It's all about reuse. The author's view is that, if duplication is eliminated (when building ASP pages), then good design is achieved. Hence the title of the book is justified. Nobody will find all the material new to them but there is certainly something in it for everyone.

The main approaches presented are server side includes, VBScript classes and using COM components. The concepts are revisited throughout the book, making it virtually impossible to miss the point. Included are examples of using Microsoft's components in addition to 3rd party components for common tasks, e.g. file handling, encryption, browser info etc.

What I personally enjoyed was that there is a lot of good VBScript code (loads of examples) to support the theory and there are numerous URL links for each topic touched upon; so the reader is never really left wanting more and not knowing where to go. If I have one gripe with the author, it is her confusion of terminology when it comes to describing COM classes, COM objects and COM components. Getting an understanding of these elsewhere and then revisiting this book is recommended.

Overall, well-written & well-presented work from one of the founders of 4guysFromRolla.com

As a web developer, I've been using ASP for a couple years and would consider myself and intermediate ASP programmer. I've built up a collection of books on the topic, mostly referring to WROX books for their reference quality.

ASP isn't my primary function at my job, so I don't get to work daily on developing and using my skills. I've recently been looking to improve my ability in this area, and inject some new ideas into the way I accomplish things in code. This book was the perfect answer!

If you're new to ASP or programming, you'll appreciate the emphasis on structure and conventions. If you're experienced with ASP, you'll appreciate the ideas presented here. I especially like the work on code reusability.

This is definitely one of the best ASP books I've seen in a long time.

I purchased several books that appeared to explain ASP methodologies. Each book had drawbacks - to general or too detailed. On the advice of a co-worker, I purchased Designing Active Server Pages.

Since I came from a Cold Fusion background (tag-oriented middleware), I was facing cultural shock. In VBScript, you can do a lot of things, each in a half-dozen ways. Luckily, Scott explains most of them. Given the breath of ASP applications, examples are needed. He has many of them. As it turns out, many of his examples center on form generation. We are starting a project centered around automating form generation for our users. I had started a small prototype, but scrapped it when I saw how Scott approached the problem

Scott's emphasis on reuse is particularly helpful. As I was trashing my small prototype, I saw several instances of repeated code. If I had continued that way, the code may work, but heaven help the maintenance people - that may be me.

All-in-all, I give Designing Active Server Pages five thumbs-up.

I read Sharon Mitchell's first book Nothing But The Rent and while I enjoyed most of it the ending left me hanging big time. This time around however, was much better. Sheer Necessity was a realistic story about the ups and downs of one womans family and how she in particular copes with it. Toni being a single mom dealing with a deadbeat dad is trying to raise her young daughter while trying to put herself through school and starting her own business. She then has to deal with her family and all of there problems. While she trys not to overstep her bounds she can't help but care about what they are going through and try to help. Sharon Mitchell doesn't try to portray the character as holier than thou but lets her experience real emotions that you could imagine yourself going through with similar actions. I applaud her for this major comeback. If anyone read her previous novel and is gun-shy about reading this second attempt don't be, you'll be pleasantly surprised. Keep up the good work and I look forward to your next works.

Sheer Necessity is about the ups and downs of family life and the challenges that family members face in just plain ole daily living. The story is told from Toni's viewpoint. Toni is the oldest of four children, and as the eldest she feels responsible not only for her six-year daughter, but the going ons of her siblings and parents as well. Sheer Necessity exhibited balanced relationships/situations and showed both sides of the AA family-the bad as well as the good. I especially enjoyed and welcomed a book that tackled the positive side of the AA family and what we're willing to do for the ones we love; Sheer Necessity also showed the love of a husband and wife together over 40 years and the sacrifices they made to keep their family together.

Ms. Mitchell has definitely grown as a writer and I was pleasantly surprised by the improved writing skills/style versus her first book. Sheer Necessity was well-written, (most of)the characters were well developed, the dialogue was crafty and the storyline was realistic and believable. I enjoyed the sub-plots and how they were smoothly interjected and interweaved through the fabric of the main character's story. My only disappointment was that the younger brother was not more developed; I keep wondering why was he included as I did not find him necessary to the story's plot. Overall, Sheer Necessity was a welcomed change of pace/genre, represented a Good Portrayal of A Black Family in the New Millennium and a great second novel attempt by an up & coming new author.

I really enjoyed this novel. I felt that the characters presented in this novel were true to form and could be members of anyone's family. Each daughetr found herself tackling heavy issues and in the long run, overcoming those issues and leading a better life. Although each one of the daughters had their problems with men, and with themselves for that matter, I loved the authors portrayal of the depth of the trust, love, support and respect which existed between the parents and the concentration on the family unit. Ironically though, the same love support, trust and respect which sustained the parents marriage for 30+ years, elluded their daughters. They just don't make things like they used to! My parents will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary next year (God willing). The effort and hard work necessary, on both of their parts, to sustain their relationship over the years is something pretty rare. In any event, I thought the book was good and a must read for anyone who has strong roots in family

My fiance and I went to Walt Disney World last year for the first time together (it was also the first time for him). We found the Birnbaum book to be the best, we also bought The Unofficial Guide but the Birnbaum book was the book we brought with us to Florida. The phone numbers, rates and the "Great meals and good times" sections are invaluable! We are going to Walt Disney World for our honeymoon next year and I can't wait to buy the 2001 edition!

In terms of sheer facts, this book has them all. What is missing is any sense of what attractions are best for what age kid or any tips on how to manage your times in the park. Since the guide is official, the idea is that everything is perfect. I love Disney World - and agree it's a great family vacation place - but I could have used more guidance and fewer factoids.

This book gets you very excited about your trip to Walt Disney World. It has many "hot tips" on when the less crowded times are, also you find out things the "uninformed" person would not know about WDW, like the "e-ticket" and the best times to visit your favorite rides. It can truly make your vacation the most magical experience of your life! On the down side, Birnbaum's books are the "official guide books" of WDW and they tend to have a positive outlook on everything, like the hotels and food. Our family found the food overpriced and tasted the same at practically every restaurant we ate at! It over glamourized the hotels also. But I would recommend this book for first time Disney visitors, It is very helpful.

"Near Perfect" opens with feisty Roxanne happily married to famous football player having everything she could ever want, except one thing....a baby. Everything seems near perfect until unexpected tragedies strike. In true sister-friend fashion her girls are there for support; but this time, Roxanne needs the support of her childhood friend more. Roxanne knows her friendships are strong, but are they strong enough to withstand all this and more?

"Near Perfect" is authored in true Sharon Mitchell style. It is well written and entertaining. As usual, she pulls you into her characters lives, has you experience their happiness and heartaches, desires and disappointments. This book will take you through relationships that have thrived on deception and jealousy and a world that is filled with illegal marriages, illegitimate children and ironically love.

"Near Perfect" was labeled and promoted as the "long awaited follow-up" to "Nothing But The Rent", so Sharon Mitchell fans waited anxiously to find out what happened to that sassy foursome of friends. Unfortunately for us, it didn't quite meet its claims to notoriety. For example, in the opening chapters not only did Ms. Mitchell introduce new characters (Roxanne' husband and her best friend); she started writing about them and their connection with the "familiar" characters as if we (the readers) knew there had been a preceding relationship. I actually had to re-read "Nothing But The Rent" to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything.

Fortunately for first time Sharon Mitchell readers, they will be able to read a wonderful book about friendship and love. Unfortunately for those who are adept Sharon Mitchell readers "Near Perfect" wasn't quite as perfect as it should have been.

Near Perfect the semi-sequel/follow-up to Nothing But The Rent by Sharon Mitchell grabbed me from page one. I recall that I didn't really care for Nothing But The Rent and was a little skeptical about reading a sequel so I was pleasantly surprised when I was drawn into the read so quickly. I've read all of Mitchell's book and I must say that she continues to show growth as a writer with every book as each book from her is better than the previous one.

Mitchell reunites us with Roxanne Steele who appears to have the "perfect life"-phine and loving husband, luxurious and large home, money in the bank, great job and all the material possessions she could ever want. However, she is still unfulfilled in one area of her life and that is being a mother. She's almost obsessive about having a child to round out her happy home and perfect life. Unfortunately, her idyllic life will be turned upside down by a tragic event. It's at that junction in the road that she's slapped hard in the face regarding her husband and her marriage.
Roxanne's friends and mother rush to her rescue to help her pick up the pieces and move on but it's Linc, her handsome and protective friend since childhood who helps her to move on and in a new direction. As Roxanne journeys forward, we ache, we cry and then finally we smile again and we rejoice as Roxanne discovers that life and living is near perfect at best.

Near Perfect is a wonderful relationship novel that combines fine writing with suspense and intrigue. Mitchell's tone was engaging, warm, friendly and heartwarming as she allowed the characters to bring the story to life. I must admit that she really threw me for a loop regarding Jamal's character as I was caught completely off guard. However, once I got over the initial shock that twist just added more to the compelling nature of the storyline for me. Near Perfect is an endearing story about love, friendship, family, committment, trust, betrayal and redemption and I highly recommend this novel to others.

What does a happily married wife do when her seemingly perfect world crumbles, when the stability that she shares with her spouse is snatched from her, and the dreams she's had for her life disintegrate with some of the troubles ending up as front-page news? Roxanne Steele, a sassy, loving, and vivacious woman who is married to Jamal, a wealthy and famous football player, deals with this and more in this delightful story about love, commitment, friendship, trust, betrayal, and family.

Fortunately, Roxy doesn't have to bear her troubles alone. First of all there is Lincoln, her handsome and protective best friend that she's known since childhood; Linc has also become Jamal's teammate and good friend. Then there are her female buddies, Cynthia, Monique, and Gayle. And let's not forget her mother who is dealing with her own troubles but tries to be there for her daughter.

Near Perfect, the sequel to Nothing But the Rent, is a solid and magnificent effort from writer Sharon Mitchell. It's filled with everything I love in a novel: Humor, suspense, an array of emotions, tension, romance, eroticism, believable dialogue, fully developed, vibrant and realistic characters, a unique plot with several twists, and fluid action. Each of these characteristics makes it easy for me to declare that, thus far, Near Perfect is my favorite read of 2001. It's the kind of story where you wish you did know the characters, not just the men, but the women too. These people are smart, upwardly mobile, sassy, go-getters, and they're human, prone to err, yet lovable. It's a feel good novel, one that makes you regret you've come to the story's end, but glad you were fortunate to read such a wonderful novel in the first place. It's highly recommended.

OK, while we're waiting for the real thing, the public betas are out there being played with. Being worked with. As they were free, or a nominal charge, there's a lot of programmers working with VS.NET, especially VB.NET.

This book is excellent. Well-written, full of code samples, aimed squarely at Visual Basic.

It covers the Beta 1, but there is a web update for Beta 2, so if something doesn't work (mostly in the data access), then go check the web.

Of limited use once the RTM ships, with that caveat I recommend this book to all serious VB developers. Get stuck in!

This book is particularly aimed at those Visual Basic professional programmers who are curious about the next step of the language. It's a very concize and tidy work that will help you clearly understand the new capabilities and differences with the now old VB 6. But no means, it will became a reference book for an experienced programer, nore it will help you get on the road with useful VB.NET Code, but it will save hours of confusion that come with wading through documentation. It a nice replace to the tons of magazines articles and beta documentation introducing the product.

This book was not meant to teach VB.NET. It gives a very nice overview of the new VB.NET. You have to be a very experience VB developer to rip the benefits out of this book. Chapter 5 explained OOP and how it works in VB.NET. I expect when Wrox writes VB.NET OOP or VB.NET Professional, it will delve deeper in the concepts of OOP. So far this is the only book I’ve read that explains VB.NET and how it works with the .NET Framework.

Overall, this book is for experience VB developer who is not looking for VB training but the changes and how to deal with them. Good Book.

I discovered Lou Boldt and Ridley Pearson in The Angel Maker. I am now reading the series and "Beyond Recognition" does not disappoint. Pearson writes such a believable detective. He is not just a "stud" or just a "hard-nose" or one dimmensional in any way. He is the total package. Not just that, but the stories themselves are so involving. This book really has it all. Characters. Dialogue. Driving plot. Twists and turns. Human element. Suspense. Surprise. Pearson delivers the whole meal right down to the cherry on top. I cannot wait to read the rest of the Boldt/Matthews series to see what he has in store for me next.

Throughout his Lou Boldt series - Ridley Pearson has captured the soul and essence of what it's like to be a detective searching frantically for a serial killer - this time a homicidal arsonist. From the time you pick up the book, Pearson grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go til the last page. He creates a web of characters and plots and brings them together in a wonderfully crafted story. Pearson doesn't getted bogged down in technical terms - giving just enough explanation to make his point. One of the best books I've read this year by far!

This fourth book in Pearson's Seattle based detective novel, BEYOND RECOGNITION, kept me hook from the very first chapter. For anyone who calls the Pacific Northwest home, Pearson's books are realistic. It was difficult to second guess each new turn and twist Pearson has planned for Lou Bodt and Daphne Matthews. His continued development of character personalities is great. The characters grow with each new book and there is just the right mix of new people too. The aronist angle was well developed and believable. The only complaint is the book was to long, much longer than his earlier books. I would have enjoyed BEYOND RECOGNITION if it had been about 75% of the pages. Still I would recommend the entire series to everyone living the Pacific Northwest.

Joseph Jaworski was a practicing litigator when he learned about the concept of the "servant leader." Inspired, he left his legal practice and created the American Leadership Forum (ALF), which trains corporate leaders in using the servant-leader model. Synchronicty, which recounts Jaworski's journey, aspires to novelistic drama, and in fact, Jaworski describes the tale in terms of the traditional literary hero's quest. While not exactly the labors of Hercules, anecdotes in which Jaworski talks his way out of a mugging and meets his wife by passing her in an airport are entertaining, but less informative than the author might hope. The book contains a lot of New-Age jargon and collective-consciousness sermonizing. Nevertheless, for managers who want to be something more - leaders - we [...] recommend Synchronicity not as a useful how-to, but rather as a business leader's inspirational biography.

Talking of dreams, magical moments with animals, following hunches and coincidences, dealing with the pains of personal history, talking about life as if it were an adventure story of wonder and self-discovery; you could say this is no way to write a book about business leadership. But thank goodness Joseph Jaworski, with the help of friends and a visionary editor, had the courage to do just that. Because the result is as profound as it is compelling. Dialogue is at the heart of Joe’s leadership philosophy, and the style and integrity of his writing is such that it draws the reader’s mind into just that state. His words are no dry treatise, they leave the page and make a direct emotional connection. Some day, more books will be written this way, and the world will be wiser for it.

Joseph Jaworski has written "the" book on leadership for the 1990's. Not unlike Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Jaworski's Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership serves up a tale of personal discovery of such magnitude as to speak to the very heart and soul of the reader. Drawing heavily from Robert Greenleaf's Servant Leadership, Jaworski describes in compelling form the essential character of leadership founded on servant as leader. Reading Jaworski is like reading a modern-day Paul: his message that we can control our future by allowing life to unfold through us -- not despite us -- is comforting in this era when we all seem to be cascading toward a destiny over which we have little or no control. Read this book. Accept its invitation to initiate your own journey of self-discovery and enlightenment.

Charles Mitchell's A GUIDE TO CHARLIE CHAN FILMS is the ultimate Chan book. It is a very clever book, and it is wrtten with a wonderful sense of fun and humor. He really brings these films to life. It is far superior to the old Ken Henke book. The best part is the complete Chan quotes included after each film. The indexes in the end are great, especially the rogue's gallery of Chan film criminals and the one on Chan's offspring. If you are interested in Charlie Chan, this is the book to buy.

I enjoyed using A GUIDE TO CHARLIE CHAN FILMS while watching the recent AMC Chan festival. It was a pure delight to note each and every Chan quote listed as I followed along with the film. Another good feature is Mitchell's annotated cast lists which clearly spells out the relationships of all the characters. What a great idea. It would be good if other films books aopted this idea. The clear organization makes the book valuable especially if you need to look something up or check a fact quickly. The appndices are also chock full of interestng details such as Chan on television and the foreign language Chan films in Mexico and Cuba. The full chapter on the Spanish language version of the lost CHARLIE CHAN CARRIES ON. What a revelation. All in all, the perfect guide book.

My pet peeve are reviewers who comment without actually reading a book. You can pick them out easily, because they are so vague, or just try to plug a different book. Well, I just got this book in, and it's great. I love all the Chan extras about the TV shows, the foreign Chan films, the latter day films (I loved Ross Martin!) and the complete quotes. The analysis of the four types of Chan quotes is priceless, as is the complete listing. I also ead the earlier book by Hanke wich was not bad, but this one covers so much more, such as a complete analysis of ERAN TRECE with the script of CHARLIE CHAN CARRIES ON. The Oland version of the film is lost, but with this book, it is just like having seen it. If you are a Chan devotee, do yourself a favor and buy this book. If the Hanke fans (or is it fan) who keeps knocking this book would enjoy it as wel if they actually saw it!

This book has all the potential of being a very useful offering as both a reference and teaching aid. Turns out it fails on both counts, because of the patchy nature of the chapters. This book cannot by any means be called uniform in quality. There are some excellent chapters and some simply average ones and some complete dogs!

By far and away best are the 2 chapters on Data Manipulation and Presentation, although these are let down by poor editing - in the form of a few missing source code listings. Another good chapter is the one on code-behind ("Separating Code from Content"). Also very good is the one on XML ("Using XML"). Although a single chapter on XML is not going to be sufficient for anyone, you will be happy to know that the writer of this chapter (Dan Wahlin) has published a worthwhile book of his own. There are also some rather useful chapters on areas that are usually left out of books of this type, and they deal with Error Handling ("ASP.NET Error Handling") and state management ("Managing State").
The chapters that are really awful and could do worse than being re-written are: "Web Services" and "Application-Level Programming" simply because they simply do not have enough in the way of quality code. One thing that I find quite curious is the chaper on "Enabling Better Browser Support" - which doesn't really have a place in .NET, which aims to reproduce uniform browser behaviour.

All code samples are in VB.NET with some consideration for the C# public, but certainly the source-code is not eqally bi-lingual- which I hope gets addressed in the future.

Overall a good book, although be prepared for some ups and downs in quality.

As a serious developer, nothing is more valuable than nicely annotated code samples. This 878-page book is packed with code, with server-side code in VB. I bought this book together with Programming Data-Driver Web Applications With ASP.NET by Mack and Seven. (These two are among the authors of this book, Tips, Tutorials, etc.) Between the two I have a nice library to draw on for help on my current .NET development project.

I have found the SAMS Teach Yourself series very useful in spite of their beginner level content. This book is part of a newer series from SAMS (blue spines with glossy photos of the galaxy) that are intended as in-depth resources for professionals. SO far the six that I have rank with the very best professional series from Apress and seem a bit beyond the always timely and usually useful WROX books.

The book really stands for the title. I found in the book what I was looking for, something to get me started in ASP.NET without it beeing a begginers guide for novice programers. It takes you through every aspect of ASP.NET wich makes some chapters more interesting than others (ADO.NET, XML, Mobile Devices, etc..) almost all the chapters leave you greedy for more (specially passport authentication, webservices, managing state with SQL-Server) but the book is already 837 pages. This is the first time I see ASP.NET covered in every important aspect (web controls, caching and I never saw passport for example).
A mistake was made, by giving the framework sdk in the cd instead of the sample code, wich you can find in a million zip files in the web.
They also failed in telling the sample code is intended to follow your progress in the book. That means you won't see quality code untill chapter 16 (separating code form presentation). I think they made a good desicion, so if your looking for a source of sample code this is the wrong place (Go to the web).
I don't think this will become a reference book for me. As soon as you become proficient in the platform the book becomes shallow but this is the first time i'm happy with a book since i bought "Hitchhiker's guide to visual basic and SQL". This book succeds in having all the Tips, Tutorials and Code you need to get serious into ASP.NET today!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

The book is pretty well structured and written for somebody having a little exposure to design. I personally felt I lost my time reading it since I already have some experience in design in another OO language. The book is definitely too much like a school text book. In particular, the chapter on database access with Java concentrates on relational db concepts instead of providing useful design and architectural hints on how to develop a multi tiers application using JDBC !

I've been involved with OO Design for over 10 years, and thought I knew it all. This book is more than an excellent introduction to methodology for novice programmers - it's also an excellent reference for how to apply patterns in the real world using Java. This book packs an amazing amount of clear and concise material into a surprisingly cheap package. I'm sorry to say, I paid full price for it - and it was still a bargain. Everything from UML to Beans to RMI to Web development. Great book.

Java, It's ALL about objects! And this book will teach you objects! The basic syntax to Java is easy to learn, but Objects and Object design is the key to java! This book explains object design, ploymorphism, encapsulation and inhertiance perfectly!
After this book THEN you can go back to the other books like Deitel "How To Program in Java".
Once you master Objects...Java is CAKE! In my college course the definition of an object is "an instance of a class" Wow..that tells me alot.
The most difficult part of Java is learning Objects.
Read this book...learn objects...then the rest of java is easy!
Very very very very good book on objects!