Programming Mapping Applications (14 Sep 2009)

1-day Programming Mapping Applications (S$399)

Google Maps and Microsoft Virtual Earth are two of the most popular mapping applications in use today. Besides using these two maps directly, you can also integrate them into your own applications using the APIs exposed by Google and Microsoft.

In this one-day course, you will learn how to incorporate mapping solutions into your own applications and how to implement interesting features such as geo-tagging and geo-tracking. In addition, you will also learn how to write location-based services using GPS and CellID technologies.

Understanding User Interface in Android - Part 2: Views

In the previous article on Android UI you saw the components that make up the UI of an Android application. The basic unit of the Android UI is the View. A View represents a widget that has an appearance on the screen. In this article (and the next two), you will learn about the various common views that you would likely use in your journey of Android development.

New run of iPhone Programming course - 3-4 Sep 2009

I have added another run of the iPhone 3.0 Programming course on the 3-4 Sep 2009. If you are interested to learn how to get started with iPhone 3.0 programming, be sure to join us in this course. 

For pricing and course brochure, download application form here.

iPhone Programming Fundamentals - Outlets and Actions

An understanding of outlets and actionsis one of the first things you will need for iPhone programming. For someone coming from the .NET background, this is a concept that requires some time to get used to - the concepts are similar, but it is a different way of doing things.

And so, in this article, I am going to show you what outlets and actions are. At the end of this article, you will have a solid understanding of how to create outlets and actions, and be on your way to creating great iPhone apps.

iPhone Programming Fundamentals: Understanding View Controllers

One of the first things you will learn about when you begin programming iPhone projects is view controllers. Beginners often get intimidated by the amount of work they need to get a simple application going. However, you do much of the UI management in iPhone programming with view controllers; therefore, understanding what they do and how they work is critical to successful iPhone programming. This article explains the concepts and use of view controllers in iPhone programming. By the end of this article you should have a solid understanding of view controllers and be on your way to creating some great applications.

2-day Windows Mobile 6.1 Programming - 24-25 Sep 2009

This course will introduce to participants the various techniques to program their Windows Mobile 6 devices. This feature-packed course will show you how to get started in Windows Mobile development, right from the start till deployment.

Topics

Part 1 – User Interface Design in Windows Mobile

• Building Screen Orientation and Resolution Aware Applications

• Basic User Interface and Controls

• Setting the Input Modes

Part 2 – Communicating with the Outside World

• Intercepting Incoming SMS Messages

• Implementing a Call Manager using SMS Messaging

• Using Web Services

• Transferring Binary Data using Web Services

• Location-based Services using CellID and GPS

Part 3 – Persisting Data

• File I/O (Text)

• File I/O (Binary)

• Database Access using SQL Server Compact Edition

• Creating a SQL Server Compact Database Programmatically

• Using XML for Storage

• Using XML Serialization

Part 4 – Data Capturing

• Capturing Signature

• Barcode Scanning

Part 5 – Deployment

• Creating CAB File for Deployment

• Creating a Setup Application

For pricing and course brochure, download application form here.

3-day C# 3.0 Programming - 9-11 Sep 2009

Since the release of the Microsoft .NET Framework in July 2000, the C# programming language has gone through a few revisions, with the latest version 3.0. Over the years, the C# language has gained a lot of followers, partly due to its familiar syntax to Java and C. The clear syntax of the language made it easy to learn, and is a popular choice for beginning programmers.

The latest version of C# 3.0 comes with .NET Framework 3.5. It contains many new features that make the language more intuitive and powerful. Coupled with Visual Studio 2008, Microsoft’s flagship development environment, developing applications using C# is now available to a wide audience. In this fast-pace 3-day course, attendees will gain a solid foundation in C# programming and learn the various new features in C# 3.0.

Topics

• Basics of the .NET Framework

• C# language foundation

• Class and Objects

• Interfaces

• Inheritance

• Delegates and Events

• Strings

• Generics

• Threading

• Files and Streams

• Exception Handling

• Arrays and Collections

• Language Integrated Query

• Assemblies

• Projects

For pricing and course brochure, download application form here.

2-day iPhone Programming - 17-18 Sep 2009

In this 2-day workshop, you will learn the basics of iPhone programming. As the iPhone SDK uses the Objective-C language, the first part of this course will provide a crash course in learning the language. It then dives into the details of programming the iPhone using the Apple’s iPhone SDK. For this course, attendees are required to bring their own Intel Mac.

Topics

• Getting Started with Xcode

• Using the Interface Builder

• A crash course in Objective-C

• Building different types of iPhone Applications: Utility Applications, Tab Bar applications, Navigation-based applications, and View-based applications

• Using Table Views

• Application Settings and Data Persistence

• Multi-Touch Programming

• Location-Based Services

• Simple Animations

For pricing and course brochure, download application form here.

2-day Android Programming - 1-2 Oct 2009

Android is Google’s operating system for mobile devices. Using the Android SDK, developers can develop applications on the Android platform using the Java Programming language. In this course, participants will learn the various techniques to program their Android devices.

This feature-packed course will show you how to get started in Android development, right from the start till deployment.

Topics

· Setting up the development environment using Eclipse

· Using the Android Emulator

· Understanding Activities, Views, Intents, and Content Providers

· Building the UI of an Android Application

· Error Logging using the Eclipse IDE

· Using the Notification Manager

· Persisting data

· Using Google Maps

· Sending and receiving SMS messages

· Using the built-in camera

· Creating Services

· Downloading files using HTTP GET and POST

· Location based services using GPS and CellID

· How to deploy Android applications

For pricing and course brochure, download application form here.

Next run of the iPhone training - 17 and 18 Sep 2009

We had a good time during the last run of the iPhone training at Epic Centre @ ION Orchard.

If you have already downloaded the iPhone SDK but do not know how to get started, you are not alone. I have been through this cycle and I have given up two times before I finally realized that hey...iPhone programming can be fun...if you know what you are doing and how to get started!

The next run of this course has been scheduled to run on the 17-18 Sep 2009. Hope to see you there! For registration, simple send me an email and I will email you the registration form.

Date: 17-18 Sep 2009

Time: 9am to 5pm (tentative and subject to location)

Venue: Singapore

Fee: S$997 (nett)

C# Course (5-7 Aug 2009)

Just a reminder that the C# 3.0 course is on the 5-7 Aug 2009. Come join us and learn all the features in C# that you need to write effective .NET applications. All participants will get a copy of my C# 2008 Programmer's Reference book (WROX). Download application form here.

iPhone Course this week (30-31 July 2009) @ ION Orchard

I am excited to announce that the iPhone course this week is being held at the Epic Centre at ION Orchard. This is an ultra modern Apple store and while you attend the course you can also shop for your next MacBook Pro and iPhone accessories.

I will be using the iPhone SDK 3.0 and you have not not registered for the course yet, please do so quickly as spaces are limited.

Windows 7 Up and Running now in Rough Cuts version

Rough Cuts version of my "Windows 7 Up and Running" book is now available at: http://my.safaribooksonline.com/9780596806422.

Check it out!

I am now on Twitter!

I am now on Twitter. ;-)

Follow me at: http://twitter.com/weimenglee

New Training Schedule for July

I have published my upcoming training course schedules in Google Calendar. You can view it below. In particular, there are three courses in July:

* iPhone Programming - 30-31 July 2009

* Android Programming - 23-24 July 2009

* Programming Mapping Applications - 17 July 2009

You can also subscribe to my training calendar here.

Download course application form here.

Programming Mapping Applications - 19th June 2009 (Fri)

This 19th June 2009 (Fri), I will be running the Programming Mapping Applications course.

For the course, I will cover the following:

* How to programming Virtual Earth and Google Maps using JavaScript (through web browsers)

* How to obtain geographical data using GPS and Cell IDs (C#, Windows Mobile and Windows Forms)

* How to translate Cell IDs into Lat and Lng (C#) through a secret Google Maps API

The objectives of this course are:

* to get participants acquainted with the map APIs such as Google Maps and Virtual Earth

* to learn the various techniques to obtain GPS data and Cell IDs

* to learn how to use location data to build interesting apps

Fee

* S$399

For registration, please email me at weimenglee@learn2develop.net.

C# 3.0 Programming Course (SINGAPORE) 22-24th June 2009

This is your last chance to enrol for the upcoming C# 3.0 Programming (22-24th June 2009) course.

Besides learning all the fundamentals of C#, this course will introduce several technologies that would be of interest to a C# developer:

* Developing and deploying smart clients using ClickOnce
* Developing AJAX web applications
* Developing and consuming Web services

Participants will also receive a copy of my latest book - C# 2008 Programmer's Reference (S$69) free of charge.

For quick registration, please email me at:weimenglee@learn2develop.net.

Buy a Mac and get a free iPod Touch

Just to let you guys know that Apple is running a promotion for students and academic staffs. From now till September 8, you can get a free iPod Touch when you buy a Mac. 

For details, check out: http://store.apple.com/sg/browse/campaigns/back_to_school?cid=AOS-BTSFY09-dotcomsg-AppleHomepage. 

This is a perfect opportunity to get started in iPhone programming and develop great apps!

There is still time to register for the upcoming iPhone course. Buy a Mac and join us now!

Deploying iPhone Apps to Real Devices

Learn how to sign your iPhone apps, and deploy them onto real iPhone and iPod Touch.

"In our previous article on getting started with iPhone development, you learnt how to use the iPhone SDK provided by Apple to develop your first iPhone application. For testing purposes, you used the iPhone Simulator, provided as part of the iPhone SDK. While the iPhone Simulator is a very handy tool that allows you to test your iPhone applications without needing a real device, nothing beats testing on a real device. This is especially true when you are ready to roll out your applications to the world - you must ensure that it works correctly on real devices. In addition, if your application requires accesses to hardware features on an iPhone/iPod Touch, such as the accelerometer and GPS, you need to test it on a real device - the iPhone Simulator is simply not adequate. iPod Touch devices for testing."

iPhone Training in Singapore - 16-17 June 2009

This 16-17 June '09, I will be running another round of the iPhone programming course. With the successful run of the first round, I am revising the materials with the feedback obtained from the participants. 

If you are coming from a Java/.NET background, be sure to join us and learn the important things you need to know about Objective-C, the language used for programming your iPod Touch and iPhone. 

And if you think that iPhone programming is too difficult to learn, come and join us and see for yourself how much you will learn in this 2 days. iPod Touch and iPhone not required during the course, but if you have one, I will show you how you can test your application on your real device. 

For registration, please download the form and fax it to me.  

P.S. Yes, you would need to have an Intel Mac for the training. Go get one now!

Courses for June (Updated)

June '09 is going to be a mobility month as I will be running a number of courses related to mobility. In this month, there will be courses for everybody: Windows Mobile, Android, and iPhone. For more details on the courses, download the course brochures here. 

[I have just updated the schedules for some courses. In particular, I have added the C# Programming course.]

Last Call for iPhone Course - 16-17 April 2009

This is your last chance to register for the first iPhone course to be held on the 16-17 April (Thur-Fri). If you have always wanted to program for the iPhone but do not know how to get started, this is your best chance! In this lab- intensive course, you will learn about the various types of iPhone applications you can build, and have fun with multi-touch programming on the iPhone. Besides this, you will also learn how to program location-based services application on the iPhone and learn how to build compelling UI for the iPhone using Interface Builder. 

For registration, please email to weimenglee@learn2develop.net. Hope to see you at the course!

iPhone Course 16-17 April 2009

The iPhone course has been scheduled to run on the 16-17 April 2009 (Thur to Fri). If you have always wanted to learn iPhone programming but do not know how to get started, join us this April and get jump-started!

Here are the topics I will cover:

• Getting Started with Xcode

• Using the Interface Builder

• A crash course in Objective-C

• Multiview Applications

• Tab Bars and Pickers

• Table Views

• Navigation Controllers

• Application Settings and Data Persistence

• Multi-Touch Programming

• Location-Based Services

• Using the iPhone Camera

Important Note: You need to have an Intel Mac for iPhone Programming.

Trial version of the signature control now available

Due to numerous requests from interested developers, I am making trial versions of the signature control available upon request. This is the full version, except that it will expire in 14 days. If you are interested to try out the trial version, send me an email at weimenglee@learn2develop.net. 

Looking for a good C# Programmer for a Friend

I have a friend who is currently urgently looking for a good .NET programmer to work on a one-year contract project. If you are good in .NET (C#) and are familiar with SQL Express, please send me your resume at weimenglee@learn2develop.net and I will forward your resume to my friend. Working knowledge of RFID will be advantageous.

Buy an Android Phone Today!

Got the following price plan from: http://home.singtel.com/news_centre/news_releases/2009_02_20.asp.

Seems like quite a good deal to me. If you are a data junkie, then it might be good to go for the 3G Flexi Plus plan, where you pay $95 per month and get a 2GB data bundle. What's more, for the first 6 months, you have a eat-all-you-can data plan. But you got to hurry, this promotion is only from 21 and 22 Feb 2009.

Windows Mobile 6.1 Programming Workshop - 4-6 March 2009 (Wed to Fri)

Motorola has recently released two very cool handsets that is targeted at the Asian market. Both devices support 3.5G and have GPS, Bluetooth, IrDA, Wi-Fi, 3.2 MP Camera, as well as 1D barcode scanner.

If you want to be the first to learn how to program the FR68 and FR6000, be sure to joing us this 4-6th March 2009 (Wed to Fri). Besides learning how to program Windows Mobile 6.1, you will also learn how to program the barcode scanner on the FR68 and FR6000!

Course Content

Part 1 – User Interface Design in Windows Mobile
Lab 1 – Building Screen Orientation and Resolution Aware Applications
Lab 2 – Basic User Interface and Controls
Lab 3 – Setting the Input Modes
Lab 4 – Touch UI Programming

Part 2 – Integrating with PIM Applications
Lab 5 – Integrating with Contacts and Outlook Mobile
Lab 6 – Integrating with Calendar
Lab 7 – Integrating Telephony Functions

Part 3 – Communicating with the Outside World
Lab 8 – Intercepting Incoming SMS Messages
Lab 9 – Implementing a Call Manager using SMS Messaging
Lab 10 – Using Web Services
Lab 11 – Transferring Binary Data using Web Services

Part 4 – Persisting Data
Lab 12 – File I/O (Text)
Lab 13 – File I/O (Binary)
Lab 14 – Database Access using SQL Server Compact Edition
Lab 15 – Creating a SQL Server Compact Database Programmatically
Lab 16 – Using XML for Storage
Lab 17 – Using XML Serialization

Part 5 – Deployment
Lab 18 – Creating CAB File for Deployment
Lab 19 – Creating a Setup Application

Part 6 – Security
Lab 20 – Cryptography – Hashing, Encryption and Decryption
Lab 21 – Signing your Smartphone Applications

Fee
S$997

Re-run of the Programming Mapping Applications Course - 13th March 2009

Backed by popular demand, I will be conducting another run of the Programming Mapping Applications course this coming 13th March 2009 (Friday).

For the course, I will cover the following:

* How to programming Virtual Earth and Google Maps using JavaScript (through web browsers)

* How to obtain geographical data using GPS and Cell IDs (C#, Windows Mobile and Windows Forms)

* How to translate Cell IDs into Lat and Lng (C#) through a secret Google Maps API

The objectives of this course are:

* to get participants acquainted with the map APIs such as Google Maps and Virtual Earth

* to learn the various techniques to obtain GPS data and Cell IDs

* to learn how to use location data to build interesting apps

Fee

* S$399

SingTel and HTC Introduce the HTC Dream™ — the First Android-Powered phone released in Singapore

Singtel and HTC has just announced that they will be bringing in the Google G1 into Asia. That means folks in Singapore and Australia will soon be able to buy the first Android handsets in the world.

Once you have played with the G1, you would want to write your own apps for it, such as this, this, this, and this.

To get jumpstarted on Android programming, come join us this 9-10th March for the Android course. You will start with zero knowledge and at the end of the second day you will be writing cool location-based services applications! Don't believe? Check this out.

Developing Orientation-Aware Android Applications

Even though users take device landscape changes for granted, these changes remain challenging for developers to program. This article outlines a few tricks that will save you time when programming for an Android device.