Windows Presentation Foundation Unleashed (WPF) [Paperback]

Adam Nathan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 2006 | ISBN-10: 0672328917 | ISBN-13: 978-0672328916 | Edition: 1

 

Printed entirely in color, with helpful figures and syntax coloring to make code samples appear as they do in Visual Studio.

 

Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) is a key component of the .NET Framework 3.0, giving you the power to create richer and more compelling applications than you dreamed possible. Whether you want to develop traditional user interfaces or integrate 3D graphics, audio/video, animation, dynamic skinning, rich document support, speech recognition, or more, WPF enables you to do so in a seamless, resolution-independent manner. Windows Presentation Foundation Unleashed is the authoritative book that covers it all, in a practical and approachable fashion, authored by .NET guru and Microsoft developer Adam Nathan.

 

· Covers everything you need to know about Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML)

· Examines the WPF feature areas in incredible depth: controls, layout, resources, data binding, styling, graphics, animation, and more

· Features a chapter on 3D graphics by Daniel Lehenbauer, lead developer responsible for WPF 3D

· Delves into non-mainstream topics: speech, audio/video, documents, bitmap effects, and more

· Shows how to create popular UI elements, such as features introduced in the 2007 Microsoft Office System: Galleries, ScreenTips, custom control layouts, and more

· Demonstrates how to create sophisticated UI mechanisms, such as Visual Studio-like collapsible/dockable panes

· Explains how to develop and deploy all types of applications, including navigation-based applications, applications hosted in a Web browser, and applications with great-looking non-rectangular windows

· Explains how to create first-class custom controls for WPF

· Demonstrates how to create hybrid WPF software that leverages Windows Forms, ActiveX, or other non-WPF technologies

· Explains how to exploit new Windows Vista features in WPF applications

 

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Adam Nathan is a senior software development engineer in Microsoft’s Developer Division. He is the author of the acclaimed .NET and COM: The Complete Interoperability Guide (SAMS, 2002), a coauthor of ASP.NET: Tips, Tutorials, and Code (SAMS, 2001), and a contributor to books such as .NET Framework Standard Library Annotated Reference, Vol. 2 (Addison-Wesley, 2005) and Windows Developer Power Tools (O’Reilly, 2006). Adam regularly speaks at development conferences and to groups within Microsoft about a variety of .NET Framework topics. Having started his career on Microsoft’s Common Language Runtime team in 1999, Adam has been at the core of .NET technologies since the very beginning. Adam is also the  creator of popular tools and websites for .NET developers, such as PINVOKE.NET, CLR SPY (and its Visual Studio add-in), and XAMLshare.com. You can find him online at www.adamnathan.net.

 

Daniel Lehenbauer is the lead software design engineer responsible for the 3D features in Windows Presentation Foundation. Prior to WPF, he worked on multiple graphics and UI technologies, including mobile controls for ASP.NET and Windows Forms. Daniel is active in the WPF community and blogs about 3D graphics using WPF at www.viewport3D.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 656 pages
• Publisher: Sams Publishing; 1 edition (December 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0672328917
• ISBN-13: 978-0672328916
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 1.1 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #116,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best WPF Resource March 14, 2007

By Jase T. Wolfe

Format:Paperback

If, as a software developer, you have spent years looking at the visual promises of Vista, really wanting to dive in and create those next generation, media-rich interfaces, but didn't have a clear indicator of where to begin - now you do. Windows Presentation Foundation Unleashed is your one-stop answer to discovering what WPF is, learning basic and advanced controls, and building WPF applications.

Without a lot of dry history, and in a full-color presentation that makes comprehending what you're reading much more efficient, you are given a very complete coverage of controls, control manipulation, data binding, animation, and other multimedia objects. Throughout the text you are given not only code snippets, but illustrations of what the finished product should resemble, sidebar Tips sections, sidebar Warnings sections, and sidebar "Digging Deeper", really solidifying the information presented not only in the initial component coverage, but the follow-up WFP application development.

Hands down, for adding WPF to your development skills, this is the title you need.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Very Good; But beginners be warned May 16, 2009

By Abu H

Format:Paperback

It's a good buy.

The book as a package is a good reference for WPF. However, absolute beginners will have a difficult time through it, or at least I did. The first few chapters left me with a headache. I persisted and I can say I now have a firm understanding of WPF. Overall its a good buy.

Pros:
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1. Loads and loads of examples.
2. Full color graphics, helps one to quickly grasp the concepts being illustrated.
3. Easy reference. Quite easy to reference

Cons:
=====
1.Beginners be warned. Just keep reading you will understand later on.
2. The Author pulls things out of the hat and starts using them before explaining what they are. If he had explained them immediately after, it would be okay; but he doesn't, until a few chapters later. The chapter that was supposed to introduce XAML ended up confusing me, only after reading half the book did I grasp the concepts of the XAML chapter.
3.The general use of language, too many brackets, too many references to past and later chapters within the text; it is distracting.

Overall I would advice you to buy the book.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best on the subject . January 22, 2007

By Pierre Huguet

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Excellent book, very well designed, organized and the colors make a huge difference. This is the best book on WPF I have read (I've read 5 so far). the examples are simple and concise (and they work! which is not always the case with books published so close to the product release). Also, it is amazing how much of WPF this book covers, probably the most extensive coverage of the WPF capabilities. Perfect for intermediate to advanced programmer. Again I was surprised how having color code and illustations made such a difference. A Must have!!