This book is the perfect introduction for anyone wanting to create sophisticated Windows 8 apps for the first time. Assuming only a basic knowledge of HTML and CSS we'll walk you through the development process using C# and VB. The book will familiarize you with the tools you'll need to use in order to make the most of Windows' stunning new features. You'll discover how to take advantage of the built-in functionality to create high quality user experiences.

Real World Windows 8 App Development with JavaScript offers you practical advice and hard-earned insights that will help you create and publish apps to a worldwide market. Led by authors with deep Windows 8 app development experience, you’ll learn how to make the most of Microsoft’s APIs for hooking into Windows 8 on all devices, including the core ideas of promises and the asynchronous programming model. You’ll also discover such important tips as how to Adhere to Windows 8 guidelines for successful app acceptance Extend the appeal of your app with media, contracts, charms, and user notifications Capture and work with media, including the ability to play video wirelessly to a television Manage background processing and file transfers Gain visibility for your app and add monetization options Get the lowdown from authors with experience from the front lines of Windows 8 app development. Theory is all well and good, but when it comes down to it, you can’t beat practical advice from people who’ve been there and done it! You’ll come away from this book with all the tools, ideas, and inspiration you need to create successful Windows 8 JavaScript apps. Development with JavaScript features real-world examples that emphasize the use of JavaScript and HTML 5 and that also adhere to the stylistic guidelines Microsoft has put in place to maintain a consistent look and feel for all applications on this platform.

Building Windows 8 Apps with JavaScript is the definitive guide for every experienced developer who wants to create, ship, and profit from Windows 8 apps built with HTML5 and JavaScript. Written by Chris Sells, former Visual Studio Principal Program Manager who led the team that built Microsoft’s official Windows 8 JavaScript app templates, and Brandon Satrom, expert web/mobile developer, this book covers every facet of development with Microsoft’s new JavaScript framework and WinRT. The authors guide you through building full-featured Windows Store apps that merge the best aspects of desktop, web, and mobile apps into a single user and developer experience. You’ll learn how to leverage the full power of the Windows 8 platform and integrate services ranging from client-side state to offline storage. Leveraging these techniques, you can deliver information to users faster, more clearly, and more concisely, on whatever devices they prefer. Through complete example projects, Building Windows 8 Apps with JavaScript covers Understanding powerful new improvements in Windows 8 developer experience Using Windows 8’s more flexible binding to update the UI as underlying data changes Creating layouts and typography that fit Windows 8 style and leverage its advantages Working with audio, video, captured media, animation, and HTML5 graphics Making your app “connectable” with PlayTo Integrating WinJS navigation services to improve UI control Maintaining app states built up over time, and sharing them across devices Writing highly responsive async apps Supporting true-touch metaphors and interactions, location data, and sensors Designing apps for the Windows 8 design language Extending JavaScript code to integrate existing C/C++ code or to access Windows capabilities that WinRT doesn’t expose Discovering best practices for monetizing Windows Store apps All of the downloadable examples can be created and run with Microsoft’s free Visual Studio 2012 Express for Windows 8, which includes all you need to build, package, and deploy your Windows Store apps.

Real World Windows 8 Development is a developer’s handbook - an essential guide to building complete, end-user ready Windows 8 applications on the XAML and C# programming stack from start to finish. Starting with Windows 8 basics and walking through practical aspects of building your Windows 8 application, you'll find step-by-step instructions and practical advice that will leave you with a modern, elegant app written to the highest of standards. Author Samidip Basu, an early adopter of Windows 8 app development techniques, breaks down the design, development, and polish of a real-world business application, adding handy tips and tricks around controls, user interface design, storage, navigation, contracts, and more. Give your Windows 8 application development efforts a kick-start with Real World Windows 8 Development. What you’ll learn Discover the pertinent points of the technology stack in Windows 8 from a developer’s perspective. Familiarize yourself with best practices around usage of controls, user experience paradigms, navigation, storage, service integration, contracts, and more. Incrementally make your Windows 8 application feature-rich and an integrated well-behaved citizen in the operating system. Learn from crisp, standalone discussion of topics in each chapter Who this book is for Real World Windows 8 Development is by a developer, for developers. The book is for .NET developers wanting to utilize their existing skills in XAML and C# towards building a Windows 8 application. On the fence about how your C# and .NET skills apply in the new WinRT world? Have a dream application idea that you slowly want to build up? This book is for you. Table of Contents Part I - Knowing the Ecosystem: Introduction to Windows 8 Part I - Knowing the Ecosystem: Modern UI Design Part II - Getting Started: The Platform & Developer Tools Part II - Getting Started: The Right Controls Part II - Getting Started: The Look & Feel Part II - Getting Started: Content Structuring & Navigation Part III - Into the Groove: Orientation & Visual States Part III - Into the Groove: Handling Data Part III - Into the Groove: Application Lifecycle Management Part III - Into the Groove: Contracts Part IV - The Bling: Media & Sensors Part IV - The Bling: Tiles, Badges, and Toasts Part V - Above & Beyond: Cloud Augmentation Part V - Above & Beyond: Live Service Integration Part V - Above & Beyond: Real-World Techniques Part V - Above & Beyond: Deployment

CSS for Windows 8 App Development is your learning guide for CSS – the language of great Windows 8-style apps. Learn the built-in styles that make the built-in controls shine, how to define them, and how to use CSS to give your custom app assets that beautiful Modern UI style. CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is the clear standard for styling web applications, and with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript now powering apps on Windows 8, it’s the clear standard there as well. CSS is a powerful styling and layout language that greatly simplifies the selection of page elements and their visual display, layout, and animation. Additionally, Windows 8 apps appear on a large variety of screen formats, and CSS is the primary means for uniquely defining these layouts. Learn the language of great Windows 8-style apps Raise your knowledge of the CSS3 standard Use the styles built-in to Windows 8 style apps Apply CSS styles to your app What you’ll learn Master the use of powerful CSS selectors Learn new CSS3 functionality such as flex boxes, grids, animation, and transforms Control your styles from JavaScript for really powerful interactions See the styles implemented by built-in controls like ListView and override them Learn style rules that will help you implement good Windows 8 style See how to use LESS in your Windows 8-style app Who this book is for CSS for Windows 8 App Development is for software developers of all skill levels working with web applications. If you’re new, the foundational CSS examples will bring you up to speed quickly. If you’re more familiar with CSS, you’ll gain critical insight into its application in Windows 8 for creating a great Modern UI. Table of Contents Windows 8 Design Introduction to Windows 8 Development Selectors and Style Rules Text Properties Box Properties Transforms, Transitions, and Animation Properties Layout Properties Global Styles WinJS Control Styles Overriding and Defining Styles CSS Libraries and Resources Styling SVG

Master Windows 8.1/Windows Runtime Programming Through 80 Expert Projects This is the most complete, hands-on, solutions-focused guide to programming modern Windows applications with the Windows Runtime. Leading Windows development consultants Jeremy Likness and John Garland present easy-to-adapt C# and XAML example code for more than 80 projects. Their real-world application examples help you apply Windows 8.1’s best improvements, including large tiles, the new search control, flyouts, command bars, native WinRT networking, and new deployment and sideloading options. Drawing on their pioneering experience, they illuminate key areas of the Windows Runtime API, offering uniquely detailed coverage of encryption, cloud connectivity, devices, printers, and media integration. You’ll find cutting-edge tips and tricks available in no other book. This is an indispensable resource for all intermediate-to-advanced Windows developers, and for any architect building desktop, tablet, or mobile solutions with Microsoft technologies. Its focus on both C# and XAML will make it valuable to millions of Windows developers already familiar with Silverlight, WPF, and/or .NET. Coverage includes • Creating robust app interfaces with the newest XAML controls, including flyouts and command bars • Saving data in a persistent “roaming zone” for syncing across Windows 8.1 devices • Using Visual State Manager (VSM) to build apps that adapt to various device resolutions and orientations • Integrating virtually any form of data into your apps • Connecting with web services, RSS, Atom feeds, and social networks • Securing apps via authentication, encrypting, signing, and single sign-on with Microsoft Account, Facebook, Google, and more • Leveraging Windows 8.1 media enhancements that improve battery life and app performance • Networking more effectively with Windows 8.1’s revamped HTTP implementation and new location APIs • Using Tiles and Toasts to keep apps alive and connected, even when they aren’t running • Enabling users to send content between devices via NFC tap and send • Ensuring accessibility and globalizing your apps • Efficiently debugging, optimizing, packaging, and deploying your apps • Building sideloadable apps that don’t have to be published in Windows Store “This book doesn’t just focus on singular concepts, it also provides end-to-end perspective on building an app in WinRT. It is one of those essential tools for Windows developers that will help you complete your software goals sooner than without it!” —Tim Heuer, Principal Program Manager Lead, XAML Platform, Microsoft Corporation

This text enables readers to produce commercial-quality programs for practical application, and includes a section devoted to programming concepts for the novice as well as a section aimed at the more advanced user.

As more new users come to Access every day, they need an introduction that will make sense of the new concepts and techniques that Microsoft has introduced in this powerful relational database package. This fast-paced but accessible introduction provides a solid foundation for building practical database forms that are useful in any type of business.