Programming WPF: Building Windows UI with Windows Presentation Foundation

by Chris Sells, Ian Griffiths

If you want to build applications that take full advantage of Windows Vista's new user interface capabilities, you need to learn Microsoft's Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). This new edition, fully updated for the official release of .NET 3.0, is designed to get you up to speed on this technology quickly. By page 2, you'll be writing a simple WPF application. By the end of Chapter 1, you'll have taken a complete tour of WPF and its major elements.

WPF is the new presentation framework for Windows Vista that also works with Windows XP. It's a cornucopia of new technologies, which includes a new graphics engine that supports 3-D graphics, animation, and more; an XML-based markup language, called XAML, for declaring the structure of your Windows UI; and a radical new model for controls.

This second edition includes new chapters on printing, XPS, 3-D, navigation, text and documents, along with a new appendix that covers Microsoft's new WPF/E platform for delivering richer UI through standard web browsers -- much like Adobe Flash. Content from the first edition has been significantly expanded and modified. Programming WPF includes:


Scores of C# and XAML examples that show you what it takes to get a WPF application up and running, from a simple "Hello, Avalon" program to a tic-tac-toe game Insightful discussions of the powerful new programming styles that WPF brings to Windows development, especially its new model for controls A color insert to better illustrate WPF support for 3-D, color, and other graphics effects A tutorial on XAML, the new HTML-like markup language for declaring Windows UI
An explanation and comparison of the features that support interoperability with Windows Forms and other Windows legacy applications
WPF represents the best of the control-based Windows world and the content-based web world. Programming WPF helps you bring it all together.

Genres: Programming, Software, Computer Science

864 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Kasper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is all about the still very real and powerful framework Windows Presentation Foundation or WPF. WPF is a platform for coding Win Applications using the wonderful language of XAML or Extensible Application Markup Language using a code behind of either C# or VB.net (Visual Basic). I read this book cover to cover several times. Often falling asleep with it in my hands bc that helps us retain information, right? It is way out of date now but it is the reason I am still primarily a WPF programmer and absolutely love the language. This book taught me a great deal, although, looking back on it, it only taught me the basics. There was a great deal more to learn about the power of WPF which I have given speeches on. I owe a lot to this book though and I thank the authors for putting it together.

Now with UWP (Universal Windows Platform) you may ask, "Why still program in WPF?"... because UWP is weak and Win Phones are dead.

[Ivan Kashperuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was using more as reference material, so haven't actually read cover to cover.
A lot of the questions I had weren't really answered that well, so still had to google a lot of it.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly detailed and well written reference to WPF. Note that this second edition is still based on Visual Studio 2005 / .NET 3.0 so a little out of date now. I still found the book to be very useful and would recommend it both for picking up WPF basics and to refer back to for more advanced topics when needed.

[Razique M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding book. Nicely written, easy to follow. Perfect reference. For people looking for the latest features, this particular edition may be outdated.