Smart Client Deployment with ClickOnce

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Smart Client Deployment with ClickOnce

Every software engineer has faced the task of gettinghis/her application to users once it s written. Sometimes this is an overlookedpart of the engineering process. SmartClient Deployment with ClickOnce by Brian Noyes attempts to help softwareengineers get their applications to the users faster, more easily, and withmore control. The book exclusively deals with Windows Forms applications usingthe .NET 2.0 Framework.

Having read other titles by Noyes, I was comfortable withhis writing style. It s conversational and easy to follow. In chapter one heimmediately whets your appetite for the subject matter by having you deploy asimple application within the first 20 pages of the book. Noyes does a good jobof explaining the foundations for ClickOnce and how it is built. For example,there s a section on terminology so you, as a reader, won t have any confusionfrom earlier attempts by Microsoft to do application deployment. However, ClickOnceis not a magic bullet as far as application deployment goes. There s a sectionin chapter one that discusses when to notuse the ClickOnce technology. Reading that section can save you a lot ofheartache, so I recommend you not skip chapter one.

Chapter two walks you through planning for a successfuldeployment and then guides you through the various steps involved with VisualStudio. There are plenty of pictures in this section, which makes it easy tofollow along and keep you on track. You ll get familiar with what s required ofa deployment server and terms like deploymentmanifest and application manifest.

Chapter three assumes you ve had a successful deploymentand are looking to maintain the application. This section is similar to chaptertwo, with a lot of pictures to follow and good details. Noyes does a good jobof making sure to warn you about potential pitfalls associated with ClickOnce(the warnings are easy to spot because they are highlighted in gray).

The book then starts to get more complicated discussingtopics such as the ClickOnce API, application and data file management, and security.A chapter is dedicated to each one of these subjects and I strongly recommendyou read the security section. It s well thought out and explains things from asecurity point of view you should consider while building your ClickOnceapplication. Noyes also touches on the Bootstrapper functionality, which allowsyou to deploy prerequisite applications in addition to your application. Noyesshows you how to have a seamless transition from bootstrap applicationinstallations to your ClickOnce application.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who seeks to deployan application in an efficient, controlled manor. I like how Noyes reinforcesthe information of the chapter at the end of each chapter. Configurationmanagers should read this book if they are looking for better ways to do theirjobs. If you write code long enough you ll inevitably run into a situationwhere the test team is working on a different version than they should becausethey don t have the latest version. ClickOnce can help mitigate problems likethat and this book explains how to implement it.

David Mack

Rating:

Title: Smart Client Deployment with ClickOnce

Author: BrianNoyes

Publisher:Addison-Wesley

ISBN:0-321-19769-0

Web Site: http://www.aw-bc.com/catalog/academic/product/0,1144,0321498542,00.html

Price: US$44.99

Page Count: 285