Custom Task Pane Problem

Question

I have created a custom ribbon for PowerPoint in VSTO.  One of the buttons toggles a custom Task Pane and works fine in PowerPoint 2007 regardless of the number of presentations open.  When upgrading to PowerPoint 2010 I developed a strange problem.  If I only have one PowerPoint window is open it works but if I open a second presentation the custom Task Pane will not appear in any but the  first presentation.  I put the message boxes in to show the button is firing it just can only get the  custom Task Pane to appear in the first presentation.

Private Sub btnOnOff_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As Microsoft.Office.Tools.Ribbon.RibbonControlEventArgs) Handles btnOnOff.Click

If btnOnOff.Checked = True Then

With myCustomTaskPane

.Visible = False

MsgBox("OFF")

End With

Else

With myCustomTaskPane

.Visible = True

MsgBox("ON")

End With

End If

End Sub

Any thoughts?

Answer 1

Hmmm.. not sure what that means.  All my other ribbon cusomizations appear in the second window and function.  My WAG has always been that when the second window loads the ribbon customization script is not run and therfore an instance of myCustomTaskPaneis not run.  However i cannot figure out how to create another instance of the myCustomTaskPane.  Any thoughts

Answer 2

Just a WAG, but with 2010, MS allowed each presentation to have its own window, with its own ribbon/toolbars, etc (previously all windows shared the same set of PPT "furniture").

If you have two presentations (and hence two windows) open at once, ribbon customizations to one window don't affect the other window until it's activated, at which point the customizations occur there as well.

My guess is that you're dealing with something vaguely related.  Have you tried activating the target window before making task pane changes?