Provides information on creating cross-platform interactive applications using Silverlight 2.

Provides information on creating cross-platform interactive applications using Silverlight 3.

Provides information on creating cross-platform interactive applications using Silverlight 1.0.

Get a jump on the next release of Silverlight with early insights from a Technical Evangelist on the Microsoft Silverlight team. This guide describes how you can simplify the development and deployment of rich interactive applications (RIAs) by using Silverlight 2 tools with Microsoft Visual Studio® 2008 and the Microsoft .NET Framework. RIAs are Web applications with the features and functionality of full desktop applications. Processing tasks are performed on the client, but data is stored on the server. With Silverlight, RIAs install quickly via a small, on-demand plug-in. This book demonstrates how you can easily use existing skills and tools to deliver next-generation user interfaces and media experiences. You ll discover how to begin building different types of Silverlight-based solutions, generate Silverlight applications dynamically on the server, create an XAML service, and more. The book also features a companion Web site with code samples in Microsoft Visual C#® and Visual Basic®. Key Book Benefits: Delivers practical, grounded advice from a member of the Silverlight team, including an insider s view of the evolution of this Web presentation technology Describes how Silverlight 2 will simplify development and deployment of RIAs with the .NET Framework and Visual Studio 2008 Provides context about the relationships among Silverlight and the various .NET Framework 3.0 and 3.5 technologies Places RIAs in context for both Web and Windows-based developers Features a companion Web site with code samples in Visual C# and Visual Basic.

Introducing Silverlight 4 brings you up to speed with version 4 of Silverlight quickly and efficiently. The book builds off your understanding of the basics of .NET coding and WPF, allowing your journey to Silverlight 4 proficiency to be as quick and painless as possible. The text highlights where coding techniques are similar to other, more established areas of the .NET framework. Likewise, when your existing coding habits lead you to a syntax or conceptual ’gotcha,’ the text points that out, too. This book provides you with fast-track coverage of all the most important elements of the Silverlight 4 technology ranging from XAML to standard controls, from dealing with media to networking, from testing to deployment. It also reveals features introduced with Silverlight 4 and offers guidance on how to best utilize them. The book concludes with a pair of fully worked sample applications for you to follow through, because nothing reinforces your understanding of how concepts fit together as much as looking at finished code. It is assumed that readers are already be comfortable with the workings of the .NET framework. Knowledge of Expression Blend is useful, but not mandatory: you’ll learn the Blend techniques that you need to know as you go through the book. By the end, you will have followed a sound, concise path to mastery of Silverlight 4.

Printed entirely in color, with helpful figures and syntax coloring to make code samples appear as they do in Visual Studio and Expression Blend! Using Silverlight 4, you can build richer and more powerful applications than ever before, and deploy them seamlessly in browsers, on desktop computers, and even on Windows Phone 7. In Silverlight 4 Unleashed, Microsoft Silverlight MVP Laurent Bugnion covers everything you need to do all this, and much more. The only full-color, example-rich guide to Silverlight 4 for experienced Microsoft developers, Silverlight 4 Unleashed illuminates the entire development process: from installing Silverlight tools to building great user experiences, managing data to optimizing application performance. You’ll master core Silverlight features such as controls and properties; communicating with web services; efficiently creating data-oriented line-of-business applications; working with external frameworks, and more. Bugnion concludes by showing how to use advanced features such as 3D-like effects and multitouch to deliver an even smoother, richer experience. Install and use Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio Extend Silverlight applications with user and custom controls Group, sort, filter, page, bind, and validate data Take full advantage of the Model-View-ViewModel Pattern in Silverlight Access Web resources and services Control the application’s appearance with resources, styles, templates, and Expression Blend Sketch user experience and build iterative prototypes by easily getting feedback from end users Create data-oriented applications more easily with the WCF RIA Services framework Adapt Silverlight desktop applications for Windows Phone 7 Integrate effects and media into your applications Use Unity, MEF, and the MVVM Light Toolkit to write more maintainable, extensible software Optimize performance by reducing download size and memory footprint, and increasing execution speed

Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of .NET based media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web Author frequently speaks at industry conferences