Question controlling deployment?

[barkode]

So I’m new to programming. Had an app idea, couldn’t find anyone to help me out with it, so I eyed VB.NET 2010 Express and created the damn app. It’s up and running and it does what it’s supposed to do (in v1). Now I’d like to distribute it for free while:

(1). Have a reliable way of knowing (and everybody can check this out) the number of downloads.
(2). The app cannot be passed from one user to another, but has to be downloaded from the reputable biz (there can be more than one biz) that accurately provides the number of downloads.
(3). I can have total control over the app (once it’s downloaded by the users), that is if I want to inform the users of updates or whatever, or if I want to add some ad windows to the form I can do it whenever I want and how I please.

How do I do (1) to (3)? What am I supposed to read to do (3)? ADO.NET and ASP.NET? Any shortcut? What’s the easiest way of doing it? I’m not sure I’m looking for a career in programming, for now I just want to take this app off my shoulders and go back to daydreaming.

Thanks

 

[Menthos]

Pretty loose link to .NET deployment to be honest. All of your points are going to be wholly dependent on who you choose to host your file(s) - I assume that's really what you're after, someone to recommend a hosting service.

There is no 'reliable' way to know an exact download figure - it's easy enough for a site to store a figure of the number of times a link has been clicked, but that's not a guarantee that the file download completes, or that the file is even in use.

'Total control' of your app is down to you to code into it - how complex you want to make that is up to you - but at the end of the day, you're only going to be able to remotely alter those aspects that you've had the foresight to code dynamically.

 

[barkode]

So are there just some standard steps, such as: if you want to have THIS level of control over your (already distributed) app:
(1) you should add THIS lines of codes OR
(2) you give your app to this or that biz to distribute and they’ll know what to do (i.e. they’ll add the code themselves).

What does one – with some VB.NET 2010 Express knowledge – needs to read to better understand how to accomplish (1) and (2)?

Thanks

 

[Menthos]

If you want an app to do something, you code it to do that something. You may find someone who has done something similar and has shared their code, but there's no automatic way of doing it.

If you truly want control to change aspects of the application that the end-user is working with, look into web-enabling your app.

 

[barkode]

I have a feeling that "web-enabling your app." is what I'm looking for. Thanks Menthos