Windows Phone 8 Development Succinctly - Free ebook

I'm so glad to announce the new free ebook from Syncfusion:

Windows Phone 8 Development Succinctly

This ebook is written by my friend Matteo Pagani and you can download 243 pages in PDF or Kindle format.

Before starting, please remember: if you are a beginner in development, this ebook is not for you. You need to know the basic concepts of the C# programming.

This book covers all the features of Windows Phone so it's also a good read if you are new in wp development.

Main chapters:

1. Introduction: 
2. The User Interface: Basic XAML Concepts
3. Core Concepts
4. Data Access: Storage
5. Data Access: Network
6. Integrating with the Hardware
7. Integrating with the Operating System
8. Multimedia Applications
9. Live Apps: Tiles, Notifications, and Multitasking
10. Distributing the Application: Localization, the Windows Phone Store, and In-App Purchases

Pro

• free! :)
• easy and fast to read
• all development cycle
• a lot of samples and tips
• Kindle format
• finally an ebook that explains all storage approaches

Meanwhile you can download the Syncfusion wp controls (now at special price) to make more fast your development. Hurry up! ;)

Syncfusion TileView - Windows Phone

I found a nice Windows Phone control in the Syncfusion suite: the TileView.
That control has the ability to show a collection of items but one can be maximized to display more informations.

The code is very simple, so let's start to explain the wp8 version!

First of all you need to reference two dll in your project:

1.  Syncfusion.SfTileView.WP8.dll
2.  Syncfusion.SfShared.WP8.dll

In the xaml, add the namespace:

xmlns:syncTileView="clr-namespace:Syncfusion.WP.Controls.Layout;assembly=Syncfusion.SfTileView.WP8"

and your TileView object:

<syncTileView:SfTileView ItemsSource="{Binding ComingSoonFilms}" MinimizedItemsOrientation="Right">
   ....
   ....
   ....
</syncTileView:SfTileView>

"MinimizedItemsOrientation property change the orientation of items while the maximized item is displayed"

Now you need the ItemTemplate to show your items and a MaximizedItemTemplate to show the detail.
You can create a simple ItemTemplate with an image:

<syncTileView:SfTileView.ItemTemplate>
 <DataTemplate>
  <Image Source="{Binding Picture}" Width="100" Height="160" Stretch="Fill"/>
 </DataTemplate>
</syncTileView:SfTileView.ItemTemplate>

and a MaximizedItemTemplate like this:

<syncTileView:SfTileView.MaximizedItemTemplate>
 <DataTemplate>
  <Grid>
   <Grid.RowDefinitions>
    <RowDefinition Height="auto"/>
    <RowDefinition/>
   </Grid.RowDefinitions>
   <TextBlock Text="{Binding Title}" Style="{StaticResource PhoneTextLargeStyle}"/>
   <Image Grid.Row="1" Source="{Binding Picture}" Stretch="UniformToFill"/>
  </Grid>
 </DataTemplate>
</syncTileView:SfTileView.MaximizedItemTemplate>

Windows Store Apps Succinctly - Free eBook

Some days ago I started to develop an application for Windows Store.
I love to develop in C#, and after some pages in MSDN documentation, I searched for an offline free e-book to read with my tablet.
I found a great resource from Syncfusion:

Windows Store Apps Succinctly

This book is written by John Garland and you can download 185 pages in PDF or Kindle format.

Before starting, please remember: if you are a beginner in development, this ebook is not for you.

Why is it a good choice? Because it's simple and fast to read. It starts from core concepts until you get to the deployment. Then at the end of this book, you are ready to fully develop your first application.

Main Chapters

1. Core Concepts: the introduction to Windows Store apps, WinRT and the Windows Runtime with a simple "Hello World" sample.
2. XAML, Controls, and Pages: all you need to know about XAML, from Namespace declarations, to Animations and Data Binding. The chapter shows all essential controls for the user interface and explains how to work with Pages and Frames.
3. Application Life Cycle and Storage: one of the most important chapters. The Windows Store apps life cycle is not the same as the desktop apps, then you need to understand all steps for the the best user experience. This chapter continues with Data Storage. It explains how to work with Application Data (local, roaming, temporary), User Data (file and folder picker) and Data Storage (files/folder and some useful links to LiveConnect and SQLite). 
4. Contracts and Extensions: the Windows 8 Charms: search, share, print, app settings, etc.. The chapter ends with handling file types and protocols.
5. Tiles, Toast, and Notifications: yes..the big feature of Windows Phone, now in Windows 8. If you want to release a great app, you really need a good Live Tile. This chapter covers all types of Tiles and how to schedule the updates. Then it talks about the Toast Notifications and ends with a sample of Push Notification.
6. Hardware and Sensors: an overview of all sensors (like compass, gyroscope, accelerometer and gps) and how to interact with Camera. The user love those features, then use them in your app.
7. Deployment: your application is done, let's publish it on Windows Store! Understand the Store prices and accounts; learn how to use the Windows Application Certification Kit; add the trial mode and the In-app purchase; configure the PubCenter and the Ads.

Pro

• Free! :)
• Easy and fast to read
• XAML + C#
• All development cycle
• A lot of samples and tips
• Kindle format
• Not for development beginners

Cons

• No NFC samples
• No gestures samples

Now enjoy your reading... thanks Syncfusion.

FYI another good free resource is Metro Studio: a customizable collection of icon templates.