Patent ID: 7721254

Claim:
A programming interface embodied on one or more computer readable storage media having computer-executable instructions for performing steps comprising: generating graphical objects using a first group of services, wherein the first group of services includes a service that customizes a behavior of the graphical objects to style and/or theme the graphical objects, the service including interfaces for controlling a behavior of a menu item, for controlling a visibility behavior of a scroll bar, and for controlling selection behavior of a listbox; formatting content using a second group of services, wherein the second group of services arranges the graphical objects; creating components of the graphical objects using a third group of services; binding elements to data sources, data source classes, and data specific implementations of data collections using a fourth group of services, wherein the fourth group of services further handle exceptions in data entry; providing a plurality of media classes using a fifth group of services, the media classes enabling image effects to be applied to portions of images and coordinating a set of animations with a set of timelines; providing classes using a sixth group of services that enable editing of forms and text, formatting data, and cross-process data sharing; instantiating an input manager using a seventh group of services, the input manager coordinating inputs received by the system; providing a set of classes and services using an eighth group of services that allow building of applications with navigation paradigms; providing a set of classes using a ninth group of services that support accessibility and user interface automation; providing a parser using a tenth group of services that can load or save a hierarchy of objects from or to an extensible markup language (XML) or binary file and set properties associated with objects and event handlers; providing a set of classes using an eleventh group of services that enable interoperability with other operating systems or computer platforms; providing an element using a twelfth group of services that allows an application to host a form control operation; using a common markup language to map classes and properties specified in the markup language to an instantiated tree of objects across the groups of services; and integrating the groups of services using a consistent programming model and consistent services across the service groups.