.NET Windows Forms Custom Controls

Rating:
Summary: JAlden
Review: Disappointing! This short book is mostly sample code, with much repetition. There is very little explanation of the concepts. Code generation(serialization) isn't covered at all. The MSDN site has more and better code samples, also without much in the way of explanation, but at least they are free.

Rating:
Summary: This book met my expectations, and then some.
Review: This book applies the concept of learn by example. It has two key examples, an IconButton and an Outlook style bar control. Even a control as simple as the IconButton resulted in a challenging project because, inheriting directly from the Contol class, requires the programmer to handle the painting and dimensioning. These techniques come in handy when creating other advanced controls, especially where dependence on inheriting from the common built-in controls won't exist.

One of the big values I got from the book was the source code which I used to build the dll and reference in a hosting client application. I then stepped through the application with the debugger. It allowed me to see how the control is drawn to screen line by line. Make sure you take full advantage of running the source.

This is not a book for a beginner programmer and at 250 pages doesn't cover all there is to know about control development but it's a nice read that gets right to the point. With these expectations I couldn't have asked for more.

Rating:
Summary: WOULD BE MUCH BETTER IF PROPERLY REVISED
Review: This book has got one two positive qualities, but, readers who expect comprehensive details should condition their minds for some sorts of disappointments.
It did give a general overview of .NET Windows curriculum, but faltered in its bid to teach .NET developers the intricate procedures, which they need in order to create their own custom controls.
On going through the first three chapters, I realized that the author of this book is a brilliant mind who experiences difficulties in teaching others what he knows.
Subsequent editions of this book would be sound, if reviewed and edited by more experienced teachers.

Rating:
Summary: Good book for experienced .net developer
Review: This book is great for developers with some experiences in writing .net applications. The book is built on 2 custom controls. Text is concise and to the point. It starts out simple and features are added as materials are covered. I like this approach because it is very similar to real development. I hate books that use extremely simple samples because they don't show how to use various techniques together. One thing it can improve is the editing of the book to get rid of some typos.

Rating:
Summary: Concise and to the point.
Review: This book is not intended for the beginning C# programmer but for an experienced C# programmer interested in how to make Windows Forms custom controls it is just the right mix of code and explanation. Too many books spend chapter after chapter re-reviewing the basics and trying to be all things to all people. This technology uses the some most advanced parts of C# save for Reflection and is not a beginner's domain. If you are a professional with a limited amount of time to wade through basic review detritus to find the information you need this book is just what you need. It's short and to the point unlike this review. My only complaint is that "some" sections are a little thin and the code changes from example to example are not clear enough but that's the editor not the author.

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Summary: Not very useful
Review: This book is quite luke warm. Most of the book is source code that actually has a few errors. The source code included makes up ~1/3 of the already slim book. I would have rather seen an attached disc or a website I could go to to download the source. The book breifly discusses some main topics including distribution and GDI however the book is too thin to actually be very benificial. Most of the concepts are readily available on MSDN or GotDotNet.com. I hate to be harsh but this book failed to introduce so general important concepts including typical custom control layouts invloving a custom arraylist amd arraylistitems.. I have yet to write a control that hasn't used these. Anyway... two start because it does hit some basic concepts but really lacks the warmth and depth need to fully be a custom control development book.

Rating:
Summary: Not very detailed
Review: This book is very short and to the point. Having said that, if you're looking to learn custom control development in C# or VB .NET inside and out, this book is not for you. If, on the otherhand, you just need a book to get you started and then take the initiative yourself to learn more, then this is the place to start.

This book will give you the basics of custom control development in C# and VB .NET. It will teach you how to draw your own controls, create events and event handlers for your controls, and how to create control designers that will allow you to use the Visual Studio property grid to interact with the control during application development. However, don't look for a whole lot of detail in these areas. This book is very thin, only 252 pages (not including the index). There are only maybe 20 pages per chapter, with much of that being code, and much of the code is repeated over and over as well with minor additions.

As stated by other reviewers, this book goes through two main examples, the IconButton and the Office ShortcutBar. Both are rather rudimentary controls which, if you really wanted to use them, would really need a lot of work to make them useful.

As stated, if you're looking to learn everything there is to know about custom controls, including much of the .NET base classes, methods, properties and attributes, you might want to try and find another book, though I haven't found one to date. As another reviewer already said, you could probably find all the information contained in this book at many websites, incuding MSDN, and GotDotNet.com. If you just want to dip your toe into the water, this book is perfect.

Hope this review helps.

Rating:
Summary: I wish there had been another book on this topic...
Review: To be honest, I bought this book because it was the only one I have found so far specifically on the topic of custom controls.
In retrospect maybe I should have looked harder or waited longer. While this book does outline the basic concepts pretty well, the author should have spent more time on it.
If you're a little compulsive about coding style and consistency (like most professionals are) the examples in this book are going to drive you crazy! Weeks doesn't stick to any particular naming convention - the code just looks like a hack job. Sorry...But it's true.
In all fairness, the book does put all the pertinent topics in one place and it's pretty short. So, despite it's faults the book will get you up and running faster than reading the online help and other resources.

Rating:
Summary: A good start.
Review: While this book far surpasses the documentation available from Microsoft concerning custom controls and especially the topic of designers, it is still only a good start. I got the feeling while reading this book that Weeks was under tremendous pressure to go to press. Some topics were merely brushed over and others were ignored altogether. The examples had bugs and there was no soft copy of the examples either accompanying the book or available online (although I haven't checked in a few weeks). I was very disappointed with the lack of depth when it came to designers. There wasn't even a thorough description of the "standard" interfaces available to the designer developer. To be fair, this book did enable me to overcome some very steep hurdles and therefore saved me a LOT of time. I would recommend it for anyone serious about attempting to write anything even approaching a professional grade custom control.