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My Wish List for Windows “Blue”
17 May 13 05:48 PM | pavely | with no comments

Many rumors are flying around at this time about the upcoming release of Windows 8.1 (code named “Blue”, which represents a wave of product updates, including Windows Phone and others). I thought I‘d state my hopes for this release, not just in terms of user features, but also from a developer’s perspective. As a developer, I spend most of my time on my trusty laptop, not some tablet based device. Naturally, the desktop world is my friend. The Windows 8 Start screen is close to perfect for tablet...

תגים:MFC, COM, C++, .NET, C#, DEV, Win32, XAML, DirectX, Media Foundation, Windows 8, Windows Runtime, C++/CX, Windows Phone 8

XAML Tip: Graphics with ItemsControl
23 February 13 12:04 AM | pavely | with no comments

Sometimes in a WPF or Windows Store or Windows Phone application we need to draw some things based on some collection of data items. Suppose we have the following simple data item: class CarData { public double Distance { get; set; } public string Image { get; set; } } Suppose we have a collection of CarData objects, and the requirement was to show a set of images along a line with a particular distance, like in the following screenshot: The distance from the left is determined by the Distance property...

תגים:.NET, Visual Studio, C#, Silverlight, DEV, XAML, WPF, Windows Phone, Windows 8, Windows Runtime, Windows Phone 8

Windows Runtime with C++/C#: Anatomy of a WinRT Class
30 December 12 09:47 AM | pavely | with no comments

The Windows Runtime (WinRT) is based on COM (I referred to it in the past as a “better COM”), which means every method and property must be part of an interface. Also, COM does not support static members (only instance members) and does not easily support parameterized constructors. Inheritance is again an issue in classic COM – the closest thing is COM aggregation, and that’s not really inheritance in the usual sense of the word. Using C++/CX or a .NET language allows creating WinRT types that support...

תגים:COM, C#, DEV, Windows 8, Windows Runtime, Visual Studio 2012, C++/CX

Windows 8 Store Apps: Class Library vs. Windows Runtime Component
30 October 12 03:14 PM | pavely | 1 comment(s)

When working with Windows 8 Store apps in C# (or VB, but I’ll stick with C#), there are several ways of creating reusable (or at least seemingly reusable) class libraries for Windows 8 Store projects. In this post, I’ll take a to look at the options, contrasting their features and usefulness. Looking at the new project dialog in Visual Studio 2012, under the Windows Store node (under Visual C# ), we can see the following: There is a third option, the traditional Class Library project located under...

תגים:C++, .NET, C#, DEV, Windows 8, .NET 4.5, Windows Runtime

Windows 8 & Phone 8 UG August Meeting
29 August 12 11:22 PM | pavely | with no comments

Last evening we had a User Group meeting in Microsoft Offices in Ra’anana, with a lot of activity and fun. Thank you all for participating! In the first part, we discussed the Windows 8 Store from various angles, end user and developer. In the second part, we discussed Windows Phone 7.x and the upcoming 8, along with other sporadic topics - C++, WinRT, DirectX, COM, XNA, XAML… it was fun! And don’t forget the giveaways! Just as a gentle reminder, out next meeting is on September 13th , where we’ll...

תגים:COM, C++, .NET, XNA, C#, CLR, DEV, XAML, Native Development, DirectX, C# 5.0, Windows Phone, Windows 8, C++11, Windows Phone User Group, Windows Devices User Group, Windows Runtime, C++/CX

Windows 8 Metro: C++/CX vs. C#
25 June 12 10:05 PM | pavely | 9 comment(s)

Lately, I’ve been doing development of a Windows 8 Metro application using C++ only (yes, that’s right, no C#) for a client. The reasons for that are mainly an existing C++ code base and a good C++ acquaintance that the team in question has. I’ve been using the new C++/CX extensions that make it easier to work with the Windows Runtime (WinRT); easier with respect to the Windows Runtime Library (WRL) that uses standard C++ with a bunch of helpers (such as ComPtr<T> as a smart pointer for a COM...

תגים:C++, C#, DEV, C# 5.0, Windows 8, .NET 4.5, C++11, Windows Runtime, Visual Studio 2012, C++/CX

My Visual Studio 2012 & C# 5.0 Presentation
18 June 12 02:02 PM | pavely | 1 comment(s)

This morning I presented a session on new features in Visual Studio 2012 and the new language features in C# 5.0. Thank you all for attending! The presentation and demos can be downloaded from https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=45C1880107EBE12C&id=45C1880107EBE12C%2118700

תגים:C#, DEV, C# 5.0, Windows 8, .NET 4.5, Visual C++, Windows Runtime, Visual Studio 2012, Metro

Windows Devices UG Meeting Reminder: WinRT & Metro Apps
17 April 12 06:31 PM | pavely | with no comments

The Windows Devices user group managed by Elad Shaham and myself is meeting next Tuesday (the 24th) at Microsoft Offices in Ra’anana. We’ll have two sessions dedicated to Windows 8. Full agenda and registration (free) is available at http://insidewindowsruntime.eventbrite.com/ See you there!

תגים:C#, DEV, .NET 4, Windows 8, Windows Devices User Group, Windows Runtime