The Microsoft Bot Framework allows developers to develop code once and, using the Microsoft Bot Connector, deploy it onto multiple channels, including SMS, Slack, Facebook Messenger, Skype, GroupMe, and many other channels:
Figure 1: Various channels available in the Microsoft Bot Framework
The Microsoft Bot Framework has three main components:
- Bot Connector: This allows you to easily connect your bot to Slack or Skype, via SMS or the web
- Bot Builder SDK: An SDK that allows you to develop bots using C# .NET or Node.js, which is open source
- Bot Directory: A collection of all approved bots connected through the Bot Connector; it is a marketplace where users can search for bots to add in their chat applications
It's really important for Visual Studio to be updated in order to use the Bot Directory, as well as download the web tools in the Visual Studio setup. Update all VS extensions...
