Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework: Architecture and Best Practices for Mobile Development

“If you’ve been looking for one book on the .NET Compact Framework that will teach you everything you need to know, look no further—this is it! Jon and Dan do a wonderful job of covering this content, so that readers are sure to find much enlightenment within these pages.”

—Derek Ferguson, Chief Technology Evangelist, Expand Beyond Corporation

“While many technical books focus on API details, this book covers architectures and best practices. It highlights the special concerns for .NET mobile development. It is an excellent book for experienced .NET developers who want to transfer their skills to the red-hot mobility arena.”

—Michael Yuan, University of Texas at Austin

“Moving to the .NET Compact Framework is about to become much easier with the aid of this book. The samples and supplied utility code will help you get a running start on your own mobile development projects.”

—Kent Sharkey, Program Manager, MSDN

“This book is the starting place for development on devices using the Microsoft Compact Framework. Whether you are doing business or commercial applications, this book is the resource to kick-start your journey into mobile development.”

—Stephen Forte, CTO, Corzen, Inc.

“The .NET Compact Framework brings the power of .NET programming to mobile devices. Dan and Jon’s book is an excellent resource to help build your programming skills in the mobility area.”

—Kevin Lisota, Product Manager, Mobile Devices Division, Microsoft Corporation

“Mobile applications are truly a new class of applications and having feature-rich development tools and infrastructures like VS .NET and the .NET Compact Framework is only half the battle of learning to build them. It’s great to see Dan and Jon apply their in-depth knowledge of the .NET Compact Framework to cover the important topics that everybody learning to build mobile applications should understand.”

—Craig Neable, .NET Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation

“Mobile solutions and their development present new challenges for enterprises, especially with disconnected/synchronization scenarios. Leveraging best practices and planning mobile development properly are essential to the successful implementation. Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework provides a solid introduction to mobile development and best practices. It is a great resource for experienced architects and developers who are new to mobile solution development.”

—Steve Milroy, Solutions Director, Mobility and Emerging Technologies, Immedient Corporation

Whether you are an architect, developer, or manager, Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework is your guide to creating effective solutions for mobile devices with .NET. Authors Dan Fox and Jon Box walk you through four essential architectural concepts and programming techniques, using extensive examples and code listings to show you how to develop more robust mobile development projects.

The book briefly describes the context, architecture, and features of both the Framework and Smart Device Programmability (SDP). The heart of the book is its in-depth coverage of key architectural concepts, including local data handling, remote data access (RDA) architectures, robust data caching with SQL Server 2000 Windows CE Edition 2.0 (SQL CE 2.0), and synchronization options. The focus then shifts to localization, security, and deployment, and the final chapter steers you away from potential pitfalls.

You will find helpful pointers to further resources throughout, and a companion Web site includes the source code and links to more information.

This book can be read cover to cover or the focus can be narrowed to key points of interest. It can also be used as a reference, with answers to questions such as:

• When should you architect and build your applications using the Compact Framework and SDP? Chapter 1
• What factors besides cost should you consider when planning your company's first Smart Device application? Chapter 4
• Can RDA allow SQL CE to interact with database products other than SQL Server? Chapter 7
• How should you handle differences in time zone for users of a world-ready application? Chapter 8
• How can you overcome the Compact Framework's inability to marshal complex objects within structures? Chapter 11

Both comprehensive and concise, Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework shows you how to bring the power of .NET to your mobile applications.

Praise For Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework: Architecture and Best Practices for Mobile Development

"If you've been looking for one book on the .NET Compact Framework that will teach you everything you need to know, look no further--this is it! Jon and Dan do a wonderful job of covering this content, so that readers are sure to find much enlightenment within these pages."

--Derek Ferguson, Chief Technology Evangelist, Expand Beyond Corporation

"While many technical books focus on API details, this book covers architectures and best practices. It highlights the special concerns for .NET mobile development. It is an excellent book for experienced .NET developers who want to transfer their skills to the red-hot mobility arena."

--Michael Yuan, University of Texas at Austin

"Moving to the .NET Compact Framework is about to become much easier with the aid of this book. The samples and supplied utility code will help you get a running start on your own mobile development projects."

--Kent Sharkey, Program Manager, MSDN

"This book is the starting place for development on devices using the Microsoft Compact Framework. Whether you are doing business or commercial applications, this book is the resource to kick-start your journey into mobile development."

--Stephen Forte, CTO, Corzen, Inc.

"The .NET Compact Framework brings the power of .NET programming to mobile devices. Dan and Jon's book is an excellent resource to help build your programming skills in the mobility area."

--Kevin Lisota, Product Manager, Mobile Devices Division, Microsoft Corporation

"Mobile applications are truly a new class of applications and having feature-rich development tools and infrastructures like VS .NET and the .NET Compact Framework is only half the battle of learning to build them. It's great to see Dan and Jon apply their in-depth knowledge of the .NET Compact Framework to cover the important topics that everybody learning to build mobile applications should understand."

--Craig Neable, .NET Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation

"Mobile solutions and their development present new challenges for enterprises, especially with disconnected/synchronization scenarios. Leveraging best practices and planning mobile development properly are essential to the successful implementation. Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework provides a solid introduction to mobile development and best practices. It is a great resource for experienced architects and developers who are new to mobile solution development."

--Steve Milroy, Solutions Director, Mobility and Emerging Technologies, Immedient Corporation

Index

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Foreword

Welcome to the new age of rapid application development (RAD) for mobile devices!

The Visual Studio .NET 2003 and the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework enable a whole new era of smart device application development. The .NET Compact Framework greatly simplifies the process of creating and deploying applications to mobile devices, while also allowing you to take full advantage of the device that you are targeting.

Developers of all types, ranging from hobbyists to enterprise developers, will benefit from these simplified processes and will enjoy a development experience on par with desktop and server application development. Dan and Jon have done a great job of introducing these new mobile development technologies to developers from all backgrounds. Seasoned desktop and server .NET developers and experienced mobile developers alike will benefit from this book.

This book will teach you everything you need to know to build fast, reliable applications for devices.

Welcome to the .NET mobile community!

Jonathan Wells
Technical Product Manager
.NET Compact Framework
Microsoft Corporation
October 2003

Table of Contents

Foreword.


Preface.

I. THE PDA DEVELOPMENT LANDSCAPE WITH THE COMPACT FRAMEWORK.

II. ESSENTIAL ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS.

III. ADDITIONAL PROGRAMMING CONSIDERATIONS.

Downloadable Sample Chapter

Download the Sample Chapter related to this title.