Professional Windows 8 Programming: Application Development with C# and XAML

Chapter 5

Application Life Cycle

WHAT’S IN THIS CHAPTER?

• Understanding and handling the Windows 8 life cycle
• Implementing background operations

WROX.COM CODE DOWNLOADS FOR THIS CHAPTER

You can find the wrox.com code downloads for this chapter at www.wrox.com/remtitle.cgi?isbn=1118205707 on the Download Code tab, in the zip file 205709 C05.zip.

APPLICATIONS REBORN

Microsoft says that Windows 8 is an OS of no compromise. This vision has even led it to rethink how the OS manages applications, resulting in a new way to hook into Windows, which provides a standard interface so that Windows can understand the needs of your applications rather than just let them run. This reimagining of how the OS interacts with applications significantly enhances the user experience for the applications and the device running them.

WHAT IS THE WINDOWS 8 LIFE CYCLE?

In traditional desktop applications, the life cycle of an application is cut and dry. An application starts via a shortcut and runs until the user closes it or initiates a shutdown. While it is running, it has unregulated access to the processor, disk, and network resources. This model has worked great since the dawn of PCs, but in the realm of mobile devices, this life cycle breaks down mainly because of battery life and heat concerns. Mobile operating systems, such as Windows Phone, limit when and how long apps have access to system resources. Windows 8 borrows this app life-cycle model because of the increased mobility of PCs such as ...