An intro to ASP .NET WebParts

WebParts are part of the Presentation Layer and empower users with the capability of customizing the contents of the Web page being visualized. A WebPart is a control whose positioning, content and design can be customized effortlessly by the user, creating a richer and easier interaction. A WebPart can be in one of five modes: Browse, for standard navigation; Design, which allows users to minimize and drag WebParts between zones; Edit, on which an EditorZone control is displayed allowing the user to add WebParts properties at runtime; Catalog, on which a CatalogZone control is displayed so that the user can use it to add new Web Parts to the page while navigating; and Connect (not explored yet). The Sentry Customer Interface has its WebParts in Design mode, allowing only their minimization and customization of their position.
WebParts use a WebPartZone as a container and can be moved within their container (to change their position) and between other WebPartZones that exist on the Web page. Almost all controls can be displayed from within a WebPart, using the GenericWebPart control as a wrapper.
The WebPart framework requires a database, local or located on a server, to enable persistence of the customization options. This database is tipically "aspnetdb" and can be created by running the "aspnet_regsql" command. The customization settings are kept in a per-user basis (with the current logged on user by default).