Working with the Windows Store in Visual Studio 2012

Visual Studio has a menu of items associated with functions concerning the Windows Store. It is accessed by choosing Project ⇒ Store, and is shown in Figure 20.3.

Figure 20.3 The Visual Studio 2012 menu for working with the Windows Store

Options on the Store Menu

You saw earlier in the chapter the first option on the Store menu, which is used to get a Windows Store account using “Open Developer Account…” Other options cover additional steps in the process of testing and deploying the app. Some of these options link to the Window Store Dev Center, which includes options for configuring your apps in the Windows Store.

For example, one of the earliest options you'll want to use if you intend to sell an app is “Reserve App Name…” That will open a browser window with the title “Submit an app” and several options associated with submission. The top option is “App name.” The window is shown in Figure 20.4.

Figure 20.4 Options associated with submitting an app to the Windows Store

Most of the options on this screen are easy to figure out. For example, the App name option simply requires you to enter a name you intend to use, which should be a unique name for your app. The reservation on the name is good for up to one year. Therefore, if you have a clever name you intend to use and can't develop the app right away, you should go ahead and reserve your name. You can also reserve a name at the point that you create an app package.

Since most of the options are straightforward, the details will not be discussed here. You will see the last option, Packages, discussed later. It is used to upload your app the Windows Store.

The “Capture Screenshots…” is the recommended way to capture screenshots used in the Windows Store. At least one screenshot is required for an uploaded app.

The last two options on the menu are both quite important. They allow you to create an app package for testing or to upload to the store, and to upload the app package to the store.

Creating an App Package

After you have finished much or all of the functionality of your app, you will want to test it to see if it meets Windows Store requirements. This requires that a package be created for the app using the Create App Packages menu option.

The first step is to reserve a name for the app, unless you have done that previously. The dialog will show you the names you have reserved and allow you to choose one. The dialog is shown in Figure 20.5.

Figure 20.5 Choosing an app for which to generate a package

In the next step, you'll supply a version number and specify the architectures you want to support. That's usually Neutral, unless your app has special needs or features that tie it to a particular platform. After supplying that information, press the Create button, and your package will be created. The resulting screen will look much like Figure 20.6.

Figure 20.6 The dialog that displays once an app has been packaged

In addition to a Close button, the dialog also contains a button that says “Launch Windows App Certification Kit.” This is one way to launch the app that checks to see if your app meets Windows Store requirements.

Checking to See if an App Meets Requirements

The software used to check your app to see if it meets requirements for the Windows Store is the Windows App Certification Kit. It is part of the SDK for Windows 8, and is installed automatically as a part of a Visual Studio 2012 install.

Before an app can be tested, it must be packaged and deployed on the local machine, as just shown. As mentioned in chapter 13, the app must be based on an appropriate template so that it contains the items needed to be packaged, particularly the application manifest.

If you wish, you can start the Windows App Certification Kit as soon as your app is packaged, as shown in Figure 20.6 above. The app that was just packaged will automatically become the app to be validated.

You can also start the kit by accessing it directly from Windows Explorer or the command line. The default directory that contains the kit is one of the following directories, depending on whether you have a 32-bit version of Windows 8 or a 64-bit version:

C:Program FilesWindows Kits8.0App Certification Kit

C:Program Files (x86)Windows Kits8.0App Certification Kit

The executable is appcertui.exe. If you navigate to the above directory and run that executable, you will get a screen asking you what kind of app you want to validate. In this case, you're only concerned with Windows Store Apps, which is the first option.

The program then scans the system to find all the Windows 8 style apps. It presents a list and allows you to choose the app you want to check. That list looks like Figure 20.7.

Figure 20.7 Choosing the app to be validated by the Windows App Certification Kit

Once you start the validation process, it's best to leave your machine alone while it's going on. You'll see a progress screen that looks like Figure 20.8, but it will be replaced from time to time with the app being checked, and you're not supposed to interact with the app during the validation process.

When the validation process is finished, you'll see a screen indicating whether the app has passed, and a link to a detailed report. Remember, the validation process doesn't check everything the Windows Store requires. A “Hello World” application will pass the Windows App Certification Kit tests, but it doesn't deliver any value, so the human testers at the Windows Store will likely turn it down.

Deploying the App to the Windows Store

Once you have an app that has passed the Windows App Certification Kit tests, you are almost ready to upload the app to the Windows Store. However, you need to carry out several preliminary steps to configure the app in the store, and then do the actual upload step.

If you select the Project ⇒ Store ⇒ Upload App Packages option, you'll get the same screen you saw in Figure 20.4. You'll need to step through the unfinished options there, probably starting with “Selling details.” As mentioned earlier, these steps are straightforward, and this chapter won't cover the details.

Figure 20.8 The progress screen shown during app validation

By the way, it isn't necessary to complete all these steps at once. You can do each step at a different time if need be.

Once you have completed the steps shown on the submission screen for your app, your app will be vetted by the Windows Store, and you'll be notified when it is in the store and ready for other people to get it.

Your main interaction with your app in the app store from this point is using the Dashboard. It contains the apps you have placed in the store, and those in the process of being put in the store. Figure 20.9 shows the Dashboard.

Figure 20.9 The Dashboard for a Windows Store account

The Dashboard helps you see metrics for how your app is doing, including a financial summary. It also lets you delete or edit an app.