Windows 8.1 Apps with XAML and C# Unleashed

Windows 8.1 Apps with XAML and C# Unleashed

Released December 2013
Publisher(s): Sams
ISBN: 9780133744392

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Book description

Full color: Learn how to build great Windows Store apps! Figures and code appear as they do in Visual Studio.

Windows 8.1 enables you to build stunning applications that integrate with each other, Web services, and Windows itself. You can sell them in the Windows Store, with more options than ever before, for tablets such as Surface, laptops, and traditional desktop PCs! World-renowned Microsoft programming guru Adam Nathan shows you exactly how to write first-class apps for this significant update to Windows. Don’t let the minor name change fool you--Windows 8.1 contains an incredible amount of new developer opportunities compared to Windows 8.

Clear, accessible, and intensely practical, this guide teaches through concise code examples, in full color to match their appearance in Visual Studio--the same approach that made Nathan’s WPF Unleashed so popular. Writing with unprecedented depth and insight, Nathan guides you through creating advanced user interfaces with XAML and exploiting key Windows 8.1 features. Whether you’re already comfortable with Microsoft programming or relatively new to it, Windows 8.1 Apps with XAML and C# Unleashed will take you to the cutting edge of Windows 8.1 development.

Detailed information on how to...

  • Use XAML to represent state-of-the-art user interfaces, even across multiple windows

  • Handle touch, mouse, keyboard, and pen input, including handwriting recognition

  • Use new Windows 8.1 controls for creating hubs, flyouts, better app bars, performing in-app searches, rendering PDFs, and much more

  • Encode, decode, and transcode multimedia content and speech-enable your app

  • Leverage rich XAML vector graphics and animation

  • Interact with built-in functionality such as the Camera app, file picker, the lock screen, new contacts and appointments integration, and more

  • Exploit the Windows 8.1 charms bar

  • Integrate DirectX graphics seamlessly

  • Work with the rich set of available sensors: accelerometer, compass, light sensor, location (with geofencing support), proximity, and more

  • Control devices such as fingerprint readers, image and bar code scanners, magnetic stripe readers, and custom Bluetooth, USB, HID, or Wi-Fi Direct devices

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    Table of contents

    1. About This eBook
    2. Title Page
    3. Copyright Page
    4. Contents at a Glance
    5. Table of Contents
    6. About the Author
    7. Dedication
    8. Acknowledgments
    9. We Want to Hear from You!
    10. Reader Services
    11. Introduction
      1. Who Should Read This Book?
      2. Software Requirements
      3. Code Examples
      4. How This Book Is Organized
      5. Conventions Used in This Book
    12. Part I: Getting Started
      1. Chapter 1. Hello, Real World!
        1. Creating, Deploying, and Profiling an App
        2. Understanding the App Package
        3. Updating XAML and C# Code
        4. Making the App World-Ready
        5. Making the App Accessible
        6. Submitting to the Windows Store
        7. Summary
      2. Chapter 2. Mastering XAML
        1. Elements and Attributes
        2. Namespaces
        3. Property Elements
        4. Type Converters
        5. Markup Extensions
        6. Children of Object Elements
        7. Mixing XAML with Procedural Code
        8. XAML Keywords
        9. Summary
    13. Part II: Building an App
      1. Chapter 3. Sizing, Positioning, and Transforming Elements
        1. Controlling Size
        2. Controlling Position
        3. Applying 2D Transforms
        4. Applying 3D Transforms
        5. Summary
      2. Chapter 4. Layout
        1. Discovering Your Window Size and Location
        2. Panels
        3. Handling Content Overflow
        4. Summary
      3. Chapter 5. Interactivity
        1. Dependency Properties
        2. Routed Events
        3. Commands
        4. Summary
      4. Chapter 6. Handling Input: Touch, Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard
        1. Touch Input
        2. Mouse Input
        3. Pen Input
        4. Keyboard Input
        5. Summary
    14. Part III: Working with the App Model
      1. Chapter 7. App Lifecycle
        1. Killing
        2. Suspending
        3. Resuming
        4. Terminating
        5. Launching
        6. Activating
        7. Managing Session State with SuspensionManager
        8. Programmatically Launching Apps
        9. Summary
      2. Chapter 8. Threading, Windows, and Pages
        1. Understanding the Threading Model for Windows Store Apps
        2. Displaying Multiple Windows
        3. Navigating Between Pages
        4. Summary
      3. Chapter 9. The Many Ways to Earn Money
        1. Adding Advertisements to Your App
        2. Supporting a Free Trial
        3. Supporting In-App Purchases
        4. Validating Windows Store Receipts
        5. Testing Windows Store Features
        6. Summary
    15. Part IV: Understanding Controls
      1. Chapter 10. Content Controls
        1. Button
        2. AppBarButton
        3. HyperlinkButton
        4. RepeatButton
        5. ToggleButton
        6. AppBarToggleButton
        7. CheckBox
        8. RadioButton
        9. ToolTip
        10. App Bars
        11. Summary
      2. Chapter 11. Items Controls
        1. Items in the Control
        2. Items Panels
        3. ComboBox
        4. ListBox
        5. ListView
        6. GridView
        7. FlipView
        8. SemanticZoom
        9. MenuFlyout
        10. Summary
      3. Chapter 12. Text
        1. TextBlock
        2. RichTextBlock
        3. TextBox
        4. RichEditBox
        5. PasswordBox
        6. Summary
      4. Chapter 13. Images
        1. The Image Element
        2. Multiple Files for Multiple Environments
        3. Decoding Images
        4. Encoding Images
        5. Rendering PDF Content as an Image
        6. Summary
      5. Chapter 14. Audio, Video, and Speech
        1. Playback
        2. Capture
        3. Transcoding
        4. Speech Synthesis
        5. Summary
      6. Chapter 15. Other Controls
        1. Range Controls
        2. SearchBox
        3. Popup Controls
        4. Hub
        5. Date and Time Controls
        6. ProgressRing
        7. ToggleSwitch
        8. WebView
        9. Summary
    16. Part V: Leveraging the Richness of XAML
      1. Chapter 16. Vector Graphics
        1. Shapes
        2. Geometries
        3. Brushes
        4. Summary
      2. Chapter 17. Animation
        1. Theme Transitions
        2. Theme Animations
        3. Custom Animations
        4. Custom Keyframe Animations
        5. Easing Functions
        6. Manual Animations
        7. Summary
      3. Chapter 18. Styles, Templates, and Visual States
        1. Styles
        2. Templates
        3. Visual States
        4. Summary
      4. Chapter 19. Data Binding
        1. Introducing Binding
        2. Controlling Rendering
        3. Customizing the View of a Collection
        4. High-Performance Rendering with ListView and GridView
        5. Summary
    17. Part VI: Exploiting Windows 8.1
      1. Chapter 20. Working with Data
        1. An Overview of Files and Folders
        2. App Data
        3. User Data
        4. Networking
        5. Summary
      2. Chapter 21. Supporting Charms
        1. The Search Charm
        2. The Share Charm
        3. The Devices Charm
        4. The Settings Charm
        5. Summary
      3. Chapter 22. Leveraging Contracts
        1. Account Picture Provider
        2. AutoPlay Content and AutoPlay Device
        3. File Type Associations
        4. Protocol
        5. File Open Picker
        6. File Save Picker
        7. Contact Picker
        8. The New Contact Contract
        9. The New Appointments Provider Contract
        10. Background Tasks
        11. Summary
      4. Chapter 23. Reading from Sensors
        1. Accelerometer
        2. Gyrometer
        3. Inclinometer
        4. Compass
        5. Light Sensor
        6. Orientation
        7. Location
        8. Proximity
        9. Summary
      5. Chapter 24. Controlling Devices
        1. Fingerprint Readers
        2. Image Scanners
        3. Barcode Scanners
        4. Magnetic Stripe Readers
        5. Custom Bluetooth Devices
        6. Custom Bluetooth Smart Devices
        7. Custom USB Devices
        8. Custom HID Devices
        9. Custom Wi-Fi Direct Devices
        10. Summary
      6. Chapter 25. Thinking Outside the App: Live Tiles, Notifications, and the Lock Screen
        1. Live Tiles
        2. Badges
        3. Secondary Tiles
        4. Toast Notifications
        5. Setting Up Push Notifications
        6. The Lock Screen
        7. Summary
    18. Part VII: Advanced Features
      1. Chapter 26. Integrating DirectX
        1. Integrating as an Image Source
        2. Integrating the Swap Chain
        3. Summary
      2. Chapter 27. Custom Controls and Components
        1. Creating a User Control
        2. Creating a More Complex Control
        3. Creating a Templated Control
        4. Creating a Windows Runtime Component
        5. Summary
      3. Chapter 28. Layout with Custom Panels
        1. Communication Between Parents and Children
        2. Creating a SimpleCanvas
        3. Creating a SimpleStackPanel
        4. Creating a UniformGrid
        5. Summary
    19. Index

    Product information

    • Title: Windows 8.1 Apps with XAML and C# Unleashed
    • Author(s):
    • Release date: December 2013
    • Publisher(s): Sams
    • ISBN: 9780133744392