Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in VB 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) [Paperback]

Matthew MacDonald (Author), Mario Szpuszta (Author), Vidya Vrat Agarwal (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1430216301 | ISBN-13: 978-1430216308 | Publication Date: December 25, 2008 | Edition: 1

ASP.NET 3.5 is the latest version of Microsoft’s revolutionary ASP.NET technology. It is the principal standard for creating dynamic web pages on the Windows platform. Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in VB 2008 raises the bar for high–quality, practical advice on learning and deploying Microsoft’s dynamic web solution.

Written especially for the VB.NET developer using VB 2008, seasoned .NET professionals Matthew MacDonald, Mario Szpuszta and Vidya Agarwal explain how you can get the most from this groundbreaking new technology. They cover ASP.NET 3.5 as a whole, illustrating both the brand–new features and the functionality carried over from previous versions of ASP. This book will give you the knowledge you need to code real ASP.NET 3.5 applications in the best possible style.

The book will teach you ASP.NET 3.5 starting with core concepts to more advanced topics. You will learn:

Core concepts of ASP.NET 3.5. Why it’s special. What its fundamental principals are. The basics of Visual Studio. How ASP.NET 3.5 controls are created, and how they fit into ASP.NET 3.5 pages, ultimately creating full applications.

Data access details. The intricacies of ADO.NET and how to perform data binding to many sources from databases to file streams to XML. We include LINQ coverage so you’re on the bleeding edge, and the ADO.NET Entity Framework.

Silverlight 2.0 ASP.NET controls – to take your presentation to new levels with the incredibly powerful new version of Silverlight 2.0.

Security. Once considered the Achilles heel of all Windows web applications, security has vastly improved and is a cornerstone of ASP.NET 3.5. This section explains the various forms of available security, and how to best apply them.

Taking things further using advanced user interface techniques. This includes user controls, customer server controls, client–side JavaScript, GDI+ and the impact of Silverlight 2.0.

Web services. In an increasingly connected world, working with web services grows in importance. This book will show you how to work with them.

ASP.NET AJAX, with an emphasis on contemporary web development techniques.

ASP.NET MVC, ASP.NET Extension package, and much more...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Matthew MacDonald is an author, educator, and MCSD developer who has a passion for emerging technologies. He is a regular writer for developer journals such as Inside Visual Basic, ASPToday, and Hardcore Visual Studio .NET, and he's the author of several books about programming with .NET, including User Interfaces in VB .NET: Windows Forms and Custom Controls, The Book of VB .NET, and .NET Distributed Applications. In a dimly remembered past life, he studied English literature and theoretical physics. Send e-mail to him with praise, condemnation, and everything in between, to [e-mail].

Mario Szpuszta is working in the Developer and Platform Group of Microsoft Austria. Before he started working for Microsoft, Mario was involved in several projects based on COM+ and DCOM with Visual Basic and Visual C++ as well as projects based on Java and J2SE. With Beta 2 of the .NET Framework, he started developing Web applications with ASP.NET. Right now, as developer evangelist for Microsoft Austria, he is doing workshops, trainings, and proof-of-concept projects together with independent software vendors in Austria based on .NET, Web Services, and Office 2003 technologies.

Vidya Vrat Agarwal, a Microsoft .NET Purist and an MCT, MCPD, MCTS, MCSD.NET, MCAD.NET, and MCSD, works with Lionbridge Technologies (NASDAQ: LIOX), and his business card reads Subject Matter Expert (SME). He is also a lifetime member of the Computer Society of India (CSI). He started working on Microsoft .NET with its beta release. He has been involved in software development, evangelism, consultation, corporate training, and T3 programs on Microsoft .NET for various employers and corporate clients. His articles can be read at http://www.ProgrammersHeaven.com, and he also reviews .NET Preparation Kits, available at http://www.UCertify.com. He has contributed as technical reviewer to many books published by Apress.

Product Details

• Paperback: 1680 pages
• Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (December 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1430216301
• ISBN-13: 978-1430216308
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #830,556 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent book, September 28, 2009

By 

Steve F. - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in VB 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

Very thorough book, and at 1600+ pages, it ought to be. That being said, there are some weaknesses. I have read parts of the book, and then later when trying to retrieve same information, could not find it in the index. This was frustrating having to re-read entire chapters until I found what I was looking for.

Also, there is no background information on OO techniques. While technically not the purpose of the book, it would be nice to know how pages can be inherited from one another and how that technique differs from, say, using Master Pages.

Another thing the book did NOT have that I was hoping it would is detailed information on how to programmatically add controls to an ASP.Net web page. Nothing in the book at all.

Last but not least, the book claims to explain ASP.Net in VB 2008 yet some of the examples are clearly C# syntax. This is a typo for sure, but frankly an unacceptable one in my opinion. If I wanted a C# book, I would have purchased one.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book - Covers Everythin about ASP.NET From a Professional point of view, May 8, 2009

By 

JORGE_C (CALIFORNIA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in VB 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

Excellent Book, includes hundreds of detailed examples that cover everything from ASP.NET From basic concepts to Client Side Programming, From Chapter 7 to 14 it explains different types of data access techniques including Linq, ADO.NET, SQL Server Classes, Datasets, and XML.
On Part 3 you Will learn how to build ASP.NET Websites using Custom user Controls, Themes and Master Pages, and also how to define and bid Site maps. In this section you will also learn all about CSS and how it works in conjunction with HTML or XHTML.
Another interesting Section is the Security Section, It explains how to authentificate forms and create memberships to control access for specific users.
The Last Section talks about client-side Programming including JavaScript, Ajax and the most interesting one, Silverlight (the Flash Killer).

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reference with good samples, April 9, 2009

By 

James Stark (Tampa, FL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in VB 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) (Paperback)

This book is packed full of good information. Lots of good samples including implementing real-world solutions. Nice chapter on custom server controls.