Silverlight 4 Unleashed

Laurent Bugnion works as a senior user-experience integrator for IdentityMine, one of the leading companies committed to redefining the user experience and a Microsoft Gold Partner dedicated to easing the adoption and optimal use of Microsoft presentation technologies, including Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Silverlight, Windows Phone 7, Surface, and Windows 7.   Originally an electronics engineer, Laurent achieved postgrad credentials in software engineering in 1999. Before IdentityMine, he worked for Siemens for 13 years, introducing WPF and other .NET 3.5 technologies worldwide. His responsibilities involved developing with the previously mentioned technologies, training and coaching his colleagues, coordinating and integrating the graphic-design work, and fostering relationships with Microsoft. Before that, he wrote embedded C/C++, and then moved to desktop computers in Java, JavaScript, and eventually .NET (desktop and ASP.NET).   Privately, he codes in Silverlight, WPF, and ASP.NET. He blogs on http://blog.galasoft.ch and writes on http://www.galasoft.ch, where he publishes articles, prototypes, and demos related to the previously mentioned technologies. In 2008, he earned an MCTS for WPF. (In October of that same year, his book Silverlight 2 Unleashed was published.) This year, 2010, is his fourth year as a Microsoft MVP (Silverlight), and he was selected this year as Silverlight MVP of the year.   Laurent is based in Zurich, Switzerland, where he lives with his wife, Chi Meei, and his two daughters, Alise and Laeticia.

Foreword    xxiii

Introduction    1

1 Three Years of Silverlight    7

Discovering Silverlight 4    7

Learning Silverlight Is Betting on the Future     8

How Can They Be So Fast?    9

How About Compatibility with Older Versions?    9

Cross-Browser and Cross-Platform Compatibility    10

Windows and Macintosh     11

Linux    12

Alternatives to Silverlight     12

In the Web Browser     12

Out of the Browser     13

Legacy Technologies     14

A Short History of Silverlight     15

Silverlight 1.0    16

Silverlight 2    16

Silverlight 3    16

And Silverlight 4    17

Previewing the Future of Silverlight     17

Installing Silverlight 4 as a User     18

Opening a Silverlight 4 Application     19

What to Do If Silverlight Is Not Installed?     19

Exploring Silverlight 4 Demos    19

Deep Zooming the Matterhorn    19

Getting Involved Socially with Sobees    20

Navigating with Bing Maps Streetside and PhotoSynth    21

Visualizing Information with the Pivot Viewer    23

Drawing on the Web with Fantasia    25

How Can You Get Involved?     25

Summary     26

2 Setting Up and Discovering Your Environment    27

Installing Visual Studio    27

Visual Studio 2010    27

Visual Web Developer Express     28

Installing the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio     28

Verifying the Installation     29

Inspecting the Application    31

Unpacking an XAP File    32

Using the Visual Studio Designer    32

Implementing Hello Silverlight     33

Checking the Properties Editor     34

Adding Some Text    36

Using Design Time Width and Height    39

Saving the Application     40

Installing Expression Blend     40

Creating a New Silverlight Application     40

Opening Hello Silverlight    41

Adding an Effect    42

Creating a Pulse Animation     44

Triggering the Storyboard    45

Testing the Application     46

Summary     47

3 Extending Your Application with Controls    49

Extending XAML    49

Mapping a Prefix to a CLR Namespace    49

Why Is a Prefix Not Always Needed?    52

Adding a Namespace to Any Element    52

Defining Your Own URI and Mapping CLR Namespaces    52

What’s a Control?     53

User Controls     53

Custom Controls     63

Summary     73

4 Investigating Existing Controls    75

Reviewing the Basics     75

Show Me Some Code!     76

Changes in Existing Controls    77

Mouse Wheel Support     77

Localizing for Right-to-Left Languages     77

Getting a Control Template’s Current State     78

Adding SelectedValue and SelectedValuePath     79

Adding Command and CommandParameter     79

Presenting and Editing Text with the RichTextBox     84

Zooming with the Viewbox    85

Opening a ChildWindow    87

Finding More Information    90

Where to Find Additional Controls?    90

Do You Really Need a Control?    90

The Silverlight Toolkit     91

Installing the Silverlight Toolkit     92

Third-Party Providers    101

Summary     102

5 Understanding Dependency Properties    103

Inheriting DependencyObject     104

Threading    104

Accessing a Dependency Property’s Value     105

Using a DependencyObject as Data Item    105

Registering Dependency Properties     108

Defining Metadata    109

Initializing Dependency Objects     111

Understanding Attached Properties    114

Using Attached Properties for Values    114

Registering an Attached Property    115

Using Custom Attached Properties in XAML     118

Implementing an Attached Behavior    118

Building on Attached Behaviors with Blend Behaviors    122

Adding a New Property with Snippets     123

Installing the Snippets for Silverlight     123

Using the Snippets    124

Calculating a Dependency Property’s Value     124

Getting the Property’s Base Value     126

Reading the Local Value     126

Summary     127

6 Working with Data: Binding, Grouping, Sorting, and Filtering    129

Diving into Data Bindings    130

Understanding a Binding’s Elements     130

Understanding the Namescope     132

Setting the Source     133

Refining the Path    136

Flowing in Two Directions     138

Converting the Values     138

Changing the Format     139

Handling Special Cases    141

Property Trigger     142

Validating Input    142

Using the Visual Studio Binding Dialog    146

Using the Expression Blend Binding Dialog     148

Debugging Data Bindings     149

Checking the Output Tab    149

Creating a Test Converter    150

Grouping, Filtering, and Sorting Data    151

Working with the CollectionViewSource     151

Using a PagedCollectionView    154

Binding Directly to the Source    154

Summary     155

7 Understanding the Model-View-ViewModel Pattern   157

About Design Patterns     157

Separating the Concerns    158

Why Is Separation Good?    158

Classic Separation Patterns    158

History of MVVM    159

Developing Expression Blend    160

Presentation Model for WPF and Silverlight     160

Architecture of MVVM    160

Translating to Silverlight     161

Two Kinds of View-models    162

Binding the View to the View-model    163

Understanding the Data Context    163

Inheriting the Data Context     164

Binding to the View    164

Building a Sample Application     168

The Model’s Interface     168

Building a CustomerViewModel    170

Calling the Service in the MainViewModel    172

Binding to Results    174

Testing the Application     177

Bridging the Separation     178

Implementing a ViewModelBase Class     178

Using Commands     180

Sending Messages     183

Using an MVVM Framework     184

What Could Be Better?     184

Summary     184

8 Using Data Controls    187

Filtering and Paging with the PagedCollectionView     188

Preparing the Sample    188

Building the PagedCollectionView    190

Filtering Data     192

Paging Through Data    194

Optimizing Data Handling    195

Implementing Custom Sorting     195

Adding a DataPager Control     196

Customizing the Display     197

Validating Data Input     197

Using Interface-Based Validation     198

Validating with Data Annotations     201

Validating Before or After the Data Is Set     203

Validating on the Client and on the Server    203

Reviewing the DataGrid    204

Using the DataGrid with Automatic Columns     204

Choosing Between DataGrid and ListBox     208

Editing Data in the DataForm     208

Adding a Description    210

Validating the Input     211

Committing Changes Manually    211

Defining Fields Manually     212

Getting More Information     213

Making a Simple Property Editor     213

Summary     214

9 Connecting to the Web    215

Getting Information from Cross-Domain Servers    216

Checking Whether a Policy File Exists    216

Working Around Cross-Domain Restrictions    217

Placing Simple Calls    218

Informing the User     218

Learning with a Sample    219

Downloading Strings     219

Detecting Errors, Checking the Result     223

Opening a Resource for Reading     224

Uploading a String    225

Opening a Resource for Writing    227

Accessing Headers    231

Sending Complex Messages    231

Posting a File to the Server with HttpWebRequest     231

Discovering the New Networking Stack    234

Using the Client HTTP Stack    235

Using Other HTTP Methods    236

Using the CookieContainer    236

Handling Responses    237

Handling XML Responses    238

Handling JSON Responses    238

Communicating with WCF     239

Setting Up a Service    239

Connecting the Client Application    241

Updating the Code on the Server     244

Publishing the Service     244

Summary     245

10 Creating Resources, Styles, and Templates    247

Working with Resources in XAML     248

Using Local Resources    248

Merging Dictionaries     249

From the Same Assembly     250

From a Different Assembly    251

Resolving Resources     254

Working with Resources in Blend     256

Merging a Resource Dictionary     256

Creating New Resources     257

Selecting a Resource for a Property     257

Using the Resources Panel    257

Cleaning Up Unused Resources    259

Using the Pistachio Tool    259

Styling a Control    260

Using Implicit Styles    261

Creating a Hierarchy of Styles    263

Creating a New Style in Blend     264

Templating a Control    265

Copying a Template in Blend    265

Creating a Custom Easing Function     269

Making a Control in Blend     270

Applying a Theme    271

Summary     272

11 Mastering Expression Blend    273

What Is Blend, Exactly?     274

Working as a Tool for Integrators    274

Editing XAML Markup     274

When Should You Use User Controls?    274

Making an Application Blend    275

Why Is Some Code Not Executed?    275

Why Does Some Code Fail?     275

Detecting the Cause of an Exception    276

Isolating Code in Design Mode    278

Creating Design Time Data in Blend     280

Understanding the Design-Time Data Context     288

Using Blend Behaviors     289

Behavior, Trigger, or Action?     292

Adding a Blend Behavior in Code    293

Creating a New Blend Behavior     293

Finding More Information    300

Summary     300

12 Sketching User Experience    301

Sketching as a Discovery Process    301

Using Sketching and Wireframing Tools     302

Other Kinds of Sketching     303

Discovering SketchFlow    304

Creating a New SketchFlow Application    305

Checking the Panels     305

Creating and Connecting Screens    305

Building the UI     308

Creating a Component Screen     309

Using Sketch Controls     310

Exploring the Sketch Controls     313

Creating States and Transitions    318

Building an Animation    321

Deploying the SketchFlow Application    323

Running the Prototype     323

Giving Feedback     324

Importing and Managing User Feedback     325

Importing and Exporting    325

Importing from Photoshop and Illustrator    326

Importing from PowerPoint     326

Exporting to Word    326

Integrating and Collaborating    327

Integrating into SharePoint    327

Integrating into Team Foundation Server    327

Summary     328

13 Creating Line-of-Business Applications    329

Preparing the Server-Side     331

Prerequisites     332

Preparing the Server-Side Application    332

Creating the Silverlight Client    333

Bringing the Client and the Server Together     334

Adding a Domain Service     334

Inspecting the Domain Service Class    335

Inspecting the Metadata    336

Creating a New Server-Side Query     336

Working with the Visual Designer     338

Understanding the DomainDataSource     339

Calling a Query with Parameter    339

Sorting the Data    341

Adding a Pager    341

Refactoring the Application to MVVM     342

Adding a View-model     342

Adapting the XAML Markup    345

Customizing the Columns     346

Localizing the User Interface    347

Adding a RelayCommand Class     348

Executing the CRUD Operations in Code     348

Displaying Messages from the View-model     351

Deleting an Order     354

Validating the Values    357

Filtering the Data    360

Showing Feedback While Processing     362

Sharing Code     363

Summary     363

14 Enhancing Line-of-Business Applications and Running Out of the Browser    365

Enhancing LOB Applications     365

Adding Paging    365

Showing Errors    369

Reconciling Data    371

Copying and Pasting Rows    373

Printing     373

Taking Silverlight Out of the Browser     382

Setting Up the Application    383

Uninstalling the Application    384

Debugging the OOB Application     385

Looking Under the Hood     386

Changing the Settings     387

Updating the Application    391

Installing from the Code     393

Saving Files     395

Working Offline    398

Summary     399

15 Developing Navigation Applications and Silverlight for Windows Phone 7    401

Navigating with Silverlight    401

Should You Always Use a Navigation Application?    404

Creating a New Navigation Application    404

Accessing Navigation Information    412

Providing Custom Navigation    413

Adding Navigation to a Non-Navigation Application    414

Developing with Silverlight for Windows Phone 7     415

Getting Hardware     416

Targeting a Specific Audience    416

Developing for Windows Phone 7     416

Developing for a Uniform Hardware Platform     417

Designing for the Phone     418

Installing the Tools     419

Selling Your Applications     420

Building Compatible Applications for the Desktop and the Phone    420

Continuing the Exploration    432

Summary     432

16 Using Effects and Recording Media    435

Creating Effects with Pixel Shaders     435

Writing, Finding, and Compiling Shader Files     436

Creating and Modifying Shaders with Shazzam    437

Integrating Shaders in the Application    438

Adding Properties and Animating Shaders     440

Using Shaders for Transitions in the VSM     443

Accessing the Webcam and the Microphone    443

Getting the List of Devices     444

Enabling Access    448

Displaying the Video Output     448

Detecting Whether Other Applications Use the Device    449

Capturing Audio     450

Converting to a WAV File    450

Creating a Sink     450

Using the SaveFileDialog     452

Using the Sink and Adding Commands     454

Wiring the Commands    456

Testing Audio Recording     457

Writing to a Bitmap     457

Saving the Picture to a PNG File     459

Manipulating Pixels    460

Extending WriteableBitmap    462

Using the Open File Dialog     464

Learning About News in Media    465

Summary     466

17 New Transforms, Right Click, HTML Browser, WebBrowserBrush, and Isolated Storage    467

Transforming Elements in a Projection    467

Setting Additional Properties    469

Using a Matrix3DProjection    470

Animating the PlaneProjection     470

Composing Transforms    472

Handling the Right-Click Event     473

Handling a Routed Event     473

Displaying a Context Menu     476

Hosting an HTML Browser (Out-of-the-Browser Only)     478

Understanding the Limitations    479

Building a Simple Web Browser     480

Loading HTML Content from Memory     484

Invoking JavaScript    485

Writing and Reading in the Isolated Storage     485

Saving to the Isolated Storage     485

Reading from the Isolated Storage     492

Deleting Files     495

Using the IsolatedStorageSettings     496

Trusting the Isolated Storage or Not     499

Painting with HTML     499

Summary     501

18 Drag and Drop, Full Screen, Clipboard, COM Interop, Duplex Polling, Notification Windows, and Splash Screens    503

Dragging and Dropping    503

Dragging Files on the Silverlight Application    504

Drag-and-Drop Restrictions    505

Working in Full Screen     507

Getting Keyboard Support in Full-Screen Mode

(Elevated Permissions)    507

Using Full Screen on a Monitor While Working on Another     509

Copying to and from the Clipboard     510

Working with COM (Elevated Permissions)    512

Understanding the Restrictions    512

Communicating with Microsoft Office    512

Communicating over Duplex Polling     519

Implementing the Server-Side Service    519

Unregistering a Client     524

Configuring the Service    524

Implementing the Client    525

Unsubscribing and Resubscribing     528

Testing the Application     529

Displaying Notification Windows     530

Understanding the Restrictions    530

Adding a Notification Window    531

Queuing Notification Windows     533

Interacting with the Main Window    533

Creating a Custom Splash Screen    534

Summary     537

19 Authentication, Event to Command Binding, Random Animations, Multitouch, Local Communication, and Bing Maps Control    539

Logging In with Authentication    539

Creating a New Website     540

Adding and Managing Users     541

Configuring the Authentication Web Service    542

Checking the Access     544

Adding References to the Services    544

Implementing the Client    545

Binding an Event to a Command     547

Executing a Command When a TextBox Loses Focus    548

Building Random Animations     554

Creating the Base Animation in Blend     554

Randomizing the Animation    555

Implementing Multitouch in Silverlight    557

Getting the Right Computer     558

Investigating Existing Elements     559

Using Multitouch Libraries    560

Scaling, Rotating, and Translating     560

Implementing a Multitouch Application    561

Using Multitouch in Windows Phone 7 Applications    563

Finding More Information     563

Enabling Local Communication     563

Understanding the Restrictions    564

Building a Receiver     564

Building a Sender    565

Testing the Application     567

Mapping with the Bing Maps Control     567

Adding the Map    568

Getting Location Information and Marking It     569

Getting More Information     571

Summary     571

20 Building Extensible and Maintainable Applications    573

Inverting Dependencies with Unity    573

Refactoring to Smaller and Simpler Classes     575

Setting Up the Services     578

Calling the Setup Method and Wiring Up     582

Discovering More About Unity     583

Composing an Application with MEF    583

Exporting and Importing     584

Downloading on Demand    594

What About Prism?     603

Using an MVVM Framework     604

Discovering the Components     604

Sending Messages     604

Summary     607

21 Optimizing Performance    609

Improving the XAP Download Time    609

Loading Content on Demand     611

Caching Common Assemblies     615

Virtualizing the User Interface     616

Virtualizing the ItemsControl     617

Unvirtualizing the ListBox     619

Simplifying the DataTemplate    619

Creating Items in Batches    620

Working in Threads     621

Accelerating the User Interface    624

Enabling Hardware Acceleration in the Browser     624

Enabling Hardware Acceleration Out of the Browser     628

Accelerating with Care     629

Accelerating in the Windows Phone 7    630

Using a Code Profiler    630

Avoiding Memory Leaks     631

Saving an Object on the Stack or the Heap     631

Collecting Garbage and Leaking Memory     632

Living a Shorter Life     635

Unregistering Event Handlers     635

Disposing Objects     637

Using Weak References    637

Finding a Leak     638

Summary     639

22 Advanced Development Techniques    641

Using New C# and     NET Features    641

Using Modern Programming Syntax    641

Creating Extension Methods    645

Consuming Dynamic Objects     646

Using Named/Optional Parameters    646

Localizing Applications    647

Adding a Resource File    647

Making an Application Localizable    648

Using Tools     651

Downloading Resource Applications on Demand    652

Encrypting and Decrypting     652

Understanding the Encryption/Decryption Mechanism    652

Multithreading     653

What Is a Thread?    653

Using the ThreadPool    654

Dispatching Back to the UI Thread    657

Creating and Using a BackgroundWorker    660

Locking Critical Resources    663

Enhancing Multithreaded Code    666

Unit Testing the Application     667

Installing a Unit Test Framework     668

Adding Functionality with TDD     668

Using Code Coverage     673

Unit Testing Windows Phone 7 Applications    673

Summary     674

Conclusion 675

Index 677