MS Expression Blend 4 Step by Step |
Chris Leeds, Elena Kasinska |
Organization of This Book |
■ Chapter 1: Welcome to the Silverlight and WPF World ❑ Identify the basics of Silverlight and WPF technologies. ❑ Differentiate between designer and developer roles. ❑ Recognize products in Expression Studio 4. ❑ Understand how Visual Studio can fit into your design process. ■ Chapter 2: Exploring the Expression Blend 4 IDE ❑ Download and install Expression Blend 4. ❑ Open and run your first Silverlight project. ❑ Use and customize the Expression Blend 4 user interface. ■ Chapter 3: Designing an Interface ❑ Create a new project. ❑ Place visual elements and common controls in your project. ❑ Use layout panels as containers for arranging objects. ❑ Use image and video elements. ■ Chapter 4: XAML and C# ❑ Understand what Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) is. ❑ List basic XAML objects and properties. ❑ Use the XAML editor and IntelliSense in Expression Blend. ❑ Understand the basics of C#. ❑ Explain the relationship of code-behind files to XAML files. ❑ Create objects in C#. ❑ Change properties of existing objects by using C# code. ❑ Respond to events with event handlers. ■ Chapter 5: Animations and Transformations ❑ Resize user interface (UI) elements. ❑ Scale, rotate, skew, and translate your objects. ❑ Change the center point of an object. ❑ Flip objects.
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Simulate three-dimensional space via projection. ❑ Use timelines and keyframes. ❑ Add animations and change object properties over time. ❑ Modify storyboards. ❑ Apply behaviors and run storyboards in response to events. ■ Chapter 6: Adding Interactivity ❑ Use default Expression Blend behaviors. ❑ Run storyboards based on behaviors. ❑ Use behaviors to change properties of objects. ❑ Use the ToggleButton control. ❑ Modify the properties of behaviors. ❑ Create visual states and switch between them. ■ Chapter 7: Creating Design Assets ❑ Use Expression Design and its tools and panels. ❑ Create graphic assets in Expression Design. ❑ Export Expression Design assets as XAML to integrate into Expression Blend. ❑ Import objects from Photoshop and Illustrator. ■ Chapter 8: Resources ❑ Create color resources and use them in Expression Blend applications. ❑ Create and apply gradient and image brushes. ❑ Convert property values to resource values and apply them to properties of the same type. ❑ Modify existing resources. ❑ Organize resources by using dictionaries. ■ Chapter 9: Skinning Controls ❑ Create and use styles for controls and visual elements. ❑ Modify existing control templates and create custom templates for controls. ❑ Use states to change the behavior of controls. ❑ Create a theme for basic controls. ❑ Use color, brush, and other types of resources.
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Use implicit and key-based styles. ❑ Set template binding for object properties within custom templates. ■ Chapter 10: Working with Data ❑ Generate sample data. ❑ Use styles and templates on data display controls. ❑ Work with sample data. ❑ Bind object properties to data. ❑ Change data templates. ❑ Use element property binding. ❑ Use Master/Details scenarios to display data. ■ Chapter 11: Using SketchFlow ❑ Create and run a SketchFlow application. ❑ Navigate between SketchFlow screens. ❑ Create an application flow. ❑ Add controls and use sample data for prototyping. ❑ Make your SketchFlow projects interactive. ❑ Understand the SketchFlow Player settings. ❑ Package your application prototype. ❑ Use the feedback functionality to collect new ideas and comments. ❑ Generate documentation in Word format. ■ Chapter 12: Designer/Developer Collaboration ❑ Identify key points in a typical design workflow. ❑ Differentiate between designer and developer tasks and roles within the workflow. ❑ Identify mixed tasks. ❑ Share projects between Expression Blend and Visual Studio. ❑ Understand the benefits of using source control. |
Excerpt from the book: MS Expression Blend 4 Step by Step - Microsoft Press |