The Single Level of Abstraction Principle

Last time I talked about the Composed Method pattern; that is, writing small methods to enable ease of reading and understanding, and to help with emergent design.

The second rule for the Composed Method pattern was this: “Keep all of the operations in a method at the same level of abstraction".

This is known as the Single Level of Abstraction Principle, or SLAP.

New DevExpress Website Unveiled

The eagle has landed!

After mercilessly teasing you with previews and screenshots, the time has finally come to let you experience a brand new online version of DevExpress!

We have launched brand new versions of the website, Community Site and the DevExpress Channel and we can’t wait to hear your feedback.

Why not take a look around the new sites and tell our webmaster what you think?

The all new DevExpress website A slick new DevExpress Community Site

Committing Resources to ASP.NET MVC Developers

Our response to the first wave of enthusiasm for ASP.NET MVC was to “suck it and see”.

We offered you a handful of native extensions to try out and offer your feedback on. And when we asked if you wanted more, the response was overwhelmingly positive.

In DXperience v2010 vol 2, the DevExpress ASP.NET MVC extensions will drop their beta shackles and become full releases. All DXperience Universal, Enterprise, and ASP.NET Edition customers will have immediate access.

Committing To ASP.NET MVC - New DevExpress Extensions

Silverlight Charts Ignite DXperience v2010 vol 2

We told our customers that longer periods between releases would reap better value for their subscription money. With development hurtling towards code freeze, the news of features, functionality and products that will ship with DXperience v2010 vol 2 just keeps flooding from the R & D team.

Perhaps the biggest news for this issue is the introduction of a Silverlight Charting Suite.

But the previews don’t end there. Check out some of the latest and greatest announcements from the DevExpress blogs.

Silverlight Charts in DXperience v2010 vol 2 .NET Reporting - an Overview of What's on Tap Multiselection Functionality in XAF Model Editor Linq Server Mode and Entity Framework 4.0 WinForms Data Filter Editor Control

Va Va VCL!

Well hello good-looking!

Following the VCL updates in the last issue of DX Press, the team were fevereshly motivated by the great reception that their announcements received. So much so, that they decided to leak a few more tantalizing tidbits!

Here are a few more Delphi delights to delve into.

VCL Grid v7 - The Chart View Enhancements to the VCL Org Chart

Want to join DevExpress at an international conference?

Our design team knows how much our customers love to hear news of DevExpress shipping new skins and themes. But we’re fresh out of ideas…

Once again, we’ve opened up the floor to the DevExpress Community and we’d love to hear your suggestions.

Whilst this is not a contest, we wanted to provide a little incentive to get your creative juices flowing. We have a free pass for an international conference lying around just waiting for someone to claim it. If you submit a suggestion that our design team decide to implement, you will be the lucky recipient of that free pass.

Let’s see what you’ve got. Come on, give us some skin!

Application Themes and Skins - It’s Design Time

How do I animate series with WPF Charts?

Although this How To post may not sound immediately intriguing, consider the possibilities of retrieving live series data for display in other areas of your UI, or animating series as they are being drawn.

This is a simple solution that can have a big impact on your charting output.

Take a look and leave us your comments.

How to animate series with WPF Charts

Create end-user reports using XtraReports, OData & Silverlight

For many developers tasked with creating enterprise-scale applications or shipping complete products to end-users, one of the biggest issues to address is reporting: how to enable users to create reports, how to deliver them, where to deploy them. The list goes on.

Take a look at this two-part walkthrough. It demonstrates how to publish reports using OData protocol and view them in a Silverlight application.

Could this work for you?

End-User Report Designer - Publishing Reports End-User Report Designer – Viewing Reports

DXperience v2010 vol 2: Video Tutorials

Reading about new features and functionality on the DevExpress blogs is good, but watching the team show you how to use them on the all new DevExpress Channel is great!

Let Amanda and Mehul take you through some of the newest features and controls that are set to hit your accounts with DXperience v2010 vol 2.

Are you sitting comfortably? Then let’s get started!

WPF Project Wizard for VB.NET Silverlight Toolbar and Menu Controls – Layout Persistence New Editor Controls for WPF and Silverlight ASP.NET Menu Control - New Scrolling Features WinForms Reporting - Script Editor Improvements

XAF and LightSwitch Spotlight Rapid Application Development

A few short weeks ago, Microsoft released the beta version of their new application framework: LightSwitch.

A storm hit, and DevExpress customers found themselves wondering what this new kid on the block would mean for XAF.

Gary has spent some time, like many of you, kicking the tyres on LightSwitch. Read his comments, and our official message, on the XAF and LightSwitch head-to-head.

LightSwitch Illuminates Application Development