Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

"This book is by far the best computer programming book I have ever bought. You can go into my upstairs closet and find 20-30 books that I have purchased since the days of VB6. All of them have a few useful pages in them, but all together, they could not add up to as much information as you have given me in the first 11 chapters of this book."(A developer’s comment on this book in an email sent to Murach Books)

If you know how to code Windows forms using Visual Basic and want to move to the next level of professional development by mastering web programming, don’t miss out on the practical ASP.NET training that’s packed into this book.

As its title implies, it teaches all the features that are new in ASP.NET 2.0, including master pages, database access using both SQL and object data sources, the new code-behind model, site navigation features, authentication using the Web Site Administration tool and login controls, profiles, themes, and web parts. And of course, it teaches all the ASP.NET features that are unchanged in this release and that you’re going to use every day.

But a lot of ASP.NET 2.0 books say they do that. So here are just a few of the reasons why professional developers like this book so much:

#1: It gives you a 5-chapter section on database programming
Database handling is crucial in business programming, yet it’s glossed over in just a chapter or two in many books. In contrast, this 5-chapter section teaches you how to use SQL data sources and the GridView, DetailsView, and FormView controls…all new in ASP.NET 2.0…to develop database applications with little or no VB code. Then, it teaches how to use object data sources, also new in ASP.NET 2.0, to create 3-layer applications that let you separate the presentation code from the data access code in an application.

#2: It teaches you ASP.NET 2.0 development the way it should be done, using Visual Studio 2005
Today, no developer should miss out on the productivity features of Visual Studio 2005 by using limited tools like text editors. So section 1 in this book teaches you how to use Visual Studio 2005 to design, code, and test multi-page web applications that get database data and manage session state. Then, later chapters cover time-saving VS tools like the Query Builder and the Web Site Administration Tool.

#3: Complete applications show you how all the pieces interact
The key to mastering ASP.NET 2.0 is to have plenty of real-world applications that guide you in using the new features you’re learning…and that help you avoid the problems that you can run into as you build complex web sites. That’s why this book gives you complete applications, including the web forms, the aspx code, and the VB code.

#4: The distinctive "paired-pages" format* makes learning…and reference…a breeze
A few years ago, a customer used the term "paired pages" to describe our presentation style, and the name has stuck. It means that this book presents each topic in a two-page spread. The right page gives screen shots, code, syntax, bulleted details—whatever is needed to illustrate and summarize the topic; the left page provides extra explanation and perspective as needed. That makes it easy for developers at any level to skim through material they already know and focus on what’s new to them. It means less reading for everyone. And it makes the book a quick and easy-to-use reference guide once you’re done training.

(*To see how paired pages work, you can download free chapters from the Murach web site.)

So if you need to learn ASP.NET 2.0, we hope you'll try this book first. We're convinced that it will deliver the training you need better and faster than any competing book.

Average Customer Rating:

Not for beginners

Customer Rating:

I don't where the other reviews about this book being good for beginners is coming from. I have solid programming experience in C and Visual Basic 6 and two semesters of Java. I have also 10 years experience with regular HTML. I have even worked through all the exercises in Build Your Own ASP.NET 2.0 Web Site Using C# & VB by Cristian Darie and Zak Ruvalcaba. Thank goodness I had that going for me, because I would have been lost otherwise in chapters 2 and 3. The example in Chapter 2 should have been about the Order.aspx page which is used in the remaining chapters of the book. Instead the authors go off on a tangent using as an example a different webpage which isn't ever used again later on in the book. The first 2 or 3 chapters are critical, and I strongly believe that the authors need to SHOW how to go about creating the Design views of Orders.aspx and Cart.aspx pages that they discuss extensively in Chapter 3. They basically just throw the screen captures up thinking that the discussion in Chapter 2 would be useful and helpful. Not! They also put up the code for both Product.vb and CartItem.vb without specifically telling the reader which should go where. A no-no for beginners. I also agree with a previous review which said that the dual-page approach is a great waste of paper because much of the text was redundant. I am not saying it's a bad book, but it is not as good as it could be. It is for people who have some programming and HTML experience.

Good Reference Book

Customer Rating:

I thought it was a good reference book - not one you could read cover to cover. It seemed to jump around a bit more than I liked. It covered most of the need-to-know topics. I tend to work in the source code window more than the design window, and this book tends to do the latter. It's not a bad thing, it's just different. All in all, it's a good book, but some of the topics/concepts seem forced into the application you are creating throughout the book.

The best text on .NET 2.0 development using VB I've found ...

Customer Rating:

I've spent hours and hours on Amazon, on messageboards, sitting on the floor at Borders reading thru every ASP.NET book available, and it seemed none came close to this book for real-world, comprehensive teaching and practice. I have not been dissapointed, as I am almost finished and the book has helped me get up to speed after a long layoff (I last programmed Classic ASP years ago). Each example builds on the previous one to build a completed application. Awesome.

Just what I was looking for...	Customer Rating:
It seems to be just what I was looking for in a training and reference book.

Wonderful Book!	Customer Rating:
When I received the book I had a hard time putting it down. It hit the nail right on the head, as to what I was looking for. Detailed information is great, and can be used as a reference also. You don't have to waste time sifting through page after page trying to find what you need. One page has the details and the other is reference!