XAML

Microsoft Silverlight will reach end of support after October 2021. Learn more.

The overviews in this section describe Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) concepts and how to use XAML in your Silverlight-based applications.

In This Section

• XAML Overview
  Introduces XAML concepts, and describes the different ways to declare objects and set attributes in Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) as used with Silverlight.

• XAML Namescopes
  A XAML namescope stores relationships between the XAML-defined names of objects and their instance equivalents. This topic describes the implications of the XAML namescope concept on how you might compose your XAML and interact with the run-time object tree.

• Silverlight XAML Namespaces, and Mapping XAML Namespaces as Prefixes
  Explains the presence and purpose of the two XML namespace (xmlns) mappings as found in the root element of most Silverlight XAML files. It also describes how to produce similar mappings for using elements that are defined in your own code and/or within separate assemblies.

• Using XamlReader.Load
  Explains how to use the XamlReader.Load method, provides requirements for the input XAML, explains how to connect the output to the object tree, and discusses the XAML namescope issues that can affect using the FindName method against parts of the object tree that originated from a call to XamlReader.Load.

• Inline Styles and Templates
  Discusses the relative merits of resources versus inline definitions, particularly for certain style or template usages.

• XAML and Custom Classes
  Discusses the requirements that a custom class must satisfy to be usable as a XAML object element in Silverlight.

• TypeConverters and XAML
  The TypeConverter class serves a particular purpose as part of the Silverlight implementation of XAML attribute value processing. This topic explains the role of TypeConverter and provides guidance for writing your own TypeConverter for custom XAML attribute usages.

• Silverlight Namespace Extensions
  Provides reference information for Silverlight namespace XAML constructs that extend the basic XAML language features.

• XAML Processing Differences Between Silverlight Versions and WPF
  Describes differences in XAML parsing behavior between Silverlight and WPF.

• XAML Namespace (x:) Language Features
  Provides reference information for the XAML language features as implemented in Silverlight.

• XamlName Grammar
  Provides reference information for a XAML grammar that is enforced for XAML names and for ResourceDictionary keys.

• XAML Usage Syntax
  Describes some of the conventions that are found in the XAML usage syntax, and provides links to other topics that can help you understand XAML language concepts and how they relate to XAML usage and the Silverlight documentation.

• Prefixes and Mappings for Silverlight Libraries
  Describes the concepts of the default Silverlight XAML namespace and the reason why you might need to create mappings for additional XAML namespaces when you define parts of a Silverlight-based application in XAML.

• Navigating XAML Elements with the Document Outline Window
  Describes how to display the Document Outline Window and use it to navigate XAML elements.