Quickstart: Creating a default tile using the Microsoft Visual Studio manifest editor (Windows Store apps)

[This topic is featured in Develop great apps for Windows 8.]

This Quickstart walks you through the steps to create a default tile—the tile displayed in the Start screen until the tile begins to receive notifications—by using the Microsoft Visual Studio Manifest Editor.

Objective: To create a new project in Visual Studio using an installed template, and then define a default tile and its image in the package manifest.

Prerequisites

• Microsoft Visual Studio Express 2012 for Windows 8
• An image file, 150 x 150 pixels, to display on the tile.
• A small version of that image file, 30 x 30 pixels. This image is not used on the tile itself, but in search results, the All Programs list, and other places in the UI.
• Optional: A wide version of that image file, 310 x 150 pixels. For more information on when and when not to include a wide image, see Guidelines and checklist for tiles.

Instructions

1. Create a new project.

1. Open Visual Studio Express 2012 for Windows 8.
2. Click New Project...
3. Click Installed in the left panel, if it is not already expanded.
4. Choose the project language.
5. Choose Windows Store.
6. From the center pane in the New Project window, choose Blank Application.
7. Give your project a name at the bottom of the window.
8. Click OK.

2. Open the Manifest Editor

1. If the Solution Explorer is not shown, choose it from the View menu.
2. Double-click package.appxmanifest. This opens the Manifest Editor window.

3. Supply the tile details

1. Select the Application UI pane of the Manifest Editor if it is not already open.
2. Replace the default images with paths to your own logo images.
3. Choose whether to show the app's short name on the tile. This name should be 13 characters or less. If the name is too long, it will be truncated. You can elect to show the logo, the name, or neither.
4. Choose whether the name's text should use a light or dark font, based on the background color.
5. Either accept the default background color or provide your own as a W3DC color string (for example, "#FFFFFF"). This background color is used to colorize other aspects of your app: the button color in any app-owned dialog boxes and the App Description page in the Windows Store.

Summary and next steps

In this Quickstart, you created the definition of a default tile in a package manifest.

After the app is installed, you can begin updating the tile with information that is relevant to the user. To learn about designing and sending a tile notification, see Quickstart: Sending a tile update.

Build date: 11/29/2012