.NET: Programming Windows and Smart Client Applications

Course Overview

Smart clients are Windows applications that utilise Web services and are installed over the Web using ClickOnce deployment. They combine the best features of Windows and Web applications by providing rich user interfaces that are easy to deploy.

This course provides the skills to design, program and deploy Windows Forms applications with C# and VB 2005.

Audience

This course benefits Windows programmers moving to .NET from VB, C++, Java or other environments and Web developers adding smart clients to applications. Programming experience is assumed.

Skills Gained

• Program Windows and smart client applications with C# and Visual Basic 2005
• Design rich graphical user interfaces (GUIs) using advanced .NET controls
• Employ the .NET Framework for serialisation, file I/O, multithreading and globalisation
• Accelerate data binding with generics and ADO.NET 2.0 DataSources
• Retrieve and update data safely over the Internet using Web services
• Leverage ClickOnce for easy application deployment
• Create custom and user controls for rapid application development

Course Outline

Building Windows Forms Applications

Programming forms and controls

• Coding Windows applications with C# and VB 2005
• Creating and displaying forms and controls
• Responding to input with event handlers

Accelerating development with Visual Studio 2005

• Setting project and application properties
• Storing user preferences with .NET 2.0 settings
• Employing serialisation to store complex objects in XML

Designing Windows User Interfaces

Constructing multiple document interfaces (MDI)

• Implementing MDI parent and child forms
• MenuStrip
• ContextMenuStrip
• ToolStrip
• StatusStrip
• RichTextBox
• Integrating help with the ToolTip and ErrorProvider controls

Retrieving input with dialogues

• Creating custom dialogues
• Employing .NET common dialogues

Internationalising .NET applications

• Globalisation and localisation
• Translating forms to multiple languages

Architecting Advanced Applications

Designing Outlook-style forms

• Arranging multipane interfaces with SplitContainer and Panel controls
• Representing complex information with TreeView and ListView controls

Accessing the file system

• Exploiting the System.IO namespace
• Traversing directories, files and special folders

Maximising UI responsiveness with multiple threads

• Spawning, detecting and aborting worker threads
• Simplifying multithreaded programs with the BackgroundWorker component
• Calling any function asynchronously with delegates

Automating Data Access with Data Binding

Synchronising forms to their underlying data sources

• Simple vs. complex binding
• Binding to arrays, generics and XML
• BindingSource and BindingNavigator controls

ADO.NET 2.0 data binding features

• Drag-and-drop binding to objects and DataSources
• Retrieving and updating data from databases
• Navigating relational data with master-detail forms
• Manipulating the DataGridView control
• Validating user input and handling errors

Accessing data online using Web services

• Retrieving and updating data using the Web
• Maintaining referential integrity
• Invoking Web services asynchronously

ClickOnce Deployment

Setting installation options

• Launched vs. installed applications
• Ensuring application prerequisites
• Updating applications automatically
• Running programs via Internet Explorer

Configuring Code Access Security (CAS)

• Code-groups and permission sets
• Running full or partially trusted code
• Setting ClickOnce security options

Crafting Custom Controls

Coding user and owner-drawn controls

• Painting and designing custom controls
• Delegates and custom event arguments
• GDI+ pens, brushes, drawing and imaging

Hosting Windows Forms controls

• Creating Windows control libraries
• Accessing controls with JavaScript

Printing and Reporting

Exploiting the .NET printing classes

• Manipulating the PrintDocument object
• Previewing output with printing controls

Reporting features of Visual Studio 2005

• Simplifying printing with Crystal Reports
• Designing and viewing reports

.NET: Programming Windows and Smart Client Applications / NET-PW