Universal Windows Apps with XAML and C# Unleashed

Full Color: Figures and code appear as they do in Visual Studio.

Universal Windows apps are a total game-changer. You can now write once and deploy your app to any modern PC, tablet, phone, or other Windows device. Suddenly, it's quick and easy to serve new devices and form factors, sharing unified assets ranging from code to styles to user controls. It has never been easier to reach multiple-device markets!

Now, the world's #1 expert on Microsoft XAML brings together all the knowledge Windows developers need to build universal apps that adapt smoothly for any device running Windows 8.1, Windows Phone 8.1, or their successors. Drawing on his unsurpassed personal experience and direct input from Microsoft's Windows and Visual Studio teams, Adam Nathan illuminates core development concepts, answers your most important questions, and candidly assesses the technology's strengths and limitations.

This full-color guide walks you through every key task involved in building a universal Windows app: layout and input, working with the app model, using advanced controls, leveraging XAML's powerful rich media features, and much more.

Detailed information on how to...


Quickly build universal, localized apps that exploit the vast global scale of the Windows Store
Size, position, and transform elements within layouts that gracefully adapt to different devices
Handle input from touch, mouse, pen, keyboard, and any sensor
Monetize apps with Windows Store sales, in-app purchases, and advertising
Make the most of controls for managing content, items, text, images, media, speech, and more
Create efficient 2D vector graphics and animations
Use styles, templates, and visual states to redesign controls without losing functionality
Bind data sources to simplify data presentation and updates
Easily integrate data from apps, users, and networks
Support Windows app commands: Search, Share, Print, Play, Project, Settings
Use contracts to build apps that cooperate to perform complex tasks
Improve the user experience even when your app isn't running