Silverlight 1.0 is a web plugin that allows developers to create rich interactive applications using XAML and JavaScript. It provides 2D graphics, animations, media playback and basic text support. Silverlight 1.1 will add a managed .NET programming model using C# to replace JavaScript. Both versions run in the browser sandbox and do not require installation on the client. Silverlight aims to improve the user experience for web applications compared to traditional HTML, CSS and JavaScript.

1. What is Silverlight 1.0 ?

2. Silverlight
• What the heck is Silverlight?
– Web Platform for Rich Interactive Applications
• Web Platform is a euphemism for Plug-in
• Wow factor stuff like vector-based graphics , animations, audio
and video integration
• Cross browser, cross platform (!)
• It’s a stand-alone framework. Not dependant on any prior .NET
version. Clients need nothing but the plug-in.
• Sounds familiar…
– Doesn’t Macromedia (er…Adobe) already give this to us?
Its called Flash?
• Well…kind of. But Silverlight is better. Trust me. 

3. Why Now?
• HTML + CSS + JavaScript is too limiting
• The Browser as a development platform
is, well, less than ideal
• More applications are becoming web-ified, but at
the cost of user experience
• End user expectations are changing. They want
richness and interactivity (yes, even in LOB’s)

4. Great...
• So another platform I have to learn…
– Sort of…but you get to leverage a lot of your existing skills
• UI parts are based on .NET 3.0 (read ‘XAML’)
• Programming model is JavaScript
• Feels good to both rich client and web developers

5. And so as not to confuse you
• There really are two platforms 
• Two versions of Silverlight currently available
– 1.0
• Does the basic XAML stuff, but still requires you to work (sorry)
• JavaScript is the programming model…feels warm and cozy to web
developers
• ~ 2 MB download
– 1.1 Alpha
• Does way more XAML-ish stuff (less work for you )
• Brings in a managed programming model (woot!)
• Silverlight + .NET Alpha ~ 4 MB (cross platform)

6. Lets begin the tour…

7. Obligatory Architecture Diagram
Silverlight 1.0
Presentation Runtime
Native DOM API JavaScript DOM API
XAML
Media Support (Audio/Video)
Presentation Core
Browser Plug-In
Operating System (Windows, Mac)

8. And it runs on Windows too!
• Browsers
– Internet Explorer 6 and 7 (Windows)
– Firefox 1.5.0.8, 2.0+ (Windows and Mac)
– Safari 2.0.4+ (Mac)
– Opera (through Mono implementation)
• Operating systems
– Windows XP SP2, Vista
– Mac OS X (10.4.8+)
– Mono Project working on Linux implementation

9. Silverlight Basics
DEMO

10. So what’s in the bag?
• 1.0 Major Features
– XAML Subset:
• 2D Graphics (shapes, transformations, clipping, masking)
• Animations
• Input: Mouse and Keyboard
• Media (WMV, WMA, MP3)
• Imaging (JPG, PNG)
• Text (static and flow)
– HTTP downloader
– XAML Parser (includes CreateFromXAML API)
– JavaScript DOM

11. Graphics and Animations
• 2D Graphics
– Standard shapes, masking and clipping
– Transformations: skew, rotate, scale, translate, matrix
• Animation Basics
– Animations change properties over time
– Support linear, discrete and spline animation
– Animatable property types:
• Double, Color, Point
• Animations and graphics are defined using XAML

12. Media
• Media Features
– No OS dependencies. Everything ships inside the platform
• Video: WMV V7, V8, V9, VC-1
• Audio: WMA V7, V8, V9 (standard), MP3
– Multiple options for deploying media
• HTTP progressive download
• Integration with Windows Media Server

13. Text
• Glyphs
– Fixed text
– Full Unicode glyph rendering support
– Does not support layout (word/line breaking)
• TextBlock
– Basic layout support
• Left-aligned, English based text wrapping
– Support font encryption and compression
– V1 supports 64K Unicode Basic Multi-langual Plane
– Post V1, increased language support

14. Remember this is a still a web app
• All apps run in the sandbox
– Conceptually similar to the HTML DOM sandbox
• Apps run just like HTML pages – just click a URL
– No elevation prompts.
– No way to get out of the sandbox
• Includes some additional functionality:
– Safe isolated storage
– Client based file upload controls
– Cross domain support in-work

15. So…how do I?
• Tools
– Developer
• Visual Studio 2005 minimum for v1.0 development
• Firebug (HTML, CSS and JS monitoring)
• Any text editor
– Designers
• Expression Blend and Design
• XAML exporters
– Adobe Illustrator, Office (good for font subsetting), Others…
• Knowledge
– Silverlight development is similar to HTML development
• Presentation format for Silverlight is XAML - XAML is XML (markup)
• Silverlight V1.0 programming language is JavaScript

16. Silverlight JavaScript Basics
• Silverlight XAML elements are scriptable via the
browser script engine (JavaScript)
• Scriptable objects are obtained via findName
– Scriptable objects (elements) can be controlled via
properties and methods
– Models JavaScript and HTML DOM interaction
– findName is equivalent to document.getElementById()
– Supports tree walking via children collection
• Position set using "Canvas.Top" and "Canvas.Left"
Size can be scaled or set via Height/Width

17. Downloader and CreateFromXAML
• HTTP Downloader
– V1.0 supports HTTP gets (async and sync)
– Provides download progress
– ZIP packaging
– Similar to XMLHTTP
• CreateFromXAML
– Primary way in V1.0 to dynamically create content
– Supports namescopes (for name collisions)

18. Video, JavaScript, etc …
DEMO

19. And now for something completely different…
• Well..not completely…
• Silverlight 1.1 – the superset
– Adds managed programming model running on client-side
(aka client-side CLR, even on the Mac)
• Use C# (or VB.NET, or any managed language) to code Silverlight
instead of JavaScript
• Managed stack includes a broad set of familiar .NET features:
– See next slide….

20. The missing link(s)…
Browser Host
.NET for Silverlight
Data WPF Networking
MS AJAX Extensible Controls
LINQ XLINQ REST
Library POX
DLR BCL RSS
DOM JSON
Ruby Python Generics Collections SOAP
Integration
Legend
CLR Execution Engine
Application V1.1
Services
Legend
XAML
Deploy V1.0
Presentation
UI Core Inputs DRM
Keyboard Mouse Ink
Core
Friction-Free Text Media
Vector
Installer
Media Controls
Animation Images
Auto- VC1 WMA MP3 Layout Editing
Updater

21. Another demo

22. Problems Solved
• Makes prototyping applications simpler
– Use of XAML by developer and designer enhances
workflow
– Common tooling brings application design closer to
original concept of designer - Reduces “throw away” art
work
• Rich, Interactive Graphics
– Vector, Composition, Animation
• Improved User Experience
• Sophisticated Interactions Reduce Human-
Computer Impedance Mismatch

23. Challenges Ahead
• Learning Curve of new Tooling, Language, Syntax
• Hardware Requirements – Performance
• Limited Visual Studio Support
• Blend 2.0 in CTP
• Developer to Designer Ratio Gap
• Limited Guidance, Best Practices
• No Familiar Tools that Developers are Familiar with

24. Timeline
• WPF – Part of WinFX (.NET 3.0) – RTM in November
2006
• Expression Blend 1.0 Released
• Expression Blend 2.0 in CTP
• Visual Studio Orcas Q4 2007
• .NET 3.5 Q4 2007
• Silverlight 1.0 Released ~Q3 2007
• Silverlight 1.1 Beta at the same time

25. Timeline
• Expression Blend 1.0 Released
• Expression Blend 2.0 in CTP
• Visual Studio 2008 Q4 2007
• .NET 3.5 Q4 2007
• Silverlight 1.0 Released Summer 2007
• Silverlight 1.1 sometime in 2008