Murach's ASP.NET Web Programming with VB.NET [Paperback]

Doug Lowe (Author), Anne Prince (Author)

Book Description

Series: Murach: Training & Reference | Publication Date: November 2003

There is no faster or better way to learn ASP.NET web programming using Microsoft's Visual Studio .NET than to use this book. To get you off to a fast start, the first 5 chapters show you how to use Microsoft Visual Studio to design, code, and test multi-page web applications that use view state, session state, cookies, database data, and code-behind files. From there, you learn even faster as you master the core professional skills like HTML, server controls, validation controls, state management, and user controls. Then, you learn how to use the best ADO.NET features for working with a database in a web application including: connection pooling, data commands, parameterised queries, caching, data views, command builders, and the Repeater, DataList, and DataGrid controls. Last, you learn how to apply the finishing touches to a web application: security, web services, custom server controls, reports generated by Crystal Reports, email, and deployment.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

As the publisher, I’d like you to know why I think you’ll learn how to develop web applications with Microsoft ASP.NET faster and better from this book than any other on the subject:

Unlike many of the competing ASP.NET books, this one shows you how to get the most from Microsoft Visual Studio as you develop your applications. We’ve found that this Integrated Development Environment is one of the keys to development productivity, but many books ignore or neglect it.

To show you how all of the pieces of a web application interact, this book presents 23 complete applications ranging from the simple to the complex. This includes the forms, the code, and whatever else is needed to give you the complete picture of how the applications work. As we see it, the only way to master web programming is to see and study applications like these. And yet, you won’t find them in most other books.

All of the applications in this book use the code-behind programming technique to separate the application’s logic (Visual Basic) from its presentation details (HTML). Although this is one of the most important ASP.NET programming techniques, most ASP books treat it as an afterthought.

If you page through this book, you’ll see that all of the information is presented in "paired pages," with the essential syntax, guidelines, and examples on the right page and the perspective and extra explanation on the left page. This helps you learn faster by reading less...and this is the best reference format for refreshing your memory.

About the Author

Anne Prince is an outstanding programmer, editor, and writer who played a key role in the development of our COBOL, CICS, and DB2 books. During the last four years, however, she has specialized in Visual Basic and .NET programming. She has authored or co-authored our books on VB6, VB.NET, ADO.NET, and this ASP.NET book.

Doug Lowe wrote our best-selling CICS, JCL, and TSO books back in the 80s and early 90s. He then freelanced for a decade. Now, he has rejoined us as a .NET expert and the co-author of our ADO.NET book and "Murach’s ASP.NET web programming with VB.NET."

Product Details

• Paperback: 718 pages
• Publisher: Mike Murach & Associates (November 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890774200
• ISBN-13: 978-1890774202
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #215,309 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for teaching ASP.NET, October 1, 2004

By 

B. Dust (Virginia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Murach's ASP.NET Web Programming with VB.NET (Paperback)

As a teacher of ASP.NET, I have tried several textbooks. I always like a textbook that supplements my teaching rather than dictates it. Murach's ASP.NET does just that and is an excellent book for teaching web programming because of its format.

The left-hand page explains a particular concept while the right-hand page illustrates the concept with code snippets that are easy to understand. My students get frustrated trying to sift through long sample programs to find the few lines of code that illustrate a given point. With Murach's code snippets, the code is easy to understand.

The authors also use code-behind instead of embedding code via the ASP.OLD style. Not many books do that, thus giving this book a rich, more modern approach to the way ASP.NET programming should be done.

The more I read this book, the better it gets.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommend, May 20, 2005

By 

Terry Koffman (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murach's ASP.NET Web Programming with VB.NET (Paperback)

I recently got hold of a copy of this book (full title: "Murach's ASP.Net Web Programming with VB.Net") and it is terrific. In particular, it includes the best walkthrough and problem solver of using IIS I've yet seen - and I know from the Forums that this very early step causes a lot of people a heap of problems. (Me included at one time! )

The book uses a technique of having the main narrative on the left hand page, backed up by important summaries and/or diagrams on the right hand page. This can be quite useful for reinforcing those particularly tricky areas and is handy for flipping back to when you need to recheck something. Overall, I think it works great.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SUPERB, December 18, 2004

By 

Edwin Bossier "Edwin" (Belgium, Europe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murach's ASP.NET Web Programming with VB.NET (Paperback)

Simply said: One of the best books I have ever bought!

I needed to dive into ASP.NET pretty fast because I had a project running to its deadline. I was a programmer who knew Visual Basic and Delphi pretty well. I did know the theory of ASP.NET but had no practical experience. This book teached me in a record time how to build and get my first web application up and running.

The best starter's book you can imagine. The second book I bought on the subject was ASP.NET Unleashed, which is a marvellous book if you have some ASP.NET experience.

For a beginner Murach's book is simply a dream, and although I have written a couple of web applications now, I still use it as a quick reference. WORTH EVERY PENNY IN GOLD.