Essential Windows Phone 8

Essential Windows Phone 8 is the definitive guide to creating powerful, visually compelling mobile applications that take full advantage of Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 platform. Nine-time Microsoft MVP Shawn Wildermuth draws on his extensive experience teaching Windows Phone developers, helping you to get started fast and master techniques that lead to truly outstanding apps. Expanded and updated with 30% new coverage, this conversational, authoritative guide covers the essentials and a whole lot more.

Wildermuth begins with a solid "foundation building" introduction to Windows Phone 8 development and Windows Phone 8 hardware, introducing design, language, hardware specifications, patterns, the application lifecycle, out-of-the-box services, Live Tiles, and the Windows Marketplace. Once you have that foundation, Wildermuth dives into hands-on development, emphasizing best practices and realistic code examples. You'll develop a complete application from start to finish, then build on your skills with increasingly sophisticated techniques. Coverage includes:

Designing your app's look and feel

Implementing email, calling, search, Web browsing, and camera support

Interacting with users

Choosing the right app paradigm and functionality

Incorporating touch, vibration, motion, sound, and other forms of input

Working with hubs and tiles

Building location-based services

Storing data

Multitasking

Integrating external data

Preparing apps for the Marketplace

And much more

List of contents

 
1  Introducing Windows Phone   1
A Different Kind of Phone   1
Phone Specifications   7
   Input Patterns   10
   Designing for Touch   11
   Hardware Buttons   12
   Keyboards   12
   Sensors   15
Application Lifecycle   15
Driving Your Development with Services   17
Live Tiles   18
The Windows Phone Store   19
   Distributing Your Application Through the Windows Phone Store   20
   App Hub Submissions   20
   Application Policies   22
   Content Policies   25
Where Are We?   26
2  Writing Your First Phone Application   27
Preparing Your Machine   27
Creating a New Project   29
   Visual Studio   29
   XAML   34
Designing with Blend   39
Adding Code   48
   Working with Events   51
   Debugging in the Emulator   52
   Debugging with a Device   53
   Using Touch   58
Working with the Phone   61
Where Are We?   66
3  XAML Overview   67
What Is XAML?   67
XAML Object Properties   69
   Understanding XAML Namespaces   70
Naming in XAML   71
Visual Containers   72
Visual Grammar   77
   Shapes   77
   Brushes   79
   Colors   80
   Text   81
Images   82
Transformations and Animations   84
   Transformations   84
   Animations   87
XAML Styling   90
   Understanding Resources   91
   Understanding Styles   93
Where Are We?   96
4  Controls   97
Controls in XAML   97
   Simple Controls   100
   Content Controls   106
   List Controls   107
Phone-Specific Controls   108
   Panorama Control   108
   Pivot Control   112
Data Binding   115
   Simple Data Binding   115
   Using a DataTemplate   117
   Improving Scrolling Performance   118
   Binding Formatting   120
   Element Binding   121
   Converters   121
   Data Binding Errors   123
   Control Templates   125
Windows Phone Toolkit   130
   AutoCompleteBox Control   131
   ContextMenu Control   133
   DatePicker and TimePicker Controls   135
   ListPicker Control   137
   LongListSelector Control   140
   PerformanceProgressBar Control   144
   ToggleSwitch Control   145
   ExpanderView Control   146
   PhoneTextBox Control   147
   CustomMessageBox   149
   WrapPanel Layout Container   153
Where Are We?   156
5  Designing for the Phone   157
The Third Screen   157
   It Is a Phone, Right?   160
Deciding on an Application Paradigm   162
   Panorama   164
   Pivot   166
   Simple Pages   169
Microsoft Expression Blend   169
   Creating a Project   170
   A Tour Around Blend   171
Blend Basics   180
   Layout   180
   Brushes   186
   Creating Animations   191
   Working with Behaviors   196
Phone-Specific Design   199
   The ApplicationBar in Blend   199
   Using the Panorama Control in Blend   203
   Using the Pivot Control in Blend   206
Previewing Applications   209
Designing with Visual Studio   210
Implementing the Look and Feel of the Phone   212
Where Are We?   215
6  Developing for the Phone   217
Application Lifecycle   217
   Navigation   220
   Tombstoning   227
The Phone Experience   233
   Orientation   233
   Designing for Touch   236
   Application Client Area   245
   Application Bar   247
   Understanding Idle Detection   249
   The Tilt Effect   250
Localizing Your Phone Application   252
Where Are We?   258
7  Phone Hardware   261
Using Vibration   261
Using Motion   262
   Emulating Motion   266
Using Sound   268
   Playing Sound with MediaElement   269
   Using XNA Libraries   270
   Playing Sounds with XNA   270
   Adjusting Playback   271
   Recording Sounds   272
Working with the Camera   275
   Using the PhotoCamera Class   276
   Raw Hardware Access   281
   Camera Lens App   284
The Clipboard API   286
Location APIs   287
   Location Permission   287
   Accessing Location Information   289
   Turning Coordinates into Addresses   294
   Emulating Location Information   295
Voice Commands   299
Speech Recognition   306
Speech Synthesis   310
Bluetooth and VOIP   316
Where Are We?   316
8  Phone Integration   317
Contacts and Appointments   317
   Contacts   318
   Appointments 323
Alarms and Reminders   324
   Creating an Alarm   327
   Creating a Reminder   328
   Accessing Existing Notifications   329
Using Tasks   330
   Launchers   333
   Choosers   344
Media and Picture Hubs   355
   Accessing Music   355
   Playing Music   359
   Accessing Pictures   360
   Storing Pictures   363
   Integrating into the Pictures Hub   364
   Integrating into the Music and Videos Hub   367
Live Tiles   371
   Main Live Tile   375
   Secondary Tiles   377
Other Ways of Launching Your App   380
   Using a Custom Protocol   380
   Using a File Association   384
Where Are We?   387
9  Databases and Storage   389
Storing Data   389
Storage   390
   Serialization   395
Local Databases   401
   Getting Started   402
   Optimizing the Context Class   408
   Associations   412
   Using an Existing Database   418
   Schema Updates   420
   Database Security   422
Where Are We?   423
10  Multitasking   425
Multitasking   425
Background Agents   426
   Periodic Agent   428
   Resource-Intensive Agent   436
   Audio Agent   439
Location-Aware Apps   448
Background Transfer Service   452
Requirements and Limitations   453
   Requesting Transfers   454
   Monitoring Requests   456
Where Are We?   461
 11  Services   463
The Network Stack   464
   The WebClient Class   464
   Accessing Network Information   467
Consuming JavaScript Object Notation   470
   Using JSON Serialization   472
   Parsing JSON  473
Web Services   477
Consuming OData   482
   How OData Works   483
   The URI   484
   Using OData on the Phone   492
   Generating a Service Reference for OData   492
   Retrieving Data   493
   Updating Data   496
Using Push Notifications   497
   Push Notification Requirements   499
   Preparing the Application for Push Notifications   499
   Setting Up the Server for Push Notifications   501
   Raw Notifications   504
   Sending Toast Notifications   516
   Creating Live Tiles   519
   Handling Push Notification Errors   522
Where Are We?   524
12  Making Money   525
What Is the Store?   525
   How It Works   527
   Charging for Apps   529
   Getting Paid   531
Submitting Your App   533
   Preparing Your Application   533
   The Submission Process   538
   After the Submission   545
Modifying Your Application   548
Dealing with Failed Submissions   548
Using Ads in Your Apps   551
Where Are We?   552
13 Enterprise Phone Apps   553
Enterprise Apps?   553
Registering Your Company   554
Buying a Symantec Code-Signing Certificate   556
Installing the Certificate   558
Application Enrollment Token   563
Registering Phones   564
Preparing Apps for Distribution   566
Building a Company Hub   567
Where Are We?   571
Index   573

About the author

During his 27 years in software development, Shawn Wildermuth has experienced a litany of shifts in software development, shaping how he understands technology. Shawn is a 10-time Microsoft MVP, a member of the INETA Speaker’s Bureau, and an author of several books on .NET. He has spoken at a variety of international conferences, including TechEd, MIX, VSLive, OreDev, SDC, WinDev, MIX, DevTeach, DevConnections, and DevReach. Shawn has written dozens of articles for a variety of magazines and websites, including MSDN, DevSource, InformIT, CoDe Magazine, ServerSide.NET, and MSDN Online. He is currently helping companies with coaching and training through his company Wilder Minds LLC (http://wilderminds.com).

Summary

“Shawn has created a guide that is easy to read, up-to-date, and comprehensive–covering the entire application surface area for Windows Phone developers. Enjoy!”
–Jeff Wilcox, Senior Software Development Engineer, Microsoft

Essential Windows® Phone 8 is the definitive guide to creating powerful mobile apps with Microsoft’s dramatically improved Windows Phone 8 platform. Ten-time Microsoft MVP Shawn Wildermuth draws on his extensive experience teaching Windows Phone development, helping you to get started fast and master techniques that lead to truly outstanding solutions.

Updated throughout, this edition reflects new APIs and development best practices, ranging from new WinRT APIs to voice integration. It also contains a comprehensive new chapter on developing enterprise solutions for business.

After introducing the platform and its key improvements, Shawn dives directly into the essentials. Using realistic code, he illustrates today’s best techniques for delivering robust, well-performing apps. You’ll build a complete app from start to finish and then deepen your skills with increasingly sophisticated techniques.

From planning through delivery, Shawn guides you through the entire lifecycle, helping you make the most of Windows Phone 8’s valuable capabilities. Whether you’re a Windows developer going mobile or a mobile developer moving to Windows Phone, here are all the skills you’ll need.

Coverage includes

• Setting up the WP8 development environment, including the emulator
• Using XAML to fully control the look and feel of your app’s interface
• Providing robust user interactivity through controls
• Creating mobile experiences built around the real needs of Windows Phone users
• Localizing your app for native languages and global markets
• Utilizing vibration, motion, sound, the camera, or other hardware features
• Supporting voice commands such as “Call Mom” or “Open Twitter”
• Integrating features that use Contacts, Appointments, Alarms, the media library and hubs, and the lock screen
• Storing data in simple files, caches, or a full-fledged database
• Multitasking in the background without compromising performance
• Implementing location-aware apps that can track where users are
• Retrieving external data and assets via REST, Web services, push notifications, or Windows Live
• Preparing your application for the Windows Phone Store
• Building and distributing enterprise apps for your company’s internal customers

 

Product details

• Authors: Shawn Wildermuth
• Publisher: Pearson Education
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 14.06.2013
• EAN: 9780321904942
• ISBN: 978-0-321-90494-2
• No. of pages: 624
• Dimensions: 178 mm x 230 mm x 1 mm
• Weight: 956 g
• Series: Addison-Wesley; Addison-Wesley
• Subject: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > IT, data processing > Operating systems, user interfaces