"Rebecca provides an invaluable resource to help developers focus on a commonly overlooked but vital part of an application--the user experience."
--David Sceppa, Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation

"Rebecca Riordan takes UI programming and practices to new heights. She has gone byond simply explaining the theory behind UI programming practices, providing code samples that are practical, well-documented, and can be immediately incorporated into a development project."
--Wendy Chun, AVP/Product Development, SunGard Insurance Systems

"Riordan has produced what is THE reference guide on user interface design in .NET. Serious developers and beginners alike will learn both design techniques that can put applications over the top and pitfalls to avoid."
--Kelly J. Martens, Manager, Information Systems and Development, JJ Koepsell Company

Nowadays, users and clients demand exceptionally usable software. But few developers are trained to create high-quality user interfaces, and few .NET books offer much help--until now.

In Seeing Data, Microsoft MVP Rebecca M. Riordan shows how to use .NET's advanced UI tools to build applications that reflect today's interface design best practices. She offers visual examples, code, and techniques for every .NET project.

Writing for experienced .NET developers, Riordan introduces core principles of effective interface design--including focus, flow, alignment, proximity, contrast, and consistency. She demonstrates how to architect databases for better usability, and how to build more effective form layouts. Next, she systematically tackles user interaction, showing how to:

• Help users navigate DataSets, manipulate data, and generate reports
• Utilize menus, toolbars, buttons, and Help systems
• Enforce data integrity
• Simplify installation and customization

Riordan covers essential technical underpinnings ranging from GDI+ Managed Classes to ADO.NET data binding. She presents dozens of Visual Basic .NET examples--all designed for easy, quick reuse, and downloadable from the book's companion Web site, along with C# equivalents.

Why do so many computer programs have such poorly designed user interfaces? The most likely reason is that most developers have no training in how to design good graphical user interfaces (GUIs.) Microsoft has included many helpful tools in the .NET Framework for interface design. Many books on .NET have a few pages or at most a chapter on these tools. But until now there has not been a book that shows how to use these tools in detail in the context of sound UI design principles. This book is intended for experienced programmers with a basic knowledge of application development and database systems, but no formal training in the basics of interface design. Acknowledged database design expert Rebecca Riordan calls upon her years of experience in the field to give developers just the right combination of theory and practical information to help them design interfaces that will be easy to use. She includes lots of sample code that readers can take and insert into their own programs, saving them time and money. All code in the book is written in Visual Basic .NET; C# versions are available on the book's companion web site.