Beginning .NET Game Programming in VB .NET presents the work of David Weller (.NET Game evangelist at Microsoft) and a group of key Microsoft insiders who decided to write the ideal introduction to game programming for VB .NET programmers. Weller has switched his previous book to VB .NET and added a bonus chapter. The book has passed all internal Microsoft tests as to programming style. This thoroughly revised and improved version (including a bonus chapter) is the ideal way to get into .NET game programming using the VB .NET language.

This book will show you how to think about similarities in your application logic and how to design and create objects that maximize the benefit and power of .NET. Packed with examples that will guide you through every step, Object-Oriented Programming with Visual Basic .NET is for those with some programming experience.

This book is not a reference. That needs to be said right off the bat. It was written to be read cover to cover; it tells a story. It's an interwoven tale about object-oriented programming in the .NET world: building objects, moving them, and using them around the world. This is not just a how-to book; it's a why-to and a when-to book as well.

At times, this book is ideal for beginners. At other times, it is for intermediate programmers. And sometimes, it is for advanced coders. Regardless of your skills, this book assumes three things: the .NET Framework is installed on a machine and under your control, you have access to a web server, and, when you get curious, you know how to look up whatever interests you in the documentation. .NET is massive. However, I wasn't able to cover every subject; I wanted the book to be manageable for the readers, fun, and informative.

This book introduces Visual Basic from an object-oriented viewpoint, with a rigor and accessibility perfect for students learning their first programming language. Rich in the pedagogical style that is the trademark of the Dale series of programming texts, this Visual Basic text provides straightforward explanations, meaningful examples, and engaging exercises. Students develop good programming habits right from the start and acquire a thorough understanding of classes, methods, object-oriented concepts, and algorithms. The Visual Basic Graphical User Interface (GUI) is extensively discussed, which complements the text's emphasis on fundamental programming concepts. The active learning methodology and rich topic coverage of this text thoroughly prepare students for future study.

The focus of this book is on the fundamentals of programming. Each chapter focuses on one of the major programming constructs of the language. User interface details, while not ignored, are kept to the basics of form design in Visual Basic .NET. I wrote this book feeling that once the reader has a good grasp of using Visual Basic .NET, the reader can venture out on his or her own to learn more about user interface design and development.

The Microsoft Windows Presentation Foundation (formerly code-named
"Avalon") is a key part of .NET 3.0 and provides the foundation for
building applications and high-quality user experiences in Windows
Vista. WPF blends together application user interface, documents, and
media content, while exploiting the full power of your computer. WPF
functionality extends support for Tablet PCs and other forms of input
device, and provides a more modern imaging and printing pipeline. It
also provides accessibility and UI automation infrastructure,
data-driven UI and visualization, and even integration points for
weaving the application experience into the Windows shell. Pro WPF:
Windows Presentation Foundation in .NET 3.0 covers WPF from installation
to application design and implementation to deployment. One of the most
detailed books on new WPF technology, it provides you with the
no-nonsense, practical advice you need in order to build high-quality
WPF applications quickly and easily. It also digs into the more advance
aspects of WPF and how they relate to the other elements of the WinFX
stack and the .NET Framework 2.0. Topics covered include
- WPF basics: XAML, layout, control essentials, and data flow
- WPF applications: navigation, commands, localization, and deployment
- Advanced controls: custom controls, menus, toolbars, and trees
- WPF documents: text layout, printing, and document packaging
- Graphics and multimedia: drawing shapes, sound and video, animation,
geometric transformations, and imaging

What is good code? Writing good code is really a question about what the code is trying to solve. (And good code is not to be confused with patterns–because not all pieces of good code are patterns.) We debate about good code because there is not just a single piece of good code, but so many good pieces of code. And each good piece of code depends on the context in which it is used.

How to Code .NET: Tips and Tricks for Coding .NET 1.1 and .NET 2.0 Applications Effectively provides solutions to certain problems. That is, specific problems. This book provides detailed, authoritative explanations of good .NET coding techniques. It's based on award-winning material that author Christian Gross has previously presented at conferences throughout the US and Europe. What's more, the author is at the forefront of the .NET technology wave and an acknowledged expert on the subject of .NET coding style and techniques.

Learn how to use the Microsoft .NET Micro Framework to develop applications for the next generation of embedded devices. Embedded programming is set to move into the mainstream as a variety of new devices come to market. A key embedded device enabled by Windows Vista(tm) that requires the .NET Micro Framework is Windows SideShow(tm), the external display that will be incorporated into many notebook computers. This reference shows developers how to use the .NET Micro Framework to create new applications for Windows SideShow displays and small, resource-constrained devices. With insights direct from the product team it covers essential topics, including interface design and managed drivers, device capabilities, and how to use emulation technologies. In addition, it delves into how to port key functionality from existing applications into other form factors. Ideal for developers with experience working with Microsoft Visual Studio® 2005 and Microsoft Visual C#®, this essential guide includes practical examples and code samples.

Visual Basic .NET Power Coding is the experienced developer's guide to mastering advanced Visual Basic .NET concepts. Paul Kimmel saves readers time and money by providing thorough explanations of essential topics so you can quickly begin creating robust programs that have fewer bugs. He also demonstrates important concepts by using numerous real-world examples that include working code that has been tested against Visual Basic .NET 2003.

After a brief review of language idioms, Kimmel moves to more advanced techniques that help programmers solve their most challenging problems. Central to advanced development and deployment are chapters on security, Web services, ASP.NET programming, COM Interop, and Remoting. This book also covers thin client programming, which offers businesses a real solution to managing deployment and upgrades with Windows Forms using Reflection and HTTP. An appendix walks readers through migrating Visual Basic 6.0 applications to Visual Basic .NET. A companion Web site includes the complete downloadable source code, extensive reusable examples, and updates from the author.

I wrote this book for professionals who have gotten past the basics and are ready for some torque. This book assumes you have read an introductory book on VB .NET, progressed through a more advanced book like Visual Basic .NET Unleashed [Kimmel 2002b], and are now ready to turn on the hyperdrive.

If you want to use Visio to create enterprise software, this is the book for you.

The integration of Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Architect and Visio for Enterprise Architects provides a formidable tool. Visio offers powerful diagramming capabilities, including such things as creating UML models, mapping out databases with Entity Relationship diagrams, and aiding the development of distributed systems. Its integration with Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Architect means that C# or Visual Basic .NET code can be generated from the UML diagrams, and Visual Studio .NET projects can be reverse engineered to UML models.

For the developer already familiar with UML and looking to get the best out of Visio, the Visual Studio .NET and Visio for Enterprise Architects combination is weakly documented, and the quality information needed to realize the time-saving features of Visio just does not seem to be available, until now.

This book presumes that you are already familiar with the basic concepts of UML notation — this book will not teach you UML. Instead, this book will take you forward into the Visio environment, showing you how to make the most of its software related features.

Pro SharePoint Solution Development: Combining .NET, SharePoint, and Office 2007 takes a practical problem/solution approach to common business challenges. You'll not only encounter interesting code samples, but also see how to combine these examples with the Microsoft collaboration platform's services. The book's solutions focus on using Visual Studio Tools for Office to build the user interface layer. And solutions can interact with SharePoint as a service provider, taking advantage of SharePoint's many collaboration features like document repositories, collaboration sites, and search functions.

This book is unique because it starts with challenges that end users deal with every day when using the Microsoft collaboration platform to support business processes. The solutions are presented as the hypothetical business challenges of a fictional company. By presenting the examples in this context, authors Ed Hild and Susie Adams make it easier to relate to the challenges and solution value. And the goal of these examples is to build applications that apply the benefits of the Office desktop interface with the richness of SharePoint's collaboration features.                   

Subclassing & Hooking with Visual Basic offers developers a unique way to customize Windows behavior. Windows is a message-based system. Every action you request creates one or more messages to carry out the action. These messages are passed between objects and carry with them information that gives the recipient more detail on how to interpret and act upon the message. With Subclassing and the Windows hooking mechanism ("hooks"), you can manipulate, modify, or even discard messages bound for other objects within the operating system, in the process changing the way the system behaves.

This book is geared towards the Visual Basic developer who wants a better understanding of subclassing and hooking as well as how to incorporate these techniques into their projects. You need not be an advanced Visual Basic developer to learn how to effectively use subclassing and hooking. Although, many of the Win32 API function will need to be utilized in order to write subclassing and hooking applications and, therefore, a good knowledge of the Win32 API functions and how they are used within Visual Basic is necessary.

In understanding subclassing and hooks, you must delve deep into the internals of the Window’s operating system. This deeper understanding of Windows allows you not only to gain an understanding of subclassing and hooking, but also to learn more about the messaging system, which is the heart of the Windows operating system. The beginning of this book lays a solid foundation that will bring the beginning or intermediate developer up to speed on these topics.