallery
|
Size that gallery item images are displayed in the Ribbon, in pixels. Images are scaled if necessary. Width and height may differ, using the format 'width:height'. By default this attribute is not present, in which case images will default to 48x48 pixels.
|
|
itemSizeString
|
string, optional
|
gallery
|
A representative string of characters used to compare gallery item caption length; captions longer than this string will be truncated in the display. By default this attribute is not present, in which case captions are truncated to the maximum standard width for the application.
|
|
showItemCaption
|
boolean, optional
|
gallery
|
If the value is 'true', gallery item captions are shown; if 'false', captions are not shown. By default thisattribute is set to true; if not present, a default value of true is used.
|
|
showItemCaptionBelow
|
boolean, optional
|
gallery
|
If the value is 'true' and captions are shown, captions appear below the gallery item icon; if 'false' and captions are shown, captions are shown to the right of gallery item icons. By default this attribute is not present; if not present, a default value of false is used.
|
|
columns
|
string, optional
|
gallery
|
Contains an integer number, indicating the number of columns used to display gallery items. By default this attribute is not present, in which case a default value of 2 columns is used.
|
|
inline
|
boolean, optional
|
gallery
|
If the value is 'true', gallery items are shown inline in the Ribbon with a drop-down list to display any additional items; if 'false', the gallery is shown as a button, with a drop-down list of items shown when clicked . By default this attribute is not present; if not present, a default value of false is used.
|
See Also:
Customizing ArcGIS ExplorerHow ArcGIS Explorer finds and loads add-ins
How to use ArcGIS Explorer application conditions