What are the differences between these two programming choices
I know that the following features are supported by only HTML/Javascript
1. Flyout control
2. Header Menu
3. Rating Control
Do they have any other difference in terms of controls, integrations, connections, deployment?
html/javascript
html5 and js are open web standards. That's why they work (and act) in nearly every browser the same way. That is the reason why you can develop html5 applications for Mac OS and port it without many extra coding to Windows.
Microsoft however wants to have as many Apps inside the market as possible, that's why they made confession to the web developer and implemented a native looking support to html and Javascript. But there are a lot of Javascript functions, that are only supported by IE10 (in fact, nearly every function you can find in the WinJS-File). If you want to port Win 8 Application to any other Operation System, you have to review your code.
A good example for this is the click-eventhandler in WinJS, which has a event.pointerId to identify multitouch. This is a good easy way but not standard.
XAML/C# or VB
XAML is .NET and so it is fixed to this Framework. You cannot easily port a XAML Application to a mac os. Therefor XAML and C# is very good implemented into Visual Studio (Intellisense,Blend and Design-Views) and has some nice features like LINQ and DataBinding. Also the MVVM pattern allows to split up designers and programmers. In my opinion the documentation on msdn is better for XAML and C# than for Html5 and JS. For games there is also a DirectX implementation which is a better choice because of higher performance.
What to choose?
The decision which way to program is really hard. The following Questions should help:
Which programming language are you more familiar with?
IF OOP -> C# and XAML
IF web and prototype based languages -> HTML and JS
Which type of application will you code?
If it's fixed to Win 8 -> XAML and C#
If it should run on more than one platform -> HTML and JS
Do you like Visual Studio?
If yes -> use XAML and C#
If no -> use HTML and JS, you can than
first develop the app with your common IDE and later import it into
visual studio to create the application.
Related
I am starting developing Windows 8 Metro apps. It seems that there are 3 different approaches available for creating one:
C#/XAML
C++/XAML
JS/HTML5
Do these approaches have the same functionalities and power?
I mean that if one develops an app in one these three, is it possible to recreate it in any of the other two?
Well, a simple application can be built on any of these platforms. Their won't be much difference. C++ code is generally more faster, if speed is a matter for you got that way!
There are some tools like DatePicker and all which are available only in JS/HTML but NOT on XAML(Alternatives are available though).
So yes! there is a bit difference in the API's available for each of them.
Their is a question already on the site explaining difference between C# and C++.
I personally prefer C#/XAML because it is easy and comfortable.
You may refer to it here:
What are the pros and cons of writing C#/XAML vs. C++/XAML WinRT applications in Windows8?
Happy coding :)
You can write the basic engine with the C# language and the mainview with HTML5.
If you know web development technologies, you can develop a Windows Store app using HTML5, Cascading Style Sheets, Level 3 (CSS3), and JavaScript.
If you have developed .NET, Windows Presentation Foundation, or Microsoft Silverlight applications, you can develop a Windows Store app using XAML, with code-behind in C++, C#, or Visual Basic.
If you know DirectX, you can develop a DirectX Windows Store app using native C++ and HLSL to take full advantage of graphics hardware.
What is the difference between Metro apps written in web-development technologies and ones written in XAML/C#, etc.? Does Microsoft Metro API provide hooks for Javascript, where it's all native for C#? Should they work hand in hand, or is it the developers choice which route to go?
Is there certain functionality that cannot be implemented if using JS (other than OpenGL hardware capabilities)?
The reason I'm wondering is to know which technologies are necessary for building extensive Metro apps, so that when I get to a certain point I'm not stopped by a brick wall, letting me know that I used the wrong technology.
Microsoft has put in a lot of work to make Javascript a first-order language on par with C# for WinRT development. Both Javascript and C# have direct access to the WinRT API via language projections. That is, there is a unique binding specific to the language to the underlying API. So neither language is any more "native" than the other.
You should be able to write an equivalent Metro app in either language. At a high-level, it really does come down to which language/environment you are more comfortable with.
However, there are a couple of differences that should factor into the decision. First, WinRT components can only be written in C# or C++. Javascript can only consume thse components. If there is an intent to create reusable/shareable components, should keep this in mind.
Second, although the Windows Phone 8 SDK has not been released yet, there are indications that Windows Phone 8 apps can only be written in C#. If there is an intent to create similar apps for both the tablet as well as the phone, this is probably a serious consideration.
There haven't been a lot of performance-based studies comparing the two in a Metro app, so it's hard to say whether that will become a factor or not.
Then, there is also 3rd-party support to consider. C#/XAML is well established and has a lot of 3rd-party support. But similarly, Javascript has a lot of 3rd-party libraries available (e.g. jQuery) that for the most part can be brought in and used in a Metro app as well. I would give a slight edge to C#/XAML, but it seems like support is good for both.
We can’t just leave our customers that are not able to upgrade to windows 8 for a long time in the larch. However there is demand for a “tablet”/”touch” version of our app.
So how can we support both touch with Metro on Windows 8 and our current customers from a single code base?
When WPF come out, after a lot of “Pushing” Microsoft saw since and make it work on Windows XP – has anything like this been talked about for WinRT.
(I am not expecting any solution to work on XP, as XP support is being wound down.)
See Also: Can the ARM version of Windows 8 only run Metro (WinRt) style apps?
The best answer is that you do not want the same application to run on Windows 7 and Windows 8 Metro style. The UI that works best for mouse and keyboards (windows 7) will not work well for a touch-first presentation and visa versa. It is important to re-imagine the UI for the two different worlds.
That said, you have 2 options if you want to share a lot of the code:
1) Write it largely in JavaScript/HTML5. This will let you re-use many of the assets (especially the business logic parts).
2) Write it in (desktop) Silverlight. The Silverlight XAML is closest to Windows XAML. WPF is further away and will require more re-work later.
In either case, you should look at and follow the principles used when writing cross-platform code. Understand the platform dependencies and isolate them behind indirection boundaries. You want to localize all of the code that will have to change. For instance, you don't want calls to the .Net System.IO.File APIs which you know will have to change to Windows.System.Storage calls being scattered throughout your code. Instead, you want it localized in one function that can be modified later.
The only way I can think of is to implement your application in HTML5/CSS3/JS, and avoid using WinRT APIs inasmuch as possible - this may be feasible depending on what, exactly, your app needs to do (e.g. portable 2D graphics is easy with HTML5 canvas).
Then, for Win8, you'll package this as Metro web app. For Win7 and below, you write a simple app that embeds your browser of choice (not IE9, since it doesn't work on XP - so Firefox or Chrome) with all chrome hidden, and loads your HTML5 app inside that embedded browser.
As others have noted, you would not want to have exactly the same application working in Win8 Metro and Win7 / Vista Desktop. If you structure your application properly, using a suitabel design pattern, it is possible to share quite a bit of code between the various version that you would require. For the Win8 version, you will be using WinRT, for Win7 / Vista you have a choice of Silverlight or WPF.
I have published a couple of articles that demonsrate how this can be done, they include quite a bit of code as well:
XAMLFinance – A Cross-platform WPF, Silverlight & WP7 Application - while this article does not cover Win8, it does share code from WPF to Windows Phone 7, which is a very similar problem.
TweetSearch – A Cross platform Metro UI WinRT and Silverlight Application - this article shows how to use the same techniques to share code between WinRT and Silverlight
It is unlikely that we'll see Microsoft push the Metro-style
application framework back to past releases due to the level of
re-architecting that went into Windows 8.
I agree with Zac on this point. It appears Microsoft is definitely pushing both the technology and usability forward with the introduction of Windows 8 (and Windows Runtime).
The Metro UI is a different UI paradigm. If your using the current
Win32 controls (which includes WPF controls), your application will
look really dated in Metro. The only way to fix that is to
re-implement the UI (your View classes in an MVVM design) using Metro
controls. However, C# and majority of the .NET APIs are first class
citizens in this new environment. The rest of your application should
be fine.
As you already have what I assume a rather large application your best solution would be separate your view from your model-viewmodel. Then you can continue to develop both Windows 8 Metro full-screen touch-friendly awesome interfaces and the "classic" window interface (what we have done for the last x number of years). With good separation, design, and an excellent source control solution (i.e. Perforce) you will able to share a lot of the code base.
In addition to the answers given to your recent question on Windows Runtime Bill Wagner (one of the many C# bloggers that I follow) has posted summary on WinRT and managed languages conference sessions; it is an good read and recommended if you have a few minutes. One of the things that his summary clarified (in the FAQ at the end) was that the future of .NET as the branding for the framework we use is going to be replaced with Windows Runtime.
Another piece from Bill's blog post:
Some of the .NET APIs are changing for WinRT. I don’t have an
exhaustive list, and I’m not sure there is one yet. Other APIs are not
exposed via WinRT. (They are still available as .net APIs, just not as
Metro / WinRT APIs.)
It is unlikely that we'll see Microsoft push the Metro-style application framework back to past releases due to the level of re-architecting that went into Windows 8.
Like Pavel said, if you kept your application from using as much of the WinRT libraries as possible, it is possible but then again, you're now building a regular web app.
I am new to smartphone application Development, I have worked with .NET web and Windows Forms applications and only used the C# language.
I am planning to make a simple application which can run on all mobile OSes, like BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Android phones, iPhone, etc. On searching I found that all have different OSes and uses different languages. I can use the C# language and .NET since I am aware about it. After some thinking, is it possible to make a web-based application using normal website coding but make it work like an application?
Please suggest some method to make a application which is possible to run on all smartphones. What technology or tools can be used for developing it?
The best approach to create truly cross platform app is to use HTML5 and JavaScript. All the other options will be painful. However, of course you can't access all the features with these web applications.
One interesting framework for creating HTML5/JavaScript based apps is PhoneGap (http://www.phonegap.com/). It has quite many API's available and wide support for different platforms. (Note that browser performance varies between devices so make sure not to add too much effects and glitter)
For native apps, there's no that many frameworks but one interesting is MoSync (http://www.mosync.com/)
There can be multiple approaches to create a Cross Smatphone plateform apllication.
If you want to code just once and want to to run on multiple enviroments without any change you must go for some javascript/HTML5 bassed solutions. One that I work with is NGCore. It is a development framework that allows games to be authored in JavaScript but with native application performance by leveraging ngmoco's ngCore libraries.
Other approach that will best suit your needs is to go for a Environment like MonoTouch. Its C# based and AFAIK you can use most of the .net API in MonoDevelope. It lets you reuse most of your code on another environment.
Are there any libraries available that can help to change the look-and-feel of Desktop Applications made using VB.net 2008? Here is a snapshot of an application that runs on Windows 7:
I think its made using the .net framework, but how can it be styled like this?
PS - Even if its not built using .net framework, then please let me know which language supports the UI customization on windows platform.
NOTE - As everyone is suggesting me to go with WPF or SWING using JAVA, I still want to know if its possible in VB.net WinForms or not.
Theme handlers (Use standard controls and the handler takes care of the visual UI):
Open source
http://www.codeproject.com/KB/miscctrl/FancyNetForms.aspx
Closed source
http://www.appface.com/ ($ 149 USD) (Skin your app with 2 lines of code)
Special controls that has built in theaming:
ComponentOne:
http://www.componentone.com/SuperProducts/StudioWinForms/
Infragistics:
http://www.infragistics.com/
I don't know how this specific window was styled, but there are many posibilities:
Maybe was made in WPF. Microsoft WPF are available since VS2008 and Framework 3.0 and it allow to make a complete look and feel customization for every control that you use.
Maybe It was made in winforms using a custom control set. For example, DevExpress has a set of 60 free controls that comes with some predefined look and allow creating your own skin. (60 Free Controls)
Maybe It just was made in Java with Swing (look this Question)