Pro WF: Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0 (Expert's Voice in .NET) [Paperback]

Bruce Bukovics (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1590597788 | ISBN-13: 978-1590597781 | Publication Date: February 21, 2007 | Edition: 1

Windows Workflow Foundation (WF) is a groundbreaking addition to the core of the .NET Framework that allows you to orchestrate human and system interactions as a series of workflows that can be easily mapped, analyzed, adjusted, and implemented.

As business problems become more complex, the need for a workflow-based solution has never been more evident. WF provides a simple and consistent way to model and implement complex problems. As a developer, you focus on developing the business logic for individual workflow tasks. The runtime handles the execution of those tasks after they have been composed into a workflow.

Pro WF: Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0 provides you with the skills you need to incorporate WF into your applications. This book gets you up to speed with Windows Workflow Foundation quickly and comprehensively. The practical aspects of using WF are covered in a lively tutorial style with each workflow concept illustrated in C#. This book also includes detailed coverage of how to customize your workflows and access them in a variety of ways and situations so you can maximize the advantages of this technology.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bruce Bukovics has been a working developer for over 25 years. During this time, he has designed and developed applications in such widely varying areas as banking, corporate finance, credit card processing, payroll processing, and retail automation. He has firsthand developer experience with C, C++, Delphi, VB, C#, and Java, and he rode the waves of technology as they drifted from mainframe to client/server to n-Tier, from COM to COM+, and from Web Services to .NET Remoting and beyond. He considers himself a pragmatic programmer. He doesn't stand on formality and doesn't do things just because they have always been done that way. He's willing to look at alternate or unorthodox solutions to a problem if that's what it takes. He is employed at Radiant Systems, Inc., in Alpharetta, Georgia, as a lead developer and architect in the centralized development group.

Product Details

• Paperback: 744 pages
• Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (February 21, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590597788
• ISBN-13: 978-1590597781
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #968,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I have been a working developer for over 25 years. During this time, I have designed and developed applications in such widely varying areas as banking, corporate finance, credit card processing, payroll processing, and retail systems.

I have first-hand developer experience with a variety of languages including C, C++, Delphi, Java, VB, and C#. My design and development experience includes everything from mainframe and client/server to widely distributed n-tier and SOA applications. Most recently, I have been immersed in the .NET 3.0 technology stack, leveraging Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), and of course, Windows Workflow Foundation (WF) to help build a new generation of applications.

I consider myself a pragmatic programmer and test-driven development evangelist. I don't stand on formality and don't do things in a particular way just because they have always been done that way. I'm willing to look at alternate or unorthodox solutions to a problem if that's what it takes.

I am currently employed at Radiant Systems, Inc., in Alpharetta, Georgia, as a lead developer and architect in the central technology group.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than attending a hands on training course, July 6, 2007

By 

Manoj Srivastava (Potomac, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pro WF: Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

This is by far the best book in the market on WF for a programmer. If you do its programming exercises it easily replaces a 5-day hands on training course. Now that is a great ROI. The book is very easy to read and understand.

I would recommend the Essential Workflow Foundation by Dharma Shukla as a companion book. This one gives an insight into what .NET 3.0 WF does in the background to make it all happen. Also if you were to try to use WF without Visual Studio, Dharma Shukla book would be the right one to pick as it does not use VS at all.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear and Thorough, June 20, 2007

By 

Lawrence Parker (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pro WF: Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

I am a colleague of the author's and recently got the opportunity to investigate using Workflow Foundation for a business application. Not knowing much about this component of .NET 3.0 and having only read some introductory material about it on MSDN, I found this book to be an excellent place to start learning it for real.

This book is very clear and thorough and works through the subject in an organized and methodical way. The fact that it's written by a single author is a benefit, since it gives a more coherent treatment of the subject than some technical books written by several (or even many) people.

The text includes solid examples that don't go overboard with irrelevant tangents. I was also impressed that the author tackled some of the more difficult aspects of this technology, like hosting the workflow designer in your own applications.

I would recommend this to anybody who wants to get a deeper understanding of Workflow Foundation.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another satisfied customer!, February 24, 2008

By 

Steven (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pro WF: Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

This is THE nuts and bolts book for Windows WF. The author is very good at communicating his point succinctly making all 684 pages a joy to read for those interested in WF.

All areas of WF are covered in good detail. You learn everything from developing a no-code workflow to developing dynamic workflow and also workflow that communicates with web services and much more. The author starts small, in the first 13 pages you develop a "Hello Workflow" app and he goes over all of the auto-generated code. From there the book takes off.

One thing I really like about this book is that it really does assume you are at least an intermediate developer. You don't have to read 1/2 a page on how to create a new project, he just assumes you know how. I don't know how many times i've read an "intermediate" book that introduces collections by chapter 7 and shows you an animal hierarchy by chapter 12. For once it's nice to read a book cover to cover and just learn the whole time. The pacing in this book is perfect. It's not too hard to grasp any of the concepts as they are being presented yet it's not the type of book where you have to thumb through 1/2 the book because you already know how to declare variables and apply conditional logic.

At the time of this review all reviews have been 5 stars - and for good reason. If you're a developer comfortable with C# but have no knowledge of WF then this is the book for you.