Sams creating vista gadgets using HTML CSS and javascript with examples in RSS AJAX activex COM and silverlight may 2008 ISBN 0672329689

Creating Vista® Gadgets: Using HTML, CSS and JavaScript with Examples in RSS, Ajax, ActiveX COM and Silverlight™by Rajesh Lal Publisher: Sams Pub Date: May 05, 2008 Print ISBN-10: 0-672-

Creating Vista® Gadgets: Using HTML, CSS and JavaScript with Examples in RSS, Ajax, ActiveX (COM) and Silverlight™

by Rajesh Lal

Publisher: Sams Pub Date: May 05, 2008 Print ISBN-10: 0-672-32968-9 Print ISBN-13: 978-0-672-32968-5 Pages: 360

Table of Contents | Index

Overview

A one-stop resource for each aspect of designing and

developing Sidebar gadgets, perfect for anyone who wants tocreate killer gadgets

Explores one of the super cool features new to WindowsVista the Sidebar

It is a one-stop resource for each aspect of designing anddeveloping Sidebar gadgets, perfect for anyone who wants

to create killer gadgets

seen gadgets

Includes complete design instructions for four never-before-Windows Vista Sidebar is a panel located on the desktop of a PCwhere gadgets can be placed for easy access and reference.These gadgets are small, single-purpose applications, such asclocks, calendars, games, RSS notifiers, search tools, stock

tickers, etc, that reside on the Windows desktop and on theWindows Sidebar The book will be a tutorial to design and

develop a gadget It will provide ready-to-use samples using.NET, XML, CSS and AJAX After reading the book, a web

developer/designer will be confident enough to start developing

useful Gadget sample "My Blogs" " Elaborate the architecturedesign constraint and implementation details for the sample "Detail the standard practices " Recheck the gadget created forstandard practices " Improvise and Improve with compare andcontrast " Add advanced samples with NET, AJAX and XHTML

Creating Vista® Gadgets: Using HTML, CSS and JavaScript with Examples in RSS, Ajax, ActiveX (COM) and Silverlight™

by Rajesh Lal

Publisher: Sams

Pub Date: May 05, 2008

Print ISBN-10: 0-672-32968-9 Print ISBN-13: 978-0-672-32968-5 Pages: 360

The Goal

Design Considerations

Developing the Gadget

Chapter 10 Most Recent Used NET Projects—An ApplicationGadget

Index

Printed in the United States of AmericaFirst Printing April 2008

trademarks or service marks have been appropriately

capitalized Sams Publishing cannot attest to the accuracy ofthis information Use of a term in this book should not be

regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or servicemark

Warning and Disclaimer

Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and

as accurate as possible, but no warranty or fitness is implied.The information provided is on an "as is" basis The author andthe publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to anyperson or entity with respect to any loss or damages arisingfrom the information contained in this book

Bulk Sales

Sams Publishing offers excellent discounts on this book whenordered in quantity for bulk purchases or special sales For

computer science and holds MCSD and MCAD titles

To read his Vista Gadget blog, go to

www.innovatewithgadgets.com

Writing is a fascinating journey I would like to extend my

special thanks to Marc Clifton Todd Brakke, and Margo Cattswho were along with me on this journey They corrected,

annotated, criticized, and helped me at every step Thanks also

to Joshua Heyer (Shog9) and Rama Krishna for reviewing thisbook and for their invaluable advice I also want to add a note

of thanks to Dr Luiji for all the encouragement at the timeswhen I needed it

I am deeply grateful to Loretta Yates, acquisitions editor at

Sams/Que Publishing for her unmatched dedication to qualityand progressiveness, without which this book was never

possible Thanks also to Jennifer Gallant, Cindy Teeters, andRosemary Lewis from Pearson Technology Group

I would like to extend my appreciation to the folks from

Microsoft, for their time and effort to make this book complete

in every sense, especially Brian Teutsch, Daniel Moth, and

Annuska Perkins I would also like to thank Rick Kingslan, KarenWong, and Mark Schmidt

Last of all, I would like to mention my brothers Rakesh and

Rajeev, for all the wonderful things I have learned from them,and Simple and Shilpi for just being so wonderful And my

inspiration and my driving force Neelu

As the reader of this book, you are our most important critic

and commentator We value your opinion and want to know

what we're doing right, what we could do better, what areasyou'd like to see us publish in, and any other words of wisdomyou're willing to pass our way

When you write, please be sure to include this book's title andauthor as well as your name and phone or email address I willcarefully review your comments and share them with the authorand editors who worked on the book

Visit our website and register this book at informit.com/registerfor convenient access to any updates, downloads, or errata thatmight be available for this book

With the broadest ever worldwide release of a PC operating

system, in 2007 Windows Vista opened the door to an era ofgadget development Gadgets, which reside on the WindowsVista Sidebar, are small, lightweight, and can be very usefulapplications The Sidebar is a brand new platform for innovationand it gives users a unique way to interact with information.This book is for people who want to create feature-rich and

professional-looking Vista Sidebar gadgets It's a guide for

designers, developers, and anyone else who has a basic

knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript and wants to leveragethis new and innovative platform It's for anyone who wants tocreate a gadget for his company, or for a programmer with agreat idea to implement on a Sidebar gadget platform, or evenfor a hobbyist programmer, who wants to try his hand on a

gadget platform This book is intended to give you ideas for

what you can do with this new platform and how you can do it.

What's in the Book

This book starts with a brief background on gadgets, and thengives a broad and clear view of the architecture of gadget

development Gadget design considerations are an importantpart of this book and they go side by side with almost all thechapters that deal with gadget development Once you've read

up on the concept and scope of gadget development, the bookhelps you create a gadget called MyBlog During this processthe text elaborates on the architecture, design constraints, andimplementation details for the gadget and then details somestandard practices applicable to all gadget development Thelast section deals with more advanced gadget examples thatutilize NET, XML, XHTML, CSS, Ajax, and Microsoft Silverlight.This book is divided into three broad sections

Section 1: The Foundation

background of Sidebar gadgets The section explains the types

of gadgets, the architecture, and the technology behind the

gadget development The "Approach to Design" chapter helpsyou know the difference between a merely good-looking gadgetand a one that is professional, rich, and worth the space it

takes up on the user's desktop The last chapter discusses therevenue model of the gadget: what you need to know to sellyour gadgets

Section 2: Developing a Gadget

This section walks you through the standard development

process of a gadget It details the creation of the basic MyBlogGadget, which makes use of an RSS/Atom feed It also goesthrough best practices with the user interface, design

guidelines, and common assumptions The later chapters

improve on the basic gadget based on standard practices andalso deal with deploying and distributing a gadget

Section 3: Advanced Samples

The section deals with advanced samples You will be able tocreate advanced gadgets such as a Site Statistics Gadget, aRadio Gadget, and a YouTube Video Gadget All the samplesfollow standard patterns, making it easier to switch between thefeatures and functionality you want, when you want You willalso learn how to use ActiveX COM for creating a utility gadgetwith a sample Net Most Recent Used (MRU) Gadget The finalchapter shows you how to create a gadget with Microsoft

Silverlight You will also see how, in just a few minutes, to

create a Sidebar gadget with Microsoft Popfly

If you are a relatively new gadget developer, I would suggestyou to start with the first section If you have basic backgroundknowledge of gadgets and you just want to start with the step-by-step practical approach to gadget development, you can

directly start with the second section, "Developing a Gadget."The third section, "Advanced Samples," is for people who have

developed a gadget and want to go beyond the basics of gadgetdevelopment Each chapter in the third section is actually anadvanced sample dealing with a particular type of gadget in ascenario of its own.

With the broadest ever worldwide release of a PC operating

system, in 2007 Windows Vista opened the door to an era ofgadget development Gadgets, which reside on the WindowsVista Sidebar, are small, lightweight, and can be very usefulapplications The Sidebar is a brand new platform for innovationand it gives users a unique way to interact with information.This book is for people who want to create feature-rich and

professional-looking Vista Sidebar gadgets It's a guide for

designers, developers, and anyone else who has a basic

knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript and wants to leveragethis new and innovative platform It's for anyone who wants tocreate a gadget for his company, or for a programmer with agreat idea to implement on a Sidebar gadget platform, or evenfor a hobbyist programmer, who wants to try his hand on a

gadget platform This book is intended to give you ideas for

what you can do with this new platform and how you can do it.

What's in the Book

This book starts with a brief background on gadgets, and thengives a broad and clear view of the architecture of gadget

development Gadget design considerations are an importantpart of this book and they go side by side with almost all thechapters that deal with gadget development Once you've read

up on the concept and scope of gadget development, the bookhelps you create a gadget called MyBlog During this processthe text elaborates on the architecture, design constraints, andimplementation details for the gadget and then details somestandard practices applicable to all gadget development Thelast section deals with more advanced gadget examples thatutilize NET, XML, XHTML, CSS, Ajax, and Microsoft Silverlight.This book is divided into three broad sections

Section 1: The Foundation

background of Sidebar gadgets The section explains the types

of gadgets, the architecture, and the technology behind the

gadget development The "Approach to Design" chapter helpsyou know the difference between a merely good-looking gadgetand a one that is professional, rich, and worth the space it

takes up on the user's desktop The last chapter discusses therevenue model of the gadget: what you need to know to sellyour gadgets

Section 2: Developing a Gadget

This section walks you through the standard development

process of a gadget It details the creation of the basic MyBlogGadget, which makes use of an RSS/Atom feed It also goesthrough best practices with the user interface, design

guidelines, and common assumptions The later chapters

improve on the basic gadget based on standard practices andalso deal with deploying and distributing a gadget

Section 3: Advanced Samples

The section deals with advanced samples You will be able tocreate advanced gadgets such as a Site Statistics Gadget, aRadio Gadget, and a YouTube Video Gadget All the samplesfollow standard patterns, making it easier to switch between thefeatures and functionality you want, when you want You willalso learn how to use ActiveX COM for creating a utility gadgetwith a sample Net Most Recent Used (MRU) Gadget The finalchapter shows you how to create a gadget with Microsoft

Silverlight You will also see how, in just a few minutes, to

create a Sidebar gadget with Microsoft Popfly

If you are a relatively new gadget developer, I would suggestyou to start with the first section If you have basic backgroundknowledge of gadgets and you just want to start with the step-by-step practical approach to gadget development, you can

directly start with the second section, "Developing a Gadget."The third section, "Advanced Samples," is for people who have

developed a gadget and want to go beyond the basics of gadgetdevelopment Each chapter in the third section is actually anadvanced sample dealing with a particular type of gadget in ascenario of its own.

This book is meant to be a definite, precise, and concrete guidefor gadget development By pruning redundant information andfiltering and highlighting the information that is more crucial,

we have tried to make it as comprehensive as possible Thisbook includes various features and conventions that help youget the most out of the book

The book also uses the following boxes for importantinformation:

Note

A Note includes extra information to broaden yourunderstanding of a topic

Tip

A Tip provides alternative, shortcuts, or insiderinformation of the topic being discussed

Caution

A Caution warns you of potential traps and pitfalls

The book has a supporting website where you can download allthe codes and gadgets The website also has blogs I have

written on Sidebar gadgets and some of my personal views ongadget development You are invited to check that site andcontact me personally You will also find errata and most

updated information there

Visit www.innovatewithgadgets.com

In This Part

CHAPTER 1 Innovate with Windows VistaSidebar Gadgets

Chapter 1 Innovate with Windows Vista Sidebar Gadgets

Gadgets offer a diverse range of functionality, from giving you

an at-a-glance view of your upcoming appointments, to listingonline contacts, to displaying a picture slideshow of your Flickraccount, to offering an easy way to control your media player.Gadgets can have any number of dedicated purposes As shown

in Figure 1.1, they can be clocks, calculators, games, stickynotes, and more

Figure 1.1 Gadgets can be placed anywhere on the Vista desktop, but most are organized on the Windows

Sidebar.

The Windows Sidebar is a pane on the side of the Microsoft

Windows Vista desktop and is used to place and organize thegadgets You can easily customize the Windows Sidebar to suityour preference: always on top or resting below maximized

windows If you don't want to keep your gadgets on the

Windows Sidebar, you can drag them to your desktop and hidethe Sidebar The Windows Sidebar can also be activated fromthe icon in the system tray

Gadgets can have multiple instances, both in the Sidebar aswell as on the Windows desktop, and these can be configuredwith different settings For example, you can have two

instances of a Clock Gadget, one showing the current time forSan Diego, California and the other one for Paris, France

A Vista Sidebar gadget consists of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, andimage files, all coordinated to accomplish a variety of tasks Youcan host a mini web page, call a web service, integrate with abusiness application, or even call operating system APIs to

create a custom application

Technology Behind Gadgets

Gadgets are developed using standard web technologies,

namely HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, but they can also use

advanced functionalities A gadget can be thought of as anHTML Application (HTA) with advanced features and properties.All the interfaces used in the gadget, the gadget main window,the settings page, as well as the flyout window, all are HTMLpages

A gadget can also use advanced plug-ins such as Adobe Flash,Windows Media Player, and Microsoft Silverlight Anything thatcan be hosted in a web page can be used in gadget

development

Figure 1.2 gives an overview of the technology and relatedplatforms used for gadget development Most of the

technologies overlap in a number of applications

Figure 1.2 Different types of applications require different technologies in gadget development.

[View full size image]

In the next section we discuss these technologies in more

detail

aggregate data are quite popular nowadays because of theinteroperability advantage an XML file provides XML data isavailable all over the Internet in the form of RSS/atom

frquently accessed tools and features —Quick

information and shortcuts to frequently used features, tools,and applications are also among the attractive options fordeveloping gadgets You can use gadget APIs to developutilities, which exposes system functionalities such as

hardware information, files and folders, network, memory,CPU, and so on

Brief History of Gadgets

Windows XP includes a feature called Active Desktop, which

provides the functionality of hosting web pages and channelsbuilt with Microsoft's Channel Definition Format (CDF) on thedesktop This is significant because it provides some of the

features now found in desktop gadgets Vista Sidebar gadgetsare the logical evolution from Active Desktop

Note

Need for lightweight applications

New dashboard-style presentation of data, which permitsaccess to a variety of different data sources and formats

Sidebar gadget technology is much more structured than ActiveDesktop and follows an extensible model It comes with a fullset of APIs to support rich and powerful applications

In This Part

CHAPTER 1 Innovate with Windows VistaSidebar Gadgets

Chapter 1 Innovate with Windows Vista Sidebar Gadgets

Gadgets offer a diverse range of functionality, from giving you

an at-a-glance view of your upcoming appointments, to listingonline contacts, to displaying a picture slideshow of your Flickraccount, to offering an easy way to control your media player.Gadgets can have any number of dedicated purposes As shown

in Figure 1.1, they can be clocks, calculators, games, stickynotes, and more

Figure 1.1 Gadgets can be placed anywhere on the Vista desktop, but most are organized on the Windows

Sidebar.

The Windows Sidebar is a pane on the side of the Microsoft

Windows Vista desktop and is used to place and organize thegadgets You can easily customize the Windows Sidebar to suityour preference: always on top or resting below maximized

windows If you don't want to keep your gadgets on the

Windows Sidebar, you can drag them to your desktop and hidethe Sidebar The Windows Sidebar can also be activated fromthe icon in the system tray

Gadgets can have multiple instances, both in the Sidebar aswell as on the Windows desktop, and these can be configuredwith different settings For example, you can have two

instances of a Clock Gadget, one showing the current time forSan Diego, California and the other one for Paris, France

A Vista Sidebar gadget consists of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, andimage files, all coordinated to accomplish a variety of tasks Youcan host a mini web page, call a web service, integrate with abusiness application, or even call operating system APIs to

create a custom application

Technology Behind Gadgets

Gadgets are developed using standard web technologies,

namely HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, but they can also use

advanced functionalities A gadget can be thought of as anHTML Application (HTA) with advanced features and properties.All the interfaces used in the gadget, the gadget main window,the settings page, as well as the flyout window, all are HTMLpages

A gadget can also use advanced plug-ins such as Adobe Flash,Windows Media Player, and Microsoft Silverlight Anything thatcan be hosted in a web page can be used in gadget

development

Figure 1.2 gives an overview of the technology and relatedplatforms used for gadget development Most of the

technologies overlap in a number of applications

Figure 1.2 Different types of applications require different technologies in gadget development.

[View full size image]

In the next section we discuss these technologies in more

detail

aggregate data are quite popular nowadays because of theinteroperability advantage an XML file provides XML data isavailable all over the Internet in the form of RSS/atom

frquently accessed tools and features —Quick

information and shortcuts to frequently used features, tools,and applications are also among the attractive options fordeveloping gadgets You can use gadget APIs to developutilities, which exposes system functionalities such as

hardware information, files and folders, network, memory,CPU, and so on

Brief History of Gadgets

Windows XP includes a feature called Active Desktop, which

provides the functionality of hosting web pages and channelsbuilt with Microsoft's Channel Definition Format (CDF) on thedesktop This is significant because it provides some of the

features now found in desktop gadgets Vista Sidebar gadgetsare the logical evolution from Active Desktop

Note

Need for lightweight applications

New dashboard-style presentation of data, which permitsaccess to a variety of different data sources and formats

Sidebar gadget technology is much more structured than ActiveDesktop and follows an extensible model It comes with a fullset of APIs to support rich and powerful applications

In This Part

CHAPTER 1 Innovate with Windows VistaSidebar Gadgets

Chapter 1 Innovate with Windows Vista Sidebar Gadgets

Gadgets offer a diverse range of functionality, from giving you

an at-a-glance view of your upcoming appointments, to listingonline contacts, to displaying a picture slideshow of your Flickraccount, to offering an easy way to control your media player.Gadgets can have any number of dedicated purposes As shown

in Figure 1.1, they can be clocks, calculators, games, stickynotes, and more

Figure 1.1 Gadgets can be placed anywhere on the Vista desktop, but most are organized on the Windows

Sidebar.

The Windows Sidebar is a pane on the side of the Microsoft

Windows Vista desktop and is used to place and organize thegadgets You can easily customize the Windows Sidebar to suityour preference: always on top or resting below maximized

windows If you don't want to keep your gadgets on the

Windows Sidebar, you can drag them to your desktop and hidethe Sidebar The Windows Sidebar can also be activated fromthe icon in the system tray

Gadgets can have multiple instances, both in the Sidebar aswell as on the Windows desktop, and these can be configuredwith different settings For example, you can have two

instances of a Clock Gadget, one showing the current time forSan Diego, California and the other one for Paris, France

A Vista Sidebar gadget consists of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, andimage files, all coordinated to accomplish a variety of tasks Youcan host a mini web page, call a web service, integrate with abusiness application, or even call operating system APIs to

create a custom application

Technology Behind Gadgets

Gadgets are developed using standard web technologies,

namely HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, but they can also use

advanced functionalities A gadget can be thought of as anHTML Application (HTA) with advanced features and properties.All the interfaces used in the gadget, the gadget main window,the settings page, as well as the flyout window, all are HTMLpages

A gadget can also use advanced plug-ins such as Adobe Flash,Windows Media Player, and Microsoft Silverlight Anything thatcan be hosted in a web page can be used in gadget

development

Figure 1.2 gives an overview of the technology and relatedplatforms used for gadget development Most of the

technologies overlap in a number of applications

Figure 1.2 Different types of applications require different technologies in gadget development.

[View full size image]

In the next section we discuss these technologies in more

detail

aggregate data are quite popular nowadays because of theinteroperability advantage an XML file provides XML data isavailable all over the Internet in the form of RSS/atom

frquently accessed tools and features —Quick

information and shortcuts to frequently used features, tools,and applications are also among the attractive options fordeveloping gadgets You can use gadget APIs to developutilities, which exposes system functionalities such as

hardware information, files and folders, network, memory,CPU, and so on

Brief History of Gadgets

Windows XP includes a feature called Active Desktop, which

provides the functionality of hosting web pages and channelsbuilt with Microsoft's Channel Definition Format (CDF) on thedesktop This is significant because it provides some of the

features now found in desktop gadgets Vista Sidebar gadgetsare the logical evolution from Active Desktop

Note

Need for lightweight applications

New dashboard-style presentation of data, which permitsaccess to a variety of different data sources and formats

Sidebar gadget technology is much more structured than ActiveDesktop and follows an extensible model It comes with a fullset of APIs to support rich and powerful applications