Sams Teach Yourself Asp.Net in 21 Days

In a three-week lesson plan (actually this book has 23 lessons, plus three extra "bonus" weekly sample programs), this text walks the reader through the essential APIs and programming techniques needed to use ASP.NET effectively. For those with some previous ASP experience, this book shows what's different (and better) in ASP.NET. (In fact, every chapter has a section marked "But That's Not ASP!" where the author points out gotchas and tips for navigating the richness and complexity of the new ASP.NET.)

After covering basic Web Forms and controls, the author looks at database support and ADO.NET, then XML, in subsequent sections. He uses an online banking application, which is enhanced after each full week, to show off techniques from each group of lessons. (His final, fanciful "BananaMobile" online application, however, might be a bit off the mark for some business readers.) Along the way, there's good coverage here of Web services and the basics of configuring and deploying ASP.NET applications on live servers. A late section on mobile controls glances at Mobile Web controls.

Like other titles in the Teach Yourself series, every lesson presents the reader with a handful of questions (usually about a half dozen), with thorough answers provided in a reference appendix. In all, this title will make ASP.NET accessible for just about anyone, with or without exposure to the older ASP standard. Clearly written and well organized, the author covers a lot of material but doesn't get bogged down with the somewhat daunting details of .NET. --Richard Dragan