Active Server Pages 3.0: Your visual blueprint for developing interactive Web sites [Paperback]

Ruth Maran (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0764534726 | ISBN-13: 978-0764534720 | Publication Date: July 1, 2000

Welcome to the only guidebook series that takes a visual approach to professional-level computer topics. Inside you'll discover step-by-step screen shots that demonstrate over 100 key Active Server Pages tasks, including:

• Processing data from a form
• Creating a cookie
• Using query strings
• Encoding a URL
• Creating a custom component
• Locking application variables
• Using a Windows script component
• Connecting to a database
• Creating a custom error message
• Using the File Access component

The companion CD-ROM includes:

• Shareware versions of WEB-ED Page and Scripting Editor and ASP Express
• Evaluation versions of Edit 2000 and Visual InterDev 6
• Plus, all sample code and an e-version of the book.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Plenty of books have been published on ASP, but many lack the technical depth to teach you how to build a complete ASP-driven site. Look no further, because Active Server Pages 3.0: Your Visual Blueprint for Developing Interactive Web Sites delivers a visual, step-by-step approach to building dynamic Web applications by using ASP.

This book is a sort of toolbox, and sports a simple format that guides the reader through straightforward examples. Instructions and demonstrations are given for over 100 core tasks, each of which is broken down into two-page lessons, with accompanying screen shots that illustrate them visually. Along the way, you'll learn how to work with cookies, query strings, database connections, and custom error messages.

The Apply It section takes you one step further than the core lesson by illustrating fine touches, such as delivering user-friendly error messages. The Extra section gives examples of important shortcuts, tips, and tricks, such as how to abort the execution of a For...Next loop. Both of these elements include ready-to-run code. A Reference section includes more commonly used VBScript and ASP statements for easy access.

As a bonus, the companion CD-ROM includes all of the sample code from each of the two-page lessons, shareware versions of additional programs that you can use (like ASP Express), and an e-version of the book. This is an indispensable and valuable guide for novice ASP programmers. --Stephen W. Plain

Topics covered:

• Personal Web Server (PWS)
• VBScript
• Variables
• Statement syntax
• Control structures
• Functions and subroutines
• Cookies
• URL encoding
• Web applications
• Database connectivity
• Components
• Error handling

From the Publisher

visual blueprint offers you:

"Apply It" and "Extra" provide ready-to-run code and useful tips

Succinct explanations walk you through step-by-step

High-resolution screen shots demonstrating each task

Two-page lessons breaking topics into bite-sized modules

CD-ROM includes:

all sample code
Shareware versions of WEB-ED Page and Scripting Editor and ASP Express
Evaluation versions of Edit 2000 and Visual InterDev 6
PLUS an e-version of the book!

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 350 pages
• Publisher: Visual (July 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764534726
• ISBN-13: 978-0764534720
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,062,289 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for the Basics, October 10, 2000

By 

Adam Pasztory "adampasz" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Active Server Pages 3.0: Your visual blueprint for developing interactive Web sites (Paperback)

The great advantage to this book is that it's concise. I am a web professional, and I was looking for a book that would help me get up to speed quickly with ASPs. By following the examples, I was able to complete basic tasks, including retrieving data from forms, reading files, and accessing databases. It is clearly organized, and it was easy for me to skip around to the topics that interested me.

The main drawback of this book for me is that I will probably need another book to help me with more advanced topics. Also, it tends to rely on the examples to teach the reader so if you're looking for a more general explanation of ASP objects and architecture, look elsewhere. Finally, the first 100 pages were a waste for me because I was already familiar with Visual Basic and HTML. The book could also use a larger reference section. Still, I give the book 4 stars because for the target audience of beginning ASP designers I think it's an affordable, effective solution.

In short, I would recommend this to a beginner who wants to learn the basics of ASPs quickly, and doesn't want to do much reading.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction, October 27, 2000

By 

"payson64" (Manchester, NH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Active Server Pages 3.0: Your visual blueprint for developing interactive Web sites (Paperback)

I recommend this book if you are new to ASP and web development. It is a great overview of ASP and its related topics. Each concept is illustrated with short example code, along with extra info about the concept. I found it very clearly written and easy to understand. This is a lot like a "dummys" book. This book assumes very little prior knowledge of programming or even things like HTML forms. It's a great introduction and reference for beginners.

What this book won't give you is very much context. It will give you a lot of tools, but not tell you how to put them together into a real project. You will probably want to use this book as a supplement to a more in-depth book like Beginning Active Server Pages 3.0 by Wrox Publishers. These two books actually complement each other. Where the Wrox book gives tons of information, this book gives the main points with no extra fluff.

I am new to web development, and I am not a very experienced programmer. I learned a lot from this book. It even includes how to set up your Windows 2000 web server and how to make an ActiveX component in Visual Basic. I found a lot of helpful tips (for example, did you know that pressing Ctrl while clicking the refresh button in IE will cause a 100% refresh?) A handy brief VBscript reference is also included.

If you are an experienced programmer or web developer, you will want more than this book gives you.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Really not a good book., November 26, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Active Server Pages 3.0: Your visual blueprint for developing interactive Web sites (Paperback)

This book is very flawed. It is more likely to confuse a beginner than enlighten them.

The first major flaw: No real 'big picture' of the topic is offered. The book consists of small superficial sections, one devoted to each element of ASP. The problem is that each element is not satisfactorally placed in a context.

But worst of all is the books 'visual' approach, supposedly helpful. Why on earth would a reader need to be told to press tab to indent a piece of text, each and every time it is required? This overkill of step by step visual explanation becomes absurd.

Check it out before you buy it.