To understand the goal, you might want to read the article referenced at: User Control Components in VB.NET first.
The idea of coding your own controls is deeply embedded across .NET, including ASP.NET, and a great example of the boost in productivity that you get with Visual Studio. You just can do this kind of coding productively if you try to do everything on your own.
In ASP.NET coded using Visual Studio .NET, you have more choices. You can create either Web User Controls and Server Controls. Web User Controls are easier to create but can only be used in a single project. So they're a good idea if you need the same control on different pages in one application. Server Controls can be added to the Toolbox and are coded entirely as a VB class file, so they're easier to use in different applications, but they're more difficult to program. The initial CalcPad control will be created as a Web User Control.
