This article represents the second installment of the XAML for Beginners series, which elucidates the concept of declarative markup in the context of defining UI in .NET applications. All articles within this series are accessible from here.
The initial article focused mainly on introducing XAML and its building blocks.
In this article, the focus will be on the following:
Starting a new series entitled XAML for Beginners elucidates the concept of declarative markup to define UI in .NET applications. All articles within this series can be accessed from here.
The second installment of this series is now available to read here.
XAML is an acronym that stands for eXtensible Application Markup Language. It was first introduced in 2006, accompanying the initial release of Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) alongside .NET 3.0.
The principal objective of this methodology is to segregate the UI design from the program logic. This separation allows the design team to focus solely on the UI, while the program logic can be developed and evaluated independently. Consequently, these components can be integrated into a unified system.
The MVVM design pattern is an exemplary framework for accomplishing this. However, XAML also supports the code-behind approach.
This December, join David, Rachel, and guests as they wrap the year 2024 by discussing the most recent advancements in the world of .NET MAUI during the monthly community standup following the release of .NET MAUI 9, the recently released major version of the cross-platform App UI framework.
Consult this Comprehensive Overview article to know more about What’s New in .NET MAUI 9.
The Community Standup is a live event on the official .NET YouTube channel, hosted by the core framework team. It provides valuable insights and exciting announcements. For .NET MAUI, it usually happens on the first Thursday of each month.
Remember to join live on Thu, Dec 5 at 18:00 UTC. Click the link to access the timing in your local or preferred time zone. Note, that it’s an hour behind its usual schedule (Daylight Saving).
The community links for this month’s standup will be updated here.
Wishing you all a happy, prosperous, and healthy new year 2025 in advance.
Happy coding. Stay connected as we continue to learn and share the experiences from this exciting journey of being a .NET developer.
This article is part of the MVVM – Made Easy series, focusing on handling UI events with ViewModel commands.
This series comprises articles that provide insights into working with the MVVM design pattern, to make it a delightful experience. All the articles in this series can be accessed from here – MVVM – Made Easy
The View serves as the user interface, while the ViewModel is composed of Properties and Commands that encapsulate the underlying logic. This architectural layering offers the distinct advantage of enabling independent development and testing of both components. Data Binding functions as the cohesive element that interlinks these two layers.
An event represents a significant mechanism for notifying state changes, such as a button click, to other components that have a vested interest in the occurrence.
The receiver component is capable of responding to the event by subscribing to it through a method whose signature corresponds with the delegate of the event ensuring type safety. And that method is generally referred to as an event handler.
However, the challenge emerges during the testing of the ViewModel, as the event is closely intertwined with the View. Business logic can’t be independently tested.
HybridWebView is one of the two prominent enhancements in .NET MAUI 9, the recently released major version of the cross-platform App UI framework.
An article that comprehensively outlines the significant features of this version has already been published and is accessible here.
Consult this article titled Exploring .NET MAUI 9 – HybridWebView to delve into the details of this new control.
Nonetheless, the components that constitute the HybridWebView project must be assembled manually, as there is no inherent template available akin to that of Blazor Hybrid. So, it is appropriate to include one in the .NET MAUI All-in-One Templates pack. As the name suggests, has a slew of features under the hood to work with .NET MAUI, consult the articles linked here to know more about them.
Glad to introduce a new project template using HybridWebView in the templates pack v6.1. This article will describe how to install and utilize this new project template.
As the name suggests, has a slew of features under the hood to work with .NET MAUI.
To effectively support the stable release of .NET MAUI 9, both the CLI NuGet package and the Visual Studio extension of the All-in-One .NET MAUI Templates Pack have been fully updated.
An article has already been published detailing the comprehensive features of .NET MAUI 9.
To know more about the features of this template pack, consult the articles linked here.
Install:
From CLI:
Here’s the command to install the CLI templates pack.
Not confined to .NET MAUI, the XAML Live Preview functions as an invaluable tool for inspecting the UI and its associated properties in XAML apps overall.
However, it is imperative that the app be connected to the debugger, is it not? Yes, that is prior to the intro of the debugger-detached XAML Live Preview in VS2022, v17.13 Preview 1.0.
Yesterday, during the .NET MAUI session at .NET Conf 2024 (YouTube clip linked), David and Rachel provided an insightful overview of its functionality.
To know about this virtual event, consult this .NET Conf 2024 article and this detailed article outlining the comprehensive features of .NET MAUI 9.
This is an article in the Developer Tips series, which offers concise hints to enhance productivity. You can access all the articles in this series here.
The Shell feature in .NET MAUI is extensive, offering numerous capabilities. This article will focus on managing query parameters within shell navigation in .NET MAUI.
Incorporating query parameters during navigation is paramount in real-world apps, as they enable the transfer of data in scenarios such as transitioning from a list page to a details page, thereby preserving the contextual relevance.
The GoToAsync() method serves as the comprehensive solution for all your navigation needs in Shell and is overloaded to cater various requirements.
This article is part of the MVVM – Made Easy series, with a focus on the initial preview release of v8.4 of the CommunityToolkit.Mvvm (aka Microsoft MVVM Toolkit) NuGet package, which includes support for Partial Properties.
Update as of Dec 2024: The v8.4 stable release is now available. For further details, please refer to this blog post.
Here are the links to other articles in this series.
Support for Partial Properties is one of most sought after features in the MVVM toolkit as it allows to define custom access modifier for property accessors and makes code more readable. The need for an analyzer to track the usage of a field instead of a (generated) property is no longer necessary.
This November, join David, Rachel, and a special guest (probably Stephan Arnas) as they discuss the latest developments in the realm of .NET MAUI during the monthly community standup preceding .NET Conf 2024 next week.
Consult the article titled Getting Started with Syncfusion’s .NET MAUI Toolkit to start using this free and open-source toolkit, with support within the All-in-One MAUI Templates for the initial setup.
The exciting news is that the second set of 5 controls is nearing its release.
Remember to join live on Thu, Nov 7 at 18:00 UTC. Click the link to access the timing in your local or preferred time zone. Note, that it’s an hour behind its usual schedule.
Update: The community links for this month’s standup will be updated here.
Happy coding. Stay connected as we continue to learn and share the experiences from this exciting journey of being a .NET developer.