In a new post at the Windows 8 app developer blog, Microsoft shows developers how to create the perfect live tile for their application. As Microsoft states, a live tile is one of the best ways to entice a user to come back to the app.
Since the live tile is the most frequently seen part of an app, it must be created perfectly. There are four steps in creating the perfect live tile. First, the developer must design for tile updates. Second, the appropriate template to match the tile content must be picked. Third, the developer must utilize polling notifications from the cloud to update the tile while the app is not running. And finally, the tile must be updates while the app is running by utilizing the NotificationsExtensions library, which is found in the Windows 8 SDK App tiles and badges sample. This will create the look for the live tile. Live tiles are also designed to use less resources and consume very little battery power to provide real time notifications while being efficient. Microsoft plans on posting more about live tiles soon, especially how to update them. Visit the source for an in-depth look at creating the perfect live tile.
