Looking through the Prism at WPF

The Microsoft Patterns and Practices team has been busy with a new initiative named Prism that aims to make it easier for developers that want to create enterprise-grade applications using Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF).

 The P&P team at Microsoft creates some of the most advanced toolkits for developing real-world software with Microsoft technology.  They spend a considerable amount of time devising "best-practice" solutions for the problem space they are working on.  Past efforts like the Microsoft Smart Client Software Factory (SCSF) are testament to this thinking.

As with much of the product from the P&P team, a healthy amount of material is in the form of "guidance" which are suggested ways to solve problems using the core technology (in this case, WPF).  Although there are software bits that accompany the releases (usually, copious bits), real value can be found in this additional material if you stop and read.

Often, when new technology arrives, it's exciting to be among the first to try it out, build some applications and live life in the fast lane.  However, once you move out beyond the HelloWorld applications and into real development solving real problems, it's common to begin searching for the "best" way to do things.  Having guidance from some of Microsoft's top developers makes it easier to be sure of the right approach.

 Prism is in very early stages of design and there is an active discussion group on CodePlex.  If you are working with WPF in an enterprise situation, go to the site and add your voice!