Getting Started with Windows 8 Apps: A Guide to the Windows Runtime

by Ben Dewey

Overview

Get a head start on building apps for Windows 8. With a series of examples, this hands-on guide takes you through the process of creating complete touch-enabled apps that respond to native sensors. Through the course of the book, you’ll learn how to work with the Windows Runtime application model while building a Bing Image Search app.

If you’re an experienced .NET developer who wants to get up to speed with Windows 8, this book provides the expertise and C# code samples you need.

• Get a high-level overview of Windows 8 features—from the Start Screen to in-app features such as the Application Bar
• Begin by building a simple app to retrieve Bing image search results from a web service
• Learn about the components needed to complete the app, including UI design, the MVVM architectural pattern, and “tombstoning”
• Take advantage of native OS features such as tiles, file pickers, and sharing requests
• Examine the steps necessary to publish an app to the Windows Store

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781449320553
Publisher:	O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	08/10/2012
Pages:	107
Product dimensions:	6.80(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Ben Dewey is employed at Tallan as a Senior Software Developer where he consults on many projects around New York City, focusing on Architecture, Silverlight, ASP.NET and jQuery. He also works to develop Server Oriented Applications using WCF. Ben strives to create SOLID applications of the highest craftsmanship while paying special attention to clean User Experiences (UX).



Ben is currently a committer on the Apache Stonehenge project, and is actively involved in numerous community events, from speaking at local user groups and helping to organize the ALT.NET Meetup in NYC.

Table of Contents

Preface; The Windows Runtime; Disclaimer; Who This Book Is For; How This Book Is Organized; Conventions Used in This Book; What You Need to Use This Book; Subscribing to the Bing Search API Service on Windows Azure Marketplace; Using Code Examples; Safari® Books Online; How to Contact Us; How to Contact the Author; Acknowledgements; Chapter 1: Windows 8: A Quick Tour; 1.1 A User Interface for Touch; 1.2 Windows Programming Reimagined; 1.3 Inside Windows 8 Apps; 1.4 Outside Your App; 1.5 Summary; Chapter 2: Getting Started; 2.1 Where Is the Hello World app?; 2.2 Bing Search API; 2.3 Getting Started: The BingSimpleSearch App; 2.4 Running the BingSimpleSearch App; 2.5 Unlocking WinRT (the FileSavePicker); 2.6 Summary; Chapter 3: Application Architecture; 3.1 The Bing Image Search App; 3.2 Goals; 3.3 Design of the User Interface; 3.4 Application Diagram; 3.5 Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM); 3.6 Inversion of Control (IoC) Container; 3.7 Navigation; 3.8 MessageHub; 3.9 Application Storage and Tombstoning; 3.10 Settings; 3.11 Summary; Chapter 4: Interacting with the Operating System; 4.1 Search; 4.2 Tiles; 4.3 Pickers; 4.4 Sharing; 4.5 Sensors; 4.6 LockScreen; 4.7 Summary; Chapter 5: Windows Store; 5.1 Marketing; 5.2 Distribution; 5.3 Global Reach; 5.4 Summary;