Microsoft Blend
| Microsoft Blend
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| Basic data
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| developer | Microsoft Corporation |
| operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| category | Interface design, software development, rich internet applications |
| Microsoft product page | |
Microsoft Blend , also Blend for Visual Studio , formerly Microsoft Expression Blend , is a design tool from Microsoft for the design of user interfaces for desktop applications that run under Microsoft Windows , based on the Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and .NET from version 3, as well as cross-platform web applications.
Expression Blend and XAML
The WYSIWYG editor in Expression Blend creates vector graphics in XAML format . Expression Blend supports dynamic vector graphics and animations, pixel graphics, 3D objects, videos, sound and text as well as complex controls in XAML.
Versions and the confusion surrounding the Expression Blend 2.5 Tech Preview
On April 30, 2007, the first version of Expression Blend was released. About a year later, the original retail version of Expression Blend 2 for release in July 2008 only supported the then-current Silverlight 1.0. To develop applications for pre-release versions of Silverlight 2, Microsoft made a free extended version of Expression Blend with the version number 2.5 available before the release of Silverlight 2. An official retail version of Expression Blend 2.5 was never published - the functions for development for Silverlight 2 were integrated into Expression Blend 2 with ServicePack 1. ServicePack 1 was released at the same time as Silverlight 2 in October 2008 and extends Expression Blend 2 with functions for developing applications for Silverlight 2 with .NET languages such as C # or VB.NET, but also with Ruby and Python. In July 2009, Expression Blend 3 was released together with Silverlight 3. The English version of Expression Studio 4 Ultimate, which in addition to Expression Blend 4 also contains Expression Web 4, Expression Encoder 4 and Expression Design 4, was published on June 7, 2010; the German version was published on August 26, 2010 Expression Blend was delivered as a standalone tool together with Visual Studio 2012 as a bundle and has not been available as a single product since. Under the name "Blend for Visual Studio 2013" it is still part of all versions of Visual Studio 2013, including the free Express version.
Features in Expression Blend
Effective prototyping with SketchFlow SketchFlow enables the process of an application to be set up quickly, to experiment with the layout of individual screens and to be able to quickly test different concepts. In addition, it is possible to create controls in the prototype phase in a "sketchy style" (pencil sketch) to enable customers to concentrate on the concept of the application. These control elements have the same range of functions as normal buttons, text fields, etc., but are not yet set to a special design. After the structure of the surface has been determined, the design of all controls can be changed later. With the help of the SketchFlow Player, feedback can be requested from various testers and, since version 4, it can also be processed in aggregated form with the help of an integration with Microsoft SharePoint.
Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator Import Expression Blend includes importers for both Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. During the import you can see the Photoshop file and individually select the layers that you want to import. Layers can be easily grouped and elements retain their original format: layers, layer position, editable text and vectors.
Silverlight 3 and Silverlight 4 support With Expression Blend, Silverlight applications can be created. The Visual State Manager, 3D transformations, visual effects such as blur (softening) and glow (glow), hardware acceleration, customizable components and HD video are things that enable new concepts.
Behaviors A behavior is a reusable building block of interactivity that can be applied directly to user interface elements in Expression Blend without writing any code. Interactivities that a developer previously wrote in ordinary code can now be packaged and used as a reusable behavior. These behaviors can also be created and used together in a team, which makes it possible to use interactivity uniformly in a project.
Visual State Manager, State Animation, and Fluid Layout Designer now have absolute control over how user interface elements interact. Whether an element in a control engages or slides in a certain position, moves linearly or with inertia - a wide variety of interaction models are available. Fluid Layout provides morphing animations that smoothly blend visual elements between different screen layouts.
Silverlight easing functions With the given easing animations you can easily create physically realistic animations. Each easing function has individually adjustable parameters that give the designer full control over the type of movement.
Code Editor and Intellisense Expression Blend includes a full-fledged code editor with XAML, C # and VB Intellisense support. You now have the choice of writing code in Visual Studio or editing it directly in Expression Blend.
Workspace docking Individual workspaces can now be saved. It is also possible to use tools and controls on multiple monitors separately from each other.
Expression Blend's code name and history
The original code name for Expression Blend was "Sparkle". Sparkle was originally created during the development of the Windows Presentation Foundation (then still known as Avalon) from the need of a group of testers to be able to use a product developed in WPF to test the new WPF graphics engine of Windows. Sparkle and the following versions were developed as WPF applications themselves in WPF. By December 2006, Expression Blend was also announced as Microsoft Expression Interactive Designer; An early pre-release version (DTP) was also available under this name. In December 2006, Microsoft announced the final name Microsoft Expression Blend. The first public beta version of Expression Blend was released on January 24, 2007. The first official English language retail version was released on April 30, 2007; the German version of Expression Blend 1 was published in July 2007. Expression Blend 2 was published in July 2008, and Expression Blend 3 in July 2009.
Import from other programs
Graphics and XAML resources generated in Microsoft Expression Design 2 can be imported into Expression Blend 2 projects. Furthermore, Silverlight media projects that have been created with Microsoft Expression Encoder 2 can be imported. These can be expanded with new functions or visual elements, after which they can be used again in Expression Encoder 2.
literature
- Daniel Greitens: User Interface Design with Microsoft Expression Blend 2 . Microsoft Press Germany 2009, ISBN 978-3-86645-433-0 .
Web links
- German product website (= dead link!)
- yourExpression - Independent German Community (= dead link!)
- Expression community (English)
- BlendInsider (English)
Individual evidence