Building a c# desktop app, starting from scratch, tips please [closed]

Question

I need to build a simple desktop app, my experience is with vb6 but it's time to move on, so i need some help. My app is relatively simple, a db table that holds events by date. The app should display the events on a full screen in the following structure:

1. first line - todays events, a single event every time, rotating.
2. second line - the closest events (7 days a head), 5 every time, rotating.
3. third line - all other events , in ..rotation.. each event will be held in a "box", with constant (by percentage) size..

The problems I anticipate are: The layout, how can i keep it aesthetic, the line heights, the events boxes? (in vb i used to attach it to the resize event and then calculate the size)

so, please - any tips? ideas? where to start ? what should i google?

Answer 1

You first need to decide if you're going to use WPF or WinForms, because everything else follows from that.

Winforms will feel more like VB6, but is not the latest and greatest thing.

WPF will be harder to learn to start with, but then stuff like all your layout resizing will just work, without you needing to write any of that calculating code.

Silverlight is (loosely) a subset of WPF, and if I was starting with no prior knowledge today, I might be inclined to use that.

The Adam Nathan book is excellent for WPF, not sure which book I'd recommend for Silverlight.

Answer 2

The layout, how can i keep it aesthetic, the line heights, the events boxes?

Take a look at the TableLayoutPanel (WinForms).