Books

The growing popularity of Web 2.0 applications is increasing user expectations for high-quality web site design, presentation, and functionality. It is into this climate that Microsoft is releasing Silverlight 4, the third and latest iteration of its cross-browser web presentation technology. Beginning Sliverlight 4 brings you to the cutting-edge of Web 2.0 application design and includes plenty of practical guidance to get you started straightaway.

.NET trainer and consultant Andrew Troelsen has managed to fit a complete training workshop within the pages of his latest book, Silverlight 4 Lab. Troelsen’s tested methods provide a deep treatment of the subject in an accessible manner, using focused chapters that will challenge and elevate experienced .NET developers to a high level of competence in Silverlight 4. Using the effective teaching and presentation techniques imparted in this book, you'll quickly be on your way to mastering the latest version of Silverlight and all of the new innovations it offers, including right-click event handling, a new printing API, and support for the Managed Extensibility Framework.

Each chapter begins with a focused “traditional treatment” in which the scope of the chapter and the topics it covers are discussed and the course of the training lab laid out. Once the stage has been set, the bulk of the chapter takes the form of a hands-on lab that walks you deeply through the topic in a highly experiential manner, with new techniques and concepts explained clearly as you progress. This focused approach targets experienced .NET developers who already possess a good knowledge of C# and an outline understanding of Silverlight. Starting at this level allows you to dive deeply into the subject from the very beginning.

Foundation Expression Blend 4 with Silverlight 4 takes you through your first steps in creating Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) using the latest release of Microsoft’s technology. You’ll explore features such as custom user controls that you can reuse throughout your projects and the media element that allows you to easily add sound and video to your applications. Silverlight 4 enables you to rapidly develop compelling, cross-platform RIAs using the extensive .NET 4 libraries, the powerful, design friendly Blend 4 Integrated Development Environment, and an enhanced workflow that allows designers and developers to work on the same set of files at the same time. At the end, you’ll put everything you have learned together to create a sample Silverlight 4 website.

Silverlight 4 is the latest iteration of Microsoft’s cross-browser technology for creating rich user experiences on the Web. Like its predecessor Silverlight 3, it rides atop the .NET Framework for maximum ease of use and coding efficiency. The new technology carries forward much of the work that has been done before and augments it in many important respects, including support for H.264 video, major improvements to the graphics engine (including true 3D rendering), and much richer data-binding options for interfacing with other applications.

Pro Silverlight 4 in C# is an invaluable reference for professional developers wanting to discover the new features of Silverlight 4. Author Matthew MacDonald’s expert advice guides you through creating rich media applications using Silverlight in the environment you’re most productive in—no matter what the target platform.

Over 85 practical recipes for creating rich, data-driven business applications in Silverlight

• Design and develop rich data-driven business applications in Silverlight
• Rapidly interact with and handle multiple sources of data and services within Silverlight business applications
• Understand sophisticated data access techniques in your Silverlight business applications by binding data to Silverlight controls, validating data in Silverlight, getting data from services into Silverlight applications and much more!
• Packed with practical, hands-on cookbook recipes, illustrating the techniques to solve particular data problems effectively within your Silverlight business applications

Silverlight is Microsoft's breakthrough technology for creating rich experiences on the web. This book illustrates the power of Silverlight as a graphics, animation, and game-creation tool. It teaches the fundamentals of computer animation, using trigonometry and vector movement before moving on to more advanced topics such as physics modeling and particle systems.

Business Intelligence (BI) software aims to bring together different pieces of a business into views that can make comprehending mountains of data easier. BI is everywhere. Applications that include reports, analytics, statistics, and historical and predictive modeling are all examples of BI applications. Currently, we are in the second generation of BI software, called BI 2.0. This generation is focused on writing BI software that is predictive, adaptive, simple, and interactive.