Programming Windows - Sixth Edition

Reimagined for full-screen and touch-optimized apps, Windows 8 provides a platform for reaching new users in new ways. In response, programming legend Charles Petzold is rewriting his classic Programming Windows—one of the most popular programming books of all time—to show developers how to use existing skills and tools to build Windows 8 apps. Programming Windows, Sixth Edition focuses on creating Windows 8 apps accessing the Windows Runtime with XAML and C#. The book also provides C++ code samples. The Sixth Edition is organized in two parts: Part I, “Elementals,” begins with the interrelationship between code and XAML, basic event handling, dynamic layout, controls, templates, asynchronous processing, the application bar, control customization, and collections. You should emerge from Part I ready to create sophisticated page-oriented collection-based user interfaces using the powerful ListView and GridView controls. Part II, “Specialties,” explores topics you might not need for every program but are essential to a well-rounded education in Windows 8. These include multitouch, bitmap graphics, interfacing with share and search facilities, printing, working with the sensors (GPS and orientation), text, obtaining input from the stylus (including handwriting recognition), accessing web services, calling Win32 and DirectX functions, and bringing your application to the Windows 8 app store. Cover ......Page 1 Copyright Page......Page 2 Table of Contents......Page 3 The Versions of Windows 8......Page 6 The Focus of This Book......Page 7 The Approach......Page 8 The Programming Windows Heritage......Page 10 Errata & Book Support......Page 13 Stay in Touch......Page 14 The First Project......Page 15 Graphical Greetings......Page 21 Variations in Text......Page 24 Media As Well......Page 33 The Code Alternatives......Page 34 Images in Code......Page 38 Not Even a Page......Page 40 The Gradient Brush in Code......Page 42 Property Element Syntax......Page 45 Content Properties......Page 48 The TextBlock Content Property......Page 52 Sharing Brushes (and Other Resources)......Page 54 Resources Are Shared......Page 58 A Bit of Vector Graphics......Page 59 Styles......Page 68 A Taste of Data Binding......Page 74 The Tapped Event......Page 78 Routed Event Handling......Page 81 Overriding the Handled Setting......Page 87 Input, Alignment, and Backgrounds......Page 88 Size and Orientation Changes......Page 91 Bindings to Run?......Page 96 Timers and Animation......Page 98 The Border Element......Page 106 Rectangle and Ellipse......Page 110 The StackPanel......Page 112 Horizontal Stacks......Page 116 WhatSize with Bindings (and a Converter)......Page 119 The ScrollViewer Solution......Page 123 Layout Weirdness or Normalcy?......Page 129 Making an E-Book......Page 130 Fancier StackPanel Items......Page 133 Creating Windows Runtime Libraries......Page 138 The Wrap Alternative......Page 140 The Canvas and Attached Properties......Page 142 The Z-Index......Page 147 Canvas Weirdness......Page 148 The Control Difference......Page 150 The Slider for Ranges......Page 152 The Grid......Page 156 Orientation and Aspect Ratios......Page 163 Tooltips and Conversions......Page 166 Sketching with Sliders......Page 168 The Varieties of Button Experience......Page 170 Dependency Properties......Page 179 RadioButton Tags......Page 187 Keyboard Input and TextBox......Page 194 Touch and Thumb......Page 198 MVVM (Brief and Simplified)......Page 205 Data Binding Notifications......Page 206 A View Model for ColorScroll......Page 208 Deriving from BindableBase......Page 213 The DataContext Property......Page 216 Bindings and TextBox......Page 218 Buttons and MVVM......Page 223 The DelegateCommand Class......Page 225 Commands, Options, and Settings......Page 231 The Segoe UI Symbol Font......Page 233 The Application Bar......Page 239 Popups and Dialogs......Page 241 Windows Runtime File I/O......Page 244 Await and Async......Page 251 Calling Your Own Async Methods......Page 253 Controls for XamlCruncher......Page 255 Application Settings and Isolated Storage......Page 271 The XamlCruncher Page......Page 275 Parsing the XAML......Page 279 XAML Files In and Out......Page 282 The Settings Dialog......Page 286 Beyond the Windows Runtime......Page 291 Author Bio......Page 293 Survey: What do you think of this ebook?......Page 294 Programming legend Charles Petzold is rewriting his classic Programming Windows - one of the most popular programming books of all time - to show developers how to use existing skills and tools to build Windows 8 apps.