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28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must have for the experience ASP.NET developer, December 7, 2001
If I were to analogize this book, it would be something in the vein of "Dan Wahlin's `Ferrari'". This assessment implies that the author has crafted a fast, powerful, much sought-after reference to those of us who appreciate the finer things in life (at least in terms of Web development). This was actually the fourth book I read about .NET, having picked it up just shortly after its release in September of 2001. It's a great piece of work, and a must have for the experienced developer looking to take his or her game to the next level. I've found the book to be extremely well written, both grammatically as well as syntactically in the code examples provided.I'm President of an ASP.NET User Group, and this title is on my "Must Buy" list for books to get. The book is admittedly smaller than most .NET texts at a "mere" 496 total pages, but don't let the size fool you - it's chock full of helpful stuff. And it's not for the faint of heart - it's hardcore. Dan whets the appetite of the seasoned developer by providing a general discussion about (1) what's possible with XML, (2) how the .NET Framework fits into the picture, and (3) how to do it. This isn't some tutorial for the beginning programmer looking to tackle .NET development and XML at the same time, nor is it for those just looking to find some cool code to instantly plug into their Web projects - the book is best used as a starting block for the experienced developer looking to build robust e-business systems. Hence the title, it's geared specifically for developers looking to expand their skill set or upscale their existing apps to a more manageable and portable form. This is a true book written for developers, by a developer. Plain and simple. While the first few chapters of the book give an excellent primer to XML, validation through DTDs/XDR schema, XPath, XPointer and XLink, XSL/XSLT, XHTML, SAX integration, and navigating and programming the DOM, Dan kicks into high gear full speed and blazes into full on apps development. His explanation of the relationship between XPath and XPointer is in my opinion of the better explanations, from any XML text. He also spends much time with managing XML data into and out of databases in his chapters on ADO.NET's XML capabilities and incorporating SQL Server 2000. More than 1.5 years in the making, the various examples are current with the .NET Framework Beta 2, so barring any major dramatic syntactical changes in the final release of .NET (which at this point is highly unlikely), the book will be relevant for some time, not to be run obsolete in 6 months. However, a slight concern of mine is the use of C# throughout the book, making it rather alienated in terms of audience. The examples may prove a bit more challenging for the developer choosing to code exclusively in Visual Basic.NET. To truly maximize effectiveness of this book, the reader should possess:
Ø An intermediate-level familiarity with programming within the .NET Framework (Beta 2)
Ø Experience in programming with C# (and/or a background in Java, and/or a background in C++)
Ø Some experience in XML, XSL, and schema Speaking as someone who is constantly try to evangelize the use of XML to the masses in my own right, Dan preaches a very convincing sermon. When you're ready for the next evolution in your .NET career...make sure to check it out. WHAT I LIKE IN PARTICULAR:
Ø The proofreading is excellent - I've gone through it three times, and I found it to be nearly flawless in terms of editorial snafus.
Ø Dan demonstrates some very advanced, very practical, very cool examples. He proposes the development of numerous apps that will truly harness the power of XML and .NET.
Ø In addition to the source code from the Sams Web site, Dan's companion site, http://www.xmlforasp.net/ is one of the best examples out there for being a living extension to his text by way of providing practical demonstrations. Dan also considerately included the files as a Visual Studio.NET project, so that examples appeal to both those who would prefer the IDE/WYSIWYG approach, as well as the hardcore Notepad coders. However with all code examples being written in C#, having each listing available in VB.NET (if not within the text itself) would have been icing on the cake.
Ø Basic .NET error trapping and handling are presented throughout the examples, with liberal uses of the TRY...CATCH...FINALLY construct are used. This indirectly teaches a more refined, disciplined way to write .NET code.
Ø A near complete list or properties, methods, and attributes is well represented...which is hard to find in many .NET texts...largely only including those features that authors chose to use in their own examples. The explanations of the use of the various namespaces associated with the .NET Framework is also very well explained and documented.
Ø Dan has written some of the coolest, most practical Web services I've seen yet, exhibiting what's truly possible and on the new frontier for programming with the .NET Framework.
Ø Dan is also very active in several online ASP and ASP.NET forums and in real life training, and is quick to help with questions about his book, or with XML integration. He makes himself very accessible to questions or comments about the integration of XML. This again is a very welcome value-added extension to the book.
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