| .NET Micro Framework book sample chapter available |
Apr. 10, 2008
 The author of a forthcoming text on Microsoft's toolsuite for deeply embedded systems has generously agreed to share a sample chapter. Jens Kuehner says his book, Expert .NET Micro Framework, introduces the tools to embedded or .NET developers with a background in assembly language or C/C++.
Kuehner works as principal software engineer for Vallon GmbH, where he creates software for data acquisition and evaluation using the .NET Framework and .NET Compact Framework. "Since this software must be incorporated closely with the detectors' hardware, an interest in embedded systems was only natural," he writes.
The book begins by introducing readers to the .NET MF and tools, presenting the available devices and touring the whole base class library, Kuehner writes in a blog posting. After that, he adds, it teaches how to:- Use and write managed drivers to access the hardware components
- Use and provide web services on devices with the new Device Profile for Web Services (DPWS), also known as Web Services on Devices (WSD)
- Write applications with rich graphical user interfaces
Publisher Apress notes that the book also shows how to extend .NET MF's hardware emulator components using undocumented features. It also describes how to use wireless communication technologies, even if they are not directly supported. Other topics include cryptography, and the use of binary serialization to store data permanently in flash memory or exchange it with a PDA or PC.
The .NET Micro Framework
Microsoft first released .NET MF in 2006, aiming it at wireless remote controls, watches, and other cost-sensitive devices with constrained processor and memory resources. The software supports low-end embedded processors, does not require an MMU (memory management unit), and offers typical runtime images that are only about 300KB in size, the company says.
In February, .NET MF was updated to version 2.5, adding a native TCP/IP stack. Also added was client and server support for WSD, which allow network-connected devices to discover and connect to one another without user intervention. For more information, see our earlier coverage, here.
Further information
Expert .NET Micro Framework will be published on Apr. 21 for $65, and is available by preorder from the publisher's website, here, or on Amazon, here. Meanwhile, Kuehner has generously agreed to share a sample chapter with WindowsForDevices.com's readers. Chapter 4, "Introducing the .NET Micro Framework base class library," reviews the differences between the full .NET and .NET Micro Frameworks, explains how to effectively use strings, numbers, arrays, and lists, and shows how to handle exceptions. To read it, click below.
Introducing the .NET Micro Framework Base Class Library
[PDF format]
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