Loading Assemblies at Runtime

The .NET runtime will load all assemblies referenced by the current assembly as detailed within the manifest of the dependant assembly. In plain English, a Windows Forms application will have the System.Windows.Forms.dll assembly loaded by the runtime on its behalf because the application has an explicit reference to the required assembly. However, sometimes it might be necessary to dynamically load .NET assemblies at runtime. Such uses include application extensions and various tools, such as the VS.NET IDE, which is capable of loading new .NET components for use by developers.

Loading an assembly at runtime is a powerful mechanism to extend an application. Consider an application that allows forms to be added to ...

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