book

Programming Windows®, Six Edition

by Charles Petzold

January 2013

Intermediate to advanced

1136 pages

34h 9m

English

Microsoft Press

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The Versions of Windows 8The Focus of This BookThe ApproachSource CodeMy SetupThe Programming Windows HeritageMore in the FutureBehind the ScenesErrata & Book SupportWe Want to Hear from YouStay in Touch
The First ProjectGraphical GreetingsVariations in TextMedia As WellThe Code AlternativesImages in CodeNot Even a Page
The Gradient Brush in CodeProperty-Element SyntaxContent PropertiesThe TextBlock Content PropertySharing Brushes (and Other Resources)Resources Are SharedExploring Vector GraphicsStretching with ViewboxStylesA Taste of Data Binding
The Tapped EventRouted Event HandlingOverriding the Handled SettingInput, Alignment, and BackgroundsSize and Orientation ChangesBindings to Run?Timers and Animation
The Border ElementRectangle and EllipseThe StackPanelHorizontal StacksWhatSize with Bindings (and a Converter)The ScrollViewer SolutionLayout Weirdness or Normalcy?Making an E-BookFancier StackPanel ItemsDeriving from UserControlCreating Windows Runtime LibrariesThe Wrap AlternativeThe Canvas and Attached PropertiesThe Z-IndexCanvas Weirdness
The Control DifferenceThe Slider for RangesThe GridOrientation and Aspect RatiosSlider and the Formatted String ConverterTooltips and ConversionsSketching with SlidersThe Varieties of Button ExperienceDefining Dependency PropertiesRadioButton TagsKeyboard Input and TextBoxTouch and Thumb
MVVM (Brief and Simplified)Data Binding NotificationsA View Model for ColorScrollSyntactic ShortcutsThe DataContext PropertyBindings and TextBoxButtons and MVVMThe DelegateCommand Class
Threads and the User InterfaceWorking with MessageDialogCallbacks as Lambda FunctionsThe Amazing await OperatorCancelling an Asynchronous OperationApproaches to File I/OApplication Local StorageFile PickersBulk AccessFile Pickers and File I/OHandling ExceptionsConsolidating Async CallsStreamlined File I/OApplication Lifecycle IssuesYour Own Asynchronous Methods

Implementing Context MenusThe Popup DialogApplication BarsThe Application Bar Button StyleInside the Segoe UI Symbol FontApp Bar CheckBox and RadioButtonAn App Bar for a Note PadIntroducing XamlCruncherApplication Settings and View ModelsThe XamlCruncher PageParsing the XAMLXAML Files In and OutThe Settings DialogBeyond the Windows Runtime
The Windows.UI.Xaml.Media.Animation NamespaceAnimation BasicsAnimation Variation AppreciationOther Double AnimationsAnimating Attached PropertiesThe Easing FunctionsAll-XAML AnimationsAnimating Custom ClassesKey Frame AnimationsThe Object AnimationPredefined Animations and Transitions
A Brief OverviewRotation (Manual and Animated)Visual FeedbackTranslationTransform GroupsThe Scale TransformBuilding an Analog ClockSkewMaking an EntranceTransform MathematicsThe Composite TransformGeometry TransformsBrush TransformsDude, Where’s My Element?Projection TransformsDeriving a Matrix3D
Data in a ButtonMaking DecisionsCollection Controls and the Real Use of DataTemplateCollections and InterfacesTapping and SelectingPanels and Virtualizing PanelsCustom PanelsThe Item Template Bar ChartThe FlipView ControlThe Basic Control TemplateThe Visual State ManagerUsing generic.xamlTemplate PartsCustom ControlsTemplates and Item Containers
Screen Resolution IssuesScaling IssuesSnap ViewsOrientation ChangesSimple Page NavigationThe Back StackNavigation Events and Page RestorationSaving and Restoring Application StateNavigational Accelerators and Mouse ButtonsPassing and Returning DataVisual Studio Standard TemplatesView Models and CollectionsGrouping the Items
A Pointer RoadmapA First Dab at Finger PaintingCapturing the PointerEditing with a Popup MenuPressure SensitivitySmoothing the TapersHow Do I Save My Drawings?Real and Surreal Finger PaintingA Touch PianoManipulation, Fingers, and ElementsWorking with InertiaAn XYSlider ControlCentered Scaling and RotationSingle-Finger Rotation
Pixel BitsTransparency and Premultiplied AlphasA Radial Gradient BrushLoading and Saving Image FilesPosterize and MonochromizeSaving Finger Paint ArtworkHSL Color SelectionReverse PaintingAccessing the Pictures LibraryCapturing Camera Photos
An Introduction to P/InvokeSome HelpTime Zone InformationA Windows Runtime Component Wrapper for DirectXDirectWrite and FontsConfigurations and PlatformsInterpreting Font MetricsDrawing on a SurfaceImageSource
Private FontsA Taste of GlyphsFont Files in Local StorageTypographical EnhancementsRichTextBlock and ParagraphsRichTextBlock SelectionRichTextBlock and OverflowThe Perils of PaginationRich Editing with RichEditBoxYour Own Text Input
Settings and PopupsSharing Through the ClipboardThe Share CharmBasic PrintingPrintable and Unprintable MarginsThe Pagination ProcessCustom Printing PropertiesPrinting a Monthly PlannerPrinting a Range of PagesWhere to Do the Big Jobs?Printing FingerPaint Art
Orientation and OrientationAcceleration, Force, Gravity, and VectorsFollow the Rolling BallThe Two NorthsInclinometer = Accelerometer + CompassOrientationSensor = Accelerometer + CompassAzimuth and AltitudeBing Maps and Bing Map Tiles
The InkManager CollectionsThe Ink Drawing AttributesErasing and Other EnhancementsSelecting StrokesThe Yellow Pad

Content preview from Programming Windows®, Six Edition

Chapter 2. XAML Syntax

A Windows 8 application is divided into code and markup because each has its own strength. Despite the limitations of markup in performing complex logic or computational tasks, it’s good to get as much of a program into markup as possible. Markup is easier to edit with tools and shows a clearer sense of the visual layout of a page. Of course, everything in markup is a string, so markup sometimes becomes cumbersome in representing complex objects. Because markup doesn’t have the loop processing common in programming languages, it can also be prone to repetition.

These issues have been addressed in the syntax of XAML in several ways, the most important of which are explored in this chapter. But let me begin this vital subject ...