Delphi GUI Programming with FireMonkey: Unleash the full potential of the FMX framework to build exciting cross-platform apps with Embarcadero Delphi

Description

FireMonkey (FMX) is a cross-platform application framework that allows developers to create exciting user interfaces and deliver applications on multiple operating systems (OS). This book will help you learn visual programming with Delphi and FMX. Starting with an overview of the FMX framework, including a general discussion of the underlying philosophy and approach, you'll then move on to the fundamentals and architectural details of FMX. You'll also cover a significant comparison between Delphi and the Visual Component Library (VCL). Next, you'll focus on the main FMX components, data access/data binding, and style concepts, in addition to understanding how to deliver visually responsive UIs. To address modern application development, the book takes you through topics such as animations and effects, and provides you with a general introduction to parallel programming, specifically targeting UI-related aspects, including application responsiveness. Later, you'll explore the most important cross-platform services in the FMX framework, which are essential for delivering your application on multiple platforms while retaining the single codebase approach. Finally, you'll learn about FMX's built-in 3D functionalities. By the end of this book, you'll be familiar with the FMX framework and be able to build effective cross-platform apps. Dedication About Packt Foreword Contributors Table of Contents Preface Section 1: Delphi GUI Programming Frameworks Chapter 1: Introducing the FireMonkey Framework Technical requirements Approaching FireMonkey Abstracting the visual part of your apps Looking beyond the UI Back to the metal Understanding the strengths and weaknesses Summary Chapter 2: Exploring Similarities and Differences with VCL Technical requirements Understanding RTL for everyone Learning about component streaming Understanding the Style Designer Learning about components Handling the placement and sizing of components Understanding anchors Learning about alignments Understanding actions Learning about data binding Summary Section 2: The FMX Framework in Depth Chapter 3: Mastering Basic Components Technical requirements Understanding the TText component Learning about the TLabel component Understanding shapes Learning about the TLine class Understanding the TRectangle class Learning about the TCircle component Managing images effectively Learning about the MultiResBitmaps unit TImage TImageViewer TImageList TGlyph Learning about buttons TSpeedButton Summary Chapter 4: Discovering Lists and Advanced Components Technical requirements Learning about lists TListBox TListView Providing data for the list Item appearances Custom appearance Dynamic appearance TListView's style customization Basic event handling Search capabilities Pull to refresh Exploring treeviews Customizing TTreeview's items Using grids TGrid and TStringGrid Customizing TGrid and TStringGrid Mastering drawers and panels Drawer mode NavigationPane mode Panel mode Popover mode PlatformBehavior mode Custom mode Summary Chapter 5: Using FireDAC in FMX Applications Technical requirements Learning about the FireDAC library Understanding the library's composition Understanding the options system Exploring FetchOptions properties Exploring FormatOptions properties Exploring ResourceOptions properties Exploring UpdateOptions properties Working with macros and parameters Taking advantage of memory tables Connecting to a database Introducing Tables, Query, StoredProc, and Command Understanding dataset persistence Implementing an onboard database Exploring the LocalSQL feature Summary Chapter 6: Implementing Data Binding Technical requirements Introduction to data binding Approaching LiveBindings  Introducing managed bindings Understanding what happens under the hood Mastering real-world data bindings Introducing BindSources Binding a field value to a property – TLinkPropertyToField Binding a dataset field value to a control – TLinkControlToField Formatting data Exploring CustomFormat/CustomParse expressions Understanding LiveBindings methods Creating the package (FormatFloatPackage) Implementing the wrapper (FormatFloatInvokable) Building and installing the package Testing at design time and using it at runtime Making custom method calls available Binding a dataset to a list control – TLinkListControlToField Filling items with data Associating images with data LiveBindings events Binding a dataset to a grid control – TLinkGridToDataSource Summary Chapter 7: Understanding FMX Style Concept Technical requirements Learning about multi-platform visual programming Introducing the Style concept Understanding the anatomy of a style Managing style(s) in the IDE Binding a component to its style Exploring the style definition of a component Approaching the TStyleBook component Learning about Vector styles Understanding Bitmap styles Adding animation, triggers, and effects Managing styles – the TStyleManager component Understanding the selection algorithm Loading a style from embedded resources Learning about platform-native controls Summary Chapter 8: Divide and Conquer with TFrameStand Technical requirements Introducing TFrameStand Designing UIs for mobile applications Learning about the DRY principle Understanding visual continuity Exploring TFrameStand – Hello, World! Implementing views Understanding the THomeFrame frame Learning about the TOrdersFrame frame  Understanding the TOrderDetailsFrame frame Defining the stand(s) Learning about animations Defining the fader stand Defining the slider stand Learning about TFormStand Summary Chapter 9: Building Responsive UIs Technical requirements Understanding responsiveness—visual meaning Exploring Bootstrap's grid system Understanding the relevant factors of responsiveness Leveraging device and application peculiarities Handling changes in device orientation Considering the field of application Understanding screen resolution and density Building visual layouts Arranging components with TLayout Letting components flow as text with TFlowLayout Building grid layouts with TGridLayout Advanced arrangements with TGridPanelLayout Introducing FireUI technology Creating a new view The Multi-Device Preview window Using the FireUI Live Preview app Considering other FireUI capabilities Exploring TFormStand Summary Chapter 10: Orchestrating Transitions and Animations Technical requirements Introducing animations and transitions Learning about interpolation Understanding non-linear interpolations Working with the FMXAni demo project Learning about the TAnimation class Understanding global animation management Understanding interpolation modifier functions Learning about TAnimator shortcuts Learning about specialized animation components TFloatAnimation TFloatKeyAnimation TColorAnimation TColorKeyAnimation TGradientAnimation TRectAnimation TBitmapAnimation TBitmapListAnimation TPathAnimation Summary Section 3: Pushing to The Top: Advanced Topics Chapter 11: Building Responsive Applications Technical requirements Understanding multithreading Understanding the thread safety of UI frameworks Synchronous versus asynchronous execution Utilizing the Synchronize method Learning about the Queue approach Exploring threads and tasks Introducing the TThread class Understanding a thread's lifespan Exploring alternative solutions Introducing the Parallel Programming Library Introducing the TTask class Dealing with synchronization Waiting for a task to complete Waiting for tasks to finish Learning about futures Summary Further reading Chapter 12: Exploring Cross-Platform Services Technical requirements Accessing the clipboard service Understanding copying and pasting text Learning about copying and pasting graphic content Managing dialog forms Understanding differences between synchronous versus asynchronous modes Leveraging touch capabilities Playing with the form's OnTouch event Considering the form's OnTap event Exploring standard gestures Implementing interactive gestures Understanding messaging support Introducing message definitions as data types Sending messages through the message manager Subscribing and responding to messages Using native HTTP client implementations Getting familiar with Bluetooth support Scanning for devices Connecting to a BLE device Subscribing for notifications Summary Chapter 13: Learning about FMX 3D Capabilities Technical requirements Introducing 3D programming with FMX Building a 3D application Building a 3D "Hello, world!" application Understanding TDummy and the design-time camera Setting up a 3D viewport Understanding lights and materials Learning about lights Learning about the materials Merging 3D and 2D visual objects Using the TLayer3D component Merging TFrameStand with 3D visuals Summary Other Books You May Enjoy Index