Chapter 1 - How and When to use Silverlight – Choosing which technology to use to build an application can be tough with so many choices.  In this chapter we will explore how and when you can use Silverlight to implement business applications.  Silverlight can be used for specific parts of a user experience or as the full user experience. We will explore the pros and cons of those choices.   

Chapter 2 – Getting Started – Getting your development environment ready to build Silverlight is the first order of business.  In this chapter we cover the tools that you will find useful along with walking you though some of the Silverlight application basics.  At the end of this chapter you will have created your first Silverlight application.

Chapter 3 – XAML 101 and Basic Layout - Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) is an XML based declarative language.  Silverlight uses XAML as a way to define its user interface elements.  In this chapter we will explore the basics of how XAML is used in Silverlight.  Core to any use of XAML are the layout controls that help structure the visual appearance of the application and act as containers for the rest of your content.  In the rest of the chapter we will explore the basic layout techniques and further build on the understanding of how XAML is used to define the user interface of a Silverlight application.

Chapter 4 – Silverlight Controls – This chapter will explore the common controls from both the SDK and the Silverlight Toolkit and show basic examples of using the controls.  Focus in this chapter is on getting you familiar with the commonly used controls.

Chapter 5 – Using data and data binding basics – Silverlight offers a rich capability to declaratively bind data to controls.    Working with data is the cornerstone of most business applications.  This chapter builds on the prior examples starting with explaining how to enable classes to be data binding ready.   DataContext, Value Converters and using DataTemplates will also be covered in this chapter.

Chapter 6 – Application Navigation – The Navigation framework provided by Silverlight allows applications to appear to have multiple pages.   In this chapter we will talk about the basic features of navigation including how to route multiple requests to the same view.

Chapter 7 – Out of Browser Support – Silverlight applications starting with Silverlight 3 can now run out of the browser (OOB). When executing in this mode they run as standalone applications and update automatically when the server version changes   In this chapter we are going to explore all the OOB features including the new elevated trust features of Silverlight 4.

Chapter 8 – Application Composition with MEF – Managed Extensibility Framework (MEF) is a new feature of Silverlight 4 allowing applications to be composed of parts.  MEF allows applications to be more loosely coupled and handle dynamically adding/configuring components at runtime .

Chapter 9 – Other Silverlight 3 and 4 Business Application Features - Silverlight 3 and 4 both added a number of new features that become important once you understand the fundamentals.  In this chapter we will cover some of the miscellaneous features that didn't fit in other chapters but are still important to understand.

Chapter 10 –Silverlight Debugging – Now that you’re building applications it’s time to figure out how to effectively troubleshoot them and track down any problems.   In this chapter we will cover basics of Visual Studio debugging for Silverlight as well as some of the tools that can be helpful in tracking down problems with Silverlight applications.

Chapter 11 – Enhancing the User Experience – User experience is about more than just changing the color of a button to not be grey. We set the stage for thinking beyond just basic style and how factoring in other aspects of the user experience is important.    We will also dive into Silverlight style basics including resources, control templates and visual state manager.   This chapter wraps up with a walk through of some basic Blend capabilities that developers will find useful.

Chapter 12 – SketchFlow First Look – SketchFlow is a new feature of Microsoft Expression Blend that is focused on the early stages of application creation.    SketchFlow helps bring ideas to life through sketches built in a working Silverlight player that users can kick the tires on and provide feedback.  

Chapter 13 - Application Architectures – Here we will discuss how to establish architecture for building Silverlight business applications. As part of this discussion we will explore some of the design patterns and concepts that will influence Silverlight applications.    We will discuss how they might apply and what benefits can be derived by using them. This will include coverage of CLSA for Silverlight, DevForce Silverlight, Prism and WCF RIA Services.  

Chapter 14 – The Road Ahead – Silverlight 4 as an emerging technology has made great progress so far and the future looks bright.    In this chapter we take a look at Windows Phone 7 and how Silverlight is a key part of the developer story.  

Chapter 1 - How and When to use Silverlight – Choosing which technology to use to build an application can be tough with so many choices.  In this chapter we will explore how and when you can use Silverlight to implement business applications.  Silverlight can be used for specific parts of a user experience or as the full user experience. We will explore the pros and cons of those choices.   

Chapter 2 – Getting Started – Getting your development environment ready to build Silverlight is the first order of business.  In this chapter we cover the tools that you will find useful along with walking you though some of the Silverlight application basics.  At the end of this chapter you will have created your first Silverlight application.

Chapter 3 – XAML 101 and Basic Layout - Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) is an XML based declarative language.  Silverlight uses XAML as a way to define its user interface elements.  In this chapter we will explore the basics of how XAML is used in Silverlight.  Core to any use of XAML are the layout controls that help structure the visual appearance of the application and act as containers for the rest of your content.  In the rest of the chapter we will explore the basic layout techniques and further build on the understanding of how XAML is used to define the user interface of a Silverlight application.

Chapter 4 – Silverlight Controls – This chapter will explore the common controls from both the SDK and the Silverlight Toolkit and show basic examples of using the controls.  Focus in this chapter is on getting you familiar with the commonly used controls.

Chapter 5 – Using data and data binding basics – Silverlight offers a rich capability to declaratively bind data to controls.    Working with data is the cornerstone of most business applications.  This chapter builds on the prior examples starting with explaining how to enable classes to be data binding ready.   DataContext, Value Converters and using DataTemplates will also be covered in this chapter.

Chapter 6 – Other Silverlight 3 Business application features – Silverlight 3 has a number of new features that become important once you understand the fundamentals.  In this chapter we will provide an overview of the new features like running out of the browser.

Chapter 7 –Silverlight Debugging – Now that you’re building applications it’s time to figure out how to effectively trouble shoot them and track down problems.  In this chapter we will cover basics of Visual Studio as well as some of the tools that can be helpful in tracking down problems with Silverlight applications.

Chapter 8 – Enhancing the User Experience – User experience is about more than just changing the color of a button to not be grey.  In this chapter we set the stage for thinking beyond just basic style and how factoring in other aspects of the user experience is important.  We will also dive into Silverlight Style basics including resources, control templates and visual state manager. Finally, blend can be the developers friend for certain tasks.  This chapter wraps up with a walk through of some basic blend capabilities that developers will find useful.  

Chapter 9 – SketchFlow First Look – SketchFlow is a new feature of Microsoft Expression Blend that is focused on the early stages of application creation.  SketchFlow helps bring ideas to life through sketches built in a working Silverlight player that users can kick the tires on and provide feedback.

Chapter 10 - Application Architectures – In this chapter we will discuss how to establish architecture for building Silverlight business applications.   As part of this discussion we will explore some of the design patterns and concepts that will influence Silverlight applications.  This will include discussions about presentation separation concepts like View Model (also commonly referred to as MVVM). Additionally, there are several frameworks emerging that can play a significant role in your architecture. We will discuss how they might apply and what benefits can be derived by using them.  This will include coverage of CLSA for Silverlight, DevForce Silverlight, Prism and Microsoft .NET RIA Services. 

Chapter 11 – The Road Ahead – Silverlight 3 as an emerging technology has some areas that   are still a work in progress. In this chapter we will discuss some of the areas you might struggle with and what the community is asking for in future versions.