Pick up your pace on Silverlight 5 with Michael Crump's 10 Laps around Silverlight 5

The Silverlight Show - 10 Laps around Silverlight 5 (Part 1 of 10)

Introduction

Today we begin a new and exciting series covering the new features in Silverlight 5. I am going to guide you step-by-step through the process of getting started with Silverlight 5 and then we will dive into the features that are the most important to you.

But first, we are going to :

• Explain why you should read this series over other Silverlight 5 series.
• We will give a very brief introduction to Silverlight.
• Take a look at the Roadmap for this series.
• Review Silverlight’s history.
• Download the bits required to develop a Silverlight 5 application.
• Become familiar with creating a new Silverlight 5 application.

Why read this series over others?

I’m sure you have seen a lot of Silverlight 5 information on the web and are wondering what makes this series different, so I will go ahead and tell you.

• Individual blog posts about Silverlight 5 are scattered all over the internet, it takes time to research and find relevant information. In this series, all information will be grouped together and easily referenced.
• Post-beta, Microsoft changed RichTextBox to RichTextBlock. Many samples on the web are still showing the old version and have never been updated.
• Breaking changes in Silverlight 5 that have happened recently will be included.
• I am a Silverlight MVP / Silverlight Insider and XAML Advocate. I have spent the last few years of my life specializing in Silverlight and sharing the information to others.

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The Roadmap for this Series

Below you will find the roadmap for this series. I modeled this list closely from Pete Brown’s List of what is new in Silverlight 5 and looked at each new feature of Silverlight 5. I believe most developers will find the following features useful in their day-to-day work than others. If you want a specific topic covered then please leave it in the comments below.

1) Introduction to SL5 [This Post] – This post which provides a brief history of Silverlight and relevant links.

2) Binding - Ancestor Relative Source Binding and Implicit Data Templates.

3) Graphics –XNA 3D API and Improved Graphics Stack.

4) Media - Low-Latency Sound using XNA and Remote Control and Media Command (Keys) Support.

5) Text - Text Tracking and Leading, Linked and Multi-column Text, OpenType Support, Pixel Snapped Text and TextOptions.

6) Operating System Integration Part 1 - P/Invoke, Multiple Windows and Unrestricted File System Access in Full Trust.

7) Operating System Integration Part 2 - Default Filename for SaveFileDialog, 64-bit browser support and Power Awareness.

8) Productivity and Performance - XAML Binding Debugging, Parser Performance Improvements and Multi-core JIT for improved start-up time.

9) Controls - Double and Triple click support, PivotViewer and ComboBox Type-Ahead.

10) Other items - In-Browser HTML, PostScript and Tasks for TPL.

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I can't believe I've not mentioned Michael's recent Silverlight 5 series before, but I searched and search and it doesn't seem I have... Better late than never I guess! With the two Silverlight 5 posts today, you should have enough info and resources to keep you busy over the holidays... maybe... :P

 

Related Past Post XRef:
Kunal's 13 for 5... 13 Silverlight 5 tutorials...