Dock tile plug-ins for not running applications

Is the dock tile plug-in of an application used even when the application is not active?

The documentation says that the dock tile plug-in is used when the application is loaded in the dock. Does it mean the application 开发者_运维知识库is running, or the application is put in the dock because the user wants it to stay in the dock?

The documentation states that:

Your Dock tile plug-in continues to run as long as your application’s tile is in the Dock, even if your application is actually running.

If you've written one, then it should be a simple enough matter to test and see for yourself.