Windows 8 Apps are revolutionising development on the Windows platform. Fast, fluid, tactile and chrome-free they provide a brand-new look and feel for Windows users. 

These Apps rely on Microsoft's 'Metro' UI to provide their rich and engaging user experiences for both desktop and tablet users. Metro in turn relies upon the Windows Runtime (WinRT) to give its apps unparalleled flexibility and power.

Understanding this stack of new technologies and how they tie in to the proven C# language and the XAML standard is the subject of this book. Experienced writer Jesse Liberty explains how you can get the most from Metro, WinRT and Windows 8 by focussing on the features that you need for your project and bringing your existing C# coding knowledge to bear.

We begin with a nuts-and-bolts examination of how the technologies fit together and show you everything you need to get up and running with the new platform. Once you have a good understanding on the basics, we'll progress to more advanced topics steadily increasing your Metro as a whole. This holistic knowledge is essential to truly master Windows 8 development.

Each topic is covered clearly, concisely, and is packed with the details you need to code effectively. The most important features are given a no-nonsense in-depth treatment and chapters contain examples that demonstrate both the power and the subtlety of Windows 8.

What you’ll learn

• Understand what Metro and WinRT are capable of and why they are special
• Use advanced Metro features to create immersive and engaging Windows 8 applications
• Create applications that work seamlessly on tablets and desktops
• Use cutting-edge features like WebSockets and Cloud Computing
• Prepare and deploy your Metro applications
• Unit test, debug and performance-tune Metro applications

Who this book is for

This book is suitable for anyone wanting to get to grips with Windows 8 development using the cross-platform standards of HTML5 and JavaScript. Basic coding knowledge is assumed but no Microsoft-specific assumptions are made.