MSDN Magazine - August 2008 - (Page 8)

Editor’s NotE More than Pretty Pictures netic data is that allows an individual to make aesthetically pleasing decisions about things like shapes, sizes, and colors, it completely skipped over me. And to make matters worse, because I’m a musician, I am just right-brained enough to know how this lack of ability in the visual arts cripples me as a developer of software with which humans need to be able to respond and interact. So to make up for my lack of natural talent, I have recently been spending a good bit of time focusing on the area of usability and data visualization. I am continually amazed at some of the research that’s being done in this area. In the past few years, we have witnessed some terrific advances in the availability of information. Server-side technologies such as Web services, RSS, and RESTful APIs have simplified both intra- and inter-application access to data. And new technologies are continually being released to enable even more seamless, more transparent access to information (you’re definitely going to want to read Elisa Flakso and Mike Flasko’s article “Expose and Consume Data in a Web Services World”). Along with this increased availability of information comes the continued need to structure and present it in a way that is easily understandable by its ultimate consumers. On the client side, technologies such as Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), AJAX, and now Silverlight are enabling richer interactions between human and computer that are much more seamless and collaborative in nature, as opposed to those applications that felt more like inputting commands into a command processor. In fact, these types of technologies have served as a foundation for creating “mash-up” applications that, even at the presentation layer, are an aggregation of several different applications. However, one of the challenges that we face yet again is that of consistency. In regard to Web applications, the complete and total freedom around everything related to the user experience can be a double-edged sword. And while WPF enables a shift away from I’m a terrible artist. Whatever that ge- this dynamic, the freedom offered to Web application developers stands in sharp contrast to the standardization, both by platform and general heuristics, applied to Windows-based applications. Although traditional Win32 applications and their Windows Forms descendants didn’t have the stunning visual effects of a modern WPF application, there was predictability in terms of where UI elements were found and in how they behaved within the context of the larger application window. Fortunately, in the world of Web applications, standard presentation patterns did start to emerge and were bolstered by technologies such as CSS and DHTML. Interestingly, it seems that the standard look for most modern Web sites, including large corporate sites, has emerged out of the standard CSS templates used in blogs. As such, one of the reasons that I am so excited about XAML, whether in the form of WPF or Silverlight, is that this declarative style of UI design enables the same maturity to develop naturally, even in rich-client applications. As we continue to mature as application developers, we do so in a world with enormous amounts of data. And we do so with a continually evolving toolset—tools that enable us both to collect and process that data, and tools that enable us to better distill and present that data to our users. So while my sketches may always look like they were drawn by a fourth grader, I believe that I—and all of us who are artistically challenged—must learn some specific techniques for ensuring that our users are not simply impressed but also able to be more efficient. Thanks To The following MicrosofT Technical experTs for Their help Desai, Mike Flasko, Matt Gibbs, Bertrand Le Roy, Laurence Moroney, Ari Pernick, Edward Psyk, Dave Reed, Mark Rideout, Don Smith, Stephen Toub, Stefan Wick, Matt Winkler, and Robert Wlodarczyk. wiTh This issue: Tim Cahill, Pablo Castro, Barak Cohen, Matthew Cox, Anish Visit us at msdn.microsoft.com/magazine. Questions, comments, or suggestions for MSDN Magazine? Send them to the editor: mmeditor@microsoft.com. Access, ActiveX, BizTalk, Excel, Expression Blend, IntelliSense, Internet Explorer, Microsoft, MSDN, SharePoint, Silverlight, SQL Server, Visual Basic, Visual C++, Visual Studio, Win32, Windows, Windows Media, Windows Mobile, Windows NT, Windows PowerShell, Windows Server, Windows Vista, Xbox, and Xbox 360 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other trademarks or tradenames mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. MSDN MagaziNe DOES NOT MAkE ANy rEPrESENTATION Or WArrANTy, EXPrESS Or IMPLIED WITh rESPECT TO ANy CODE Or OThEr INfOrMATION hErEIN. MSDN MagaziNe DISCLAIMS ANy LIABILITy WhATSOEVEr fOr ANy uSE Of SuCh CODE Or OThEr INfOrMATION. The recommendations and technical guidelines in MSDN Magazine are based on specific environments and configurations. These recommendations or guidelines may not apply to dissimilar configurations. MSDN and Microsoft are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the united States and/or other countries. MSDN Magazine, MSDN, and Microsoft logos are used by united Business Media under license from owner. MSDN Magazine is published by united Business Media LLC. united Business Media LLC is an independent company not affiliated with Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft Corporation is solely responsible for the editorial contents of this magazine. 8 msdn magazine http://msdn.microsoft.com/magazine

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of MSDN Magazine - August 2008

MSDN Magazine - August 2008 Toolbox CLR Inside Out Basic Instincts Cutting Edge Patterns in Practice Data 2.0 - Expose And Consume Data In A Web Services World Biztalk EDI - Build A Robust EDI Solution With BizTalk Server Silverlight - Create Animations With XAML And Expression Blend Write On! - Create Web Apps You Can Draw On With Silverlight 2 Wicked Code - Craft Custom Controls For Silverlight 2 Team System Foundations Windows With C++ Concurrent Affairs Going Places { End Bracket }

MSDN Magazine - August 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.