In this intensive hands-on 2-day Expression Blend workshop, you will learn how to use Blend to rapidly create well-designed, visually engaging User Interfaces for your WPF and Silverlight applications. You will use Blend to perform real-world everyday practical tasks, become familiar with the Blend environment and a thorough range of Blend functionality, and you will take a look at how Blend implements key WPF and Silverlight concepts in detail. By the end of the course you will have accelerated along the learning curve of Blend, understand how Blend lets you tap into the full power of WPF and Silverlight, and increase your capability and productivity immediately.

LEARN HOW TO

• Use the Blend environment, access key functionality, and use the different types of controls.
• Create and manage resources and resource dictionaries.
• Create, edit, and apply Styles and Control Templates to different controls.
• Architect WPF/Silverlight applications using the Model-View-ViewModel design pattern and bind to sample and runtime ViewModel data.
• Make your applications stand out with animations, visual states, fluid layouts, effects, and behaviors.
• Use Sketchflow to create dynamic wireframes for your applications as part of an effective User Experience (UX) process.

2 DAY COURSE OUTLINE

You will spend most of the 2 days working through modules that cover practical everyday tasks in Blend, see real-world examples and demos, and explore the features and functionalities yourself through a series of structured exercises.

On the second day the Lab brings all the modules together in the context of a real-world application. It is also an opportunity for you to introduce any issues or tasks you are facing in your own projects, and we will discuss or work through them together.

Along the way you will learn many tips and techniques for working with Blend, how to get the most out of it, how to integrate Blend into your development and UX processes, and see advanced WPF/Silverlight topics from a new perspective.

More about the course