Customer Reviews

Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition For Dummies (For Dummies (Computers))

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First, let me say that this book is well written; the writing is clear, the the organization is good and it moves at a comfortable pace. All of which makes it a good primer on developing simple web sites with VWD 2005 Express.

My reservations about this book are related to its usefulness. Simpson states that the purpose of the book is to present "all you need to know (just to get in the game)" and I think the book falls somewhat short of that goal. It does provide a good breadth of coverage but the depth of coverage is not enough to let a reader move from this book to actually creating web sites.

That said, I would recommend the book to "newbies" (to use Simpson's term) who are looking for a gentle introduction to web development before taking on the more ambitious books on the subject (or trying to make sense of VWD's help files). And personally, as an experienced developer in other environments, I found it an enjoyable way of getting a head start on the tools before working through the more advanced books on the subject.

To many people this book will be very helpful because it fills a very useful purpose in a particular niche market.

One of the much trumpeted advantages of ASP.NET 2.0 is that the amount of code required to produce useful, usable basic applications has been dramatically reduced. Combining that with the whole mountain of new and easy-to-use features via the Visual Web developer 2005 Express Edition (VWD for short), it becomes possible to create starter applications with almost no code of your own.

This book is based on that ability. It homes in on those built-in features that enable complete novices to create basic websites. It covers all the basics, including Master Pages, CSS Styles, Themes, Navigation, validation, some of the ASP.NET controls, and a short SQL Server crash course.

Two CDs are bundled with the book. The first contains a copy of VWD itself and the second CD contains a range of video tutorials from the LearnVisualStudioNet site plus some useful links to videos from Wintellect and various other online resources.

This book is aimed at readers with no previous experience of creating web pages or developing web sites.

Its advantage is that it sticks firmly to the "low road" in that the author hasn't felt the need to (in his own words) " ... wander off into irrelevant product comparisons or advanced topics ..."

If you are a beginner in this field and want to get a feel for the basics of creating web pages and websites before delving into the more complex areas of .NET coding then this relatively small, relatively inexpensive book should meet that need perfectly.

Of course, it is unlikely to be your only web development book if you plan to move beyond the very basic projects, but what it does cover it covers very comprehensively and very clearly. Again, the author is totally clear in what he sets out to do. He says: "Another key ingredient of this book is its coverage of things that most other resources assume you already know. In fact it's Okay if you don't already know

them. Everybody has to start somewhere and website development is tricky enough without having to fight a feeling of being left out. You won't get 'Sorry, you didn't learn our secret language umpteen years ago when we did so you can't play."' Here, just about everyone gets to play."

My verdict: For its target audience it succeeds admirably in its aim to help beginners build dynamic data-driven web sites.

In my view this is an excelent book for those who are absolute beginners such as myself. This book shows you the way on how to navigate the application once you understand how it all works you be amazed how powerfull this application is in the design of data driven websites.

This was by no means a comprehensive book ( and not intended to be), but I thought the book got right to the topic in covering essential features needed to get going in building a webite with VWD. It is well written and easy to understand and I recommend it highly.

God Bless,

Mark A. Sam

Weather you are a beginner or experienced developer, this book is an excellent resource. It even included a training CD along with the Program CD. Great resource. I use this application for my webpage timewiremedia.com

This book is very good in content. I enjoy reading it. Perfect for Beginners.

good book. very well explained, with step-to-step samples.
easy starting kit for perfect novice.

Being a newbie to Visual Web Developer 2005 Express seemed a little daunting at first and I quickley realised I was going to need a little guiding hand.
Finding Visual Web Developer 2005 Express for Dummies on Amazon and purchasing this book were the two single important steps I could have taken for self-help.
This book sets out how to do, plan, develop and implement the various technologies used to develop and deploy data driven web sites. This book's language is plain and concise allowing the reader to quickly begin planing and developing their web site with the least fuss.
Easy to follow and read, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is considering developing a web site using VWD 2005 Express.