In this episode, Jon and Allan discuss logging and configuration in mobile app development. They talk about their personal experiences with configuration and logging, including using environment variables, embedded resources, and external libraries like Sentry. They also touch on the performance implications of logging and the potential for source generation to improve configuration handling. Overall, they emphasize the importance of considering the specific needs of the app and the trade-offs between convenience and performance. In this conversation, Allan and Jon discuss logging and error handling in mobile app development. They mention the importance of having good logging tools and the drawbacks of using outdated tools like App Center. They also talk about the benefits of using a local logging system for debugging purposes. The conversation concludes with a discussion on the proper use of try-catch blocks and the importance of handling exceptions at the right level.

Links:

• Sentry IO
• Shiny.Extensions.Configuration — A configuration library that pulls appsettings json from Android assets & iOS bundles allowing for repackaging in white label solutions while still support the common configuration pattern
• YouTube Episode 111

The conversation covers various mobile app development pitfalls and best practices, including the use of assembly scanning, loading large JSON files, and the misuse of dependency injection. The hosts share their experiences and insights on these topics, highlighting common mistakes and potential solutions. The conversation covers topics related to app performance, dependency injection, service management, constructor logic, and the impact of changes from Xamarin Forms to Maui. It delves into the challenges of resolving services, the use of async calls in constructors, and the importance of separating concerns in service management. The discussion emphasizes the need for thoughtful design and the avoidance of unnecessary complexity. In this conversation, Allan and Jon discuss the challenges and misconceptions surrounding observable collections in app development. They explore the performance implications, misuse, and alternative solutions, as well as the complexities of source generators and incremental generators. The conversation also touches on the importance of learning from mistakes and the potential for Roslyn analyzers in XAML. The episode concludes with a discussion about a new plugin package and listener feedback.

Links:

• Source Generators Kit
• YouTube Episode 110

The conversation delves into the topic of dependency injection (DI) and its evolution over the years. It covers the history of DI, different DI libraries, considerations for mobile development, and the future of DI with source generation. The discussion also touches on performance optimizations and the impact of DI on app startup time. The conversation covers topics related to dependency injection, scoping mechanisms, and the challenges of managing scopes in Maui apps. It also delves into the use of Prism and the need for out-of-the-box conventions for handling life cycles and navigation services in Maui. The conversation covers a deep dive into dependency injection, scope boundaries, and the challenges of managing dependencies in the context of mobile app development. It also delves into the nuances of using different DI containers and the impact on app performance. The hosts share their experiences, insights, and recommendations for handling these complexities effectively.

Links:

• .NET MAUI Micro MVVM — A small MVVM framework with navigation services & lifecycle built around .NET MAUI Shell by the great Dan Siegel
• DryIoc — DryIoc is fast, small, full-featured IoC Container for .NET

In this conversation, Jon and Allan discuss various topics related to architecture and performance in mobile app development. They touch on the challenges of implementing the MVVM pattern and the potential for excessive property changed notifications. They also discuss the use of observable collections and the importance of using them only when necessary. Additionally, they express their dislike for messaging services and suggest using events or actions instead. Overall, the conversation emphasizes the need for thoughtful architecture and optimization in mobile app development. The conversation explores the use of mediator pattern in mobile and app development. The mediator pattern is seen as a solution to prevent service overrun and to provide logical separation in the app. It allows for vertical slicing of concerns and prevents the need for injecting multiple services. The conversation also discusses the challenges of messaging services and the benefits of using a mediator pattern in terms of scalability, error handling, and unit testing. The potential application of the mediator pattern in Xamarin and .NET Maui apps is explored. In this conversation, Allan and Jon discuss the concept of using a mediator pattern in mobile app development. They explore the benefits of using a mediator to handle communication between different components of an app, such as view models and services. They also discuss existing implementations of the mediator pattern, such as MediatR, and potential future developments in this area. Overall, they highlight the potential value of using a mediator pattern in mobile app architecture.

Links:

• MAUI Reactor
• Rearch

In this conversation, Jonathan discusses his experience with building automation control systems for his swimming pool using microcontrollers and IoT devices. He talks about controlling the pool temperature, pool pumps, and a saltwater generator. He also explores the challenges and considerations of using different microcontrollers, such as the ESP8266 and the Meadow board, which runs .NET. Jonathan shares his passion for building IoT projects and the potential for using favorite programming languages in these environments. The conversation covers various topics related to IoT platforms, including the evolution of hardware into software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms, the expansion of Meadow's ecosystem, the integration of Raspberry Pi with Meadow, the challenges of running web servers on microcontrollers, and personal projects involving IoT devices. The conversation also touches on the use of Meadow in pool automation and coffee brewing, as well as the ingenuity of building custom solutions using sensors and Raspberry Pi.

Links:

• Meadow Desktop

The conversation discusses the importance of structuring apps in terms of business requirements and how to make them easier to navigate and understand. It emphasizes the need to focus on translating business requirements into technology and suggests organizing projects based on business logic rather than technology layers. The conversation also touches on the use of services and the benefits of grouping them by section or feature. Additionally, the conversation explores the challenges of using IL manipulators and the limitations of certain frameworks in the context of C# hot reload. It concludes with a discussion on the need for base implementations and templates that provide guidance on structuring apps and implementing MVVM patterns. In this conversation, Jonathan and John discuss the importance of structuring services in mobile app development. They explore the use of MVVM frameworks like Prism and the challenges of writing technical code on top of existing tech services. They also discuss the benefits of using events and observables in services, as well as the use of dependency injection and the Microsoft implementation. The conversation concludes with a recommendation for the Refit library as the plugin packager product of the week.

Links:

• Refit — The automatic type-safe REST library
• Refitter — Refitter is a tool for generating a C# REST API Client using the Refit library. Refitter can generate the Refit interface and contracts from OpenAPI specifications.

Jon and Allan discuss their experiences and excitement surrounding tech conferences like WWDC and Google IO. They reminisce about attending conferences in the past and the thrill of new announcements and hardware giveaways. They also speculate on what they hope to see at upcoming conferences, such as immersive movies and a foldable iPhone. The conversation touches on the evolution of UI design and the convenience of using smartphones as cameras. The conversation covers topics such as foldable phones, APIs, UI changes, app stores, and permissions. The hosts discuss their preferences for foldable phones and the potential impact on UI design. They also explore the idea of integrating AI and context awareness into app development. The conversation touches on the App Store fees and the review process. They express their frustrations with Android permissions and suggest improvements for a more streamlined process. The conversation covers various topics including the challenges of changing APIs, the user experience of notifications on different platforms, the potential for new features in Apple TV, the power of Apple's M-series chips, the future of gaming on ARM-based devices, and a shout-out to Gerald Versluis and his packages.

The conversation covers topics related to coffee-making methods and the use of XAML in app development. The hosts discuss their preferences for coffee machines and the process of making coffee. They also delve into the use of converters in XAML and the debate between putting logic in the view model or the view. The conversation explores the use of converters, extensions, and behaviors in XAML and their potential drawbacks. It also discusses the benefits of using compiled bindings and the importance of declaring data types in XAML for improved performance. The conversation touches on the use of XAML in Blazor and the potential future of XAML in web development. In this conversation, Jon and Allan discuss various optimization techniques for Xamarin.Forms and .NET MAUI apps. They cover topics such as compiled bindings, the performance impact of converters in collection views, optimizing XAML layouts, and the use of third-party libraries like Sharpnado CollectionView. They also touch on the challenges of building responsive layouts and the importance of considering platform-specific optimizations. Overall, the conversation provides valuable insights into improving the performance of Xamarin.Forms and .NET MAUI apps.

Links:

• Sharpnado CollectionView

The conversation revolves around the topic of offline battle tactics in mobile app development. Jon shares his experience with a pool app that required offline data storage and syncing. He initially used Realm, but faced issues with performance and scalability. He had to rewrite the login service and migrate data to a new backend. Allan discusses the challenges of offline data syncing, including handling deletes and updates, resolving conflicts, and ensuring data security. Jon explains his approach of using Cosmos DB and simple record types to handle offline data syncing. They emphasize the importance of considering the specific needs of the business and avoiding over-engineering solutions. The conversation explores the challenges and considerations of implementing offline functionality in mobile apps. The concept of 'end scars' is introduced, referring to the need to delete or reassign child data when the parent data is modified or deleted. The importance of handling offline scenarios gracefully and providing clear feedback to users is emphasized. The conversation also touches on the use of frameworks and abstractions for offline sync, with a discussion of Azure Mobile Apps and the limitations of such solutions. The benefits of using SQLite and the JSON support it offers are highlighted. In this final part of the conversation, Jon and Allan discuss their experiences with SQLite and offline functionality in mobile apps. They talk about the importance of optimizing app startup time and how SQLite can be a bottleneck in this process. They also share their preference for using SQL and the benefits of using SQLite-PCL-NET. The conversation then shifts to offline functionality and device-to-device communication, with Jon sharing his experience with Google's SDK for nearby communication. They briefly touch on the challenges of offline functionality in airplane environments and the limitations of Bluetooth connectivity. The episode concludes with a discussion on the importance of the SQLite raw library and its role in enabling advanced features like geolocation.

Links:

• SQLite Raw

The conversation covers various topics related to MSBuild and project files. It starts with an introduction and a discussion about the weather. The hosts then delve into the history and evolution of MSBuild, including the transition to SDK style projects. They explain the structure of new project files and highlight the benefits of using CS Proj for managing NuGet packages and CI. The conversation also covers customizing project files for platform-specific assets and the use of conditions in project files. The hosts discuss the importance of workloads and the rationale behind different SDKs. They also touch on the future of workloads and the challenges associated with them. This conversation explores various aspects of MSBuild, including workloads, importing MSBuild from NuGet packages, building custom entitlements, adding items to build from NuGet packages, customizing build props and targets, writing custom MSBuild tasks, using custom tasks and source generators, incremental source generation, and Michaela's MSBuild Editor Extension. The hosts emphasize the importance of understanding MSBuild and encourage listeners to explore and experiment with CSProj files to optimize their build processes.

Links:

• MSBuild Editor for Visual Studio