"One of the new features in Visual Studio 2005 (VS2005) is easier custom control development for .NET Compact Framework. This article is about how to use Visual Studio 2005 to create custom control for .NET Compact Framework and provide design-time support. ... Visual Studio 2005 fully supports creating custom controls in .NET Compact Framework. In addition, custom control developers can create a great design-time experience for custom control users. Design-time support makes it easier for developers to use custom controls in Visual Studio 2005 Smart Device projects."
Custom controls are user interface building blocks, that enables the developers to re-use user interface code on multiple screens and thereby providing the users of the application with a consistent interface. Xin Yan, a software developer at Microsoft for the .Net Compact Framework in Visual Studio, has written a helpful article on how to use Visual Studio 2005 to create custom controls for mobile applications. The article guides the developer through the steps needed to write a custom control for sign-in forms.