Active

This book is an overview with no info on how to actually build a page

As a CS college student, I was obligated to purchase this title for a class. I feel quite victimized by the publisher and author who rushed this book to market. It is filled with spelling errors, crude diagrams, and paragraphs of disjointed text. Perhaps the next edition will be carefully reviewed and edited before release. There remains a need for a quality book that covers as many topics as this one attepted.

I have to confess I was completely confused by IIS, ISAPI, CGI, ASP, COM/DCOM, SQL and Backoffice until I read this book. The authors do a good job of painting a cohesive picture and at the same time show you where you can deviate from Microsoft tools and use stuff like perl, JavaScript and C/C++.

This is more of a technology overview and not really a hard core how to. If you need the technical details, I'd recommend the MSDN documentation. But if you want to know what the heck it all means before you get buried in details, this is a good book to read.

We purchased this book for our tour from Rome to Barcelona and found it absolutely useless. The route follows major highways while missing quiet backcountry roads. The author completely misses the true beauty of France and Italy in bypassing the Amalfi coast, Umbria, Tuscany and Provence. My advice... save your money for maps and a Lonely Planet guide. When every ounce counts, this is not a book you need to lug up a 1000 meter pass.

After following this book from Malaga to Florence, it seems almost impossible that the author actually rode this route. He says that the trip can be taken by a person of any experience level, but realistically only an experienced rider would enjoy his route. He is consistantly incorrect with respect to elevations, distances, and major road names. After about a month of cycling we began to plan our own routes. We found that we could use a map and guess better routes than he could suggest in his book. Do not waste your time and money. Buy a good set of Michelin maps and pay attention to the topographical marks on the maps and you will be fine. Nothing is more annoying than to rely on incorrect information.

Used the book as a guide for a cycle trip from Barcelona to Rome. Maps from local tourist offices were required for more detailed road and campground information.

This book provides good, if somewhat dated, introductory coverage of writing dynamic content for web pages. It covers a lot more than just ASP (in spite of the title) but it does it well. If you are a beginning programmer, do not expect to be ready to do much after reading this. I would NOT recommend this title to intermediate or advanced programmers; there are numerous other titles out there that are more appropriate. It is appropriate for beginners or for systems managers who do need to know the nitty gritty of programming ASP.

This book is well written, concise and clear. It provides information on Active Server Pages and all Microsoft's related technologies. The one problem that it has is a misleading title, which caused so many bad reviews here. It is a great primer on Microsoft's new Internet technologies for dynamic web sites. It is self-contained and goal-oriented. Forget the title and get the book for what it actually offers, if that is what you are looking for. You will not be disappointed. Professional ASP is a comprehensive book on ASP but, unfortunately, it lacks the clarity, brevity, and organization that this book has.

Reusable objects, by using ASP, can be created

This book is a VERY VERY VERY introductory book, not for experienced programmers. I bought this book for using referrence. But it is filled with too elaborate stuff, I think, useless! For those who have no programming experiece , this book will be a good tutorial, I think.

As a novice Visual C++ programmer, I found the MFC tutorials very useful. However, the title is misleading, and apparently includes the "ATL" as a means to garner sales and set it apart from other MFC books, because there is only a single small chapter on ATL, and the explanation of ATL leads me to conclude that the publisher asked the author to add the ATL chapter, when the author was not inclined to do so. But that's just my impression of it. When I *really* needed some info on ATL for a project at work, the coverage of ATL in this book failed to provide any answers, and was simply confusing.

To be honest, I really dislike ATL, and am a little upset that Microsoft has not simply followed the C++ STL. I wish Microsoft would do away with ATL, and simply optimize MFC to make it more efficient. Better yet, blend the two to provide a leaner class library for Win32 programming. MFC is too big. But I'd rather do Win32 than ATL, so MFC is the only alternative with Visual C++.

As far as MFC goes, this book is a good reference.

This book is a great introduction to MFC and ATL. I think it help programmers to understand MFC but it also makes you confused. E.g. in the first chapter Views and Docs are explained but in next chapters the Docs are Views aren't used as they were explained and sometimes they aren't even used at all. Simple functions such as scroll bars aren't explained but Controls (Progress Bars etc.) are much easier to use and they are explained in detail. The ATL and COM chapters are explained in details and the books gets its 4 stars for that.

This book has wonderful information, however, when the author lays out an example in the book it is not labled nor is it at all complete. The author jumps around A TON! This book is Not recomended to anyone by me.

It's foucs to much on the programming basics instead of the ASP technics. I think the author should not write so much on the object that ASP provided. He should give more real examples on practical use. I don't think most users would need to use so much objects. If we are want to use objects, I think users want to read the references instead of this "beginner's guide".

But the language used in this book is suitable that plain enough. And the speech is not so boring when compare to Wrox book.

I have found this book a useful complement to the Sybex IIS/VB webclasses book--this is the best description of how to use the Application object and global.asa that I have seen so far. However, the author of the Osborne book did a sloppy job of laying out the sample projects in this book--for example, frequently he doesn't even tell you what to name the files. If it weren't for this I would give the book four or five stars.

Someday, someone will explain a better way than Microsoft's, but this is CERTAINLY not the one! The author cannot see beyond his anti-Microsoft bias well enough to see what he is proposing an anlternative to. He clearly has no viable understanding of what Microsoft has done and is doing. His recommendations are incomplete and loaded with half-truths. Save your money!

First impressions where of a book prepared and bound by my old school print room with VERY basic print and page presentation. This I was always happy to overlook if the contained was able to carry it the rest of the way. The physical build quality is nothing short of appalling. I am currently holding it together as I read as the pages simply fall out as I turn the next page. I am actually considering sending it back for a replacement, as it will be near impossible to read again (If I actually feel the need). Well I felt it started out quite well although I felt it is was a little heavy side on the MS bashing. The content in places is good but then it laps into another MS bashing and deviates onto something else without finishing the current discussion. I am not sure if the books text was proofed before going to print as some of the grammar is a little on the weak side suggesting this was one hell of a hurried book.

I did enjoy some of the OS history discussions and other ideas the text offered but some of the points outlined coupled with the strong anti MS feeling appear to provide one mans opinion rather a wholly objective 'factual' presentation.

I have installed Linux 6.0 several times and installed most of what is outlined in the book but I would have to say it 'might' have helped me out. I think however that I have other much better resources (books and internet and my own notes) which I think I would find more helpful. The non-existent CD may have been helpful but as this is another post out - I don't think I'll worry. What I pity if I had waited 2 weeks for the book only to find out I needed to wait another 2 weeks for the CD's

It is clearly a hasterly prepared book and somewhat disjointed. The build quality is simply appalling. The content is good in places and hopelessly lost in others. Print quality is sub standard and formatting weak. This book is not on my 'must have' list.

The bad:

This book is a waste of time if you are looking for technical information. It is inconsistent and is more or less a grab-all that jumps around talking a bit about Linux, Novell and the state of OS'es with a lot of MS bashing put in between. The binding is also of poor quality - I lost about 5 pages on my first (and probably only) read of the book. Oh, and it doesn't contain a CD.

If you enjoy reading incoherent MS bashing that is not supported properly by facts (he is right about some of his bashing but he forgot to include the facts, which are available), then this is a book for you.

The good:

He does include some interesting information about the history of the OS wars and about the state of Windows, Netware and Linux - which is unfortunately lost in the noise caused by the lack of structure in the book.

Kind of sad, really - a step by step book for installing Linux with NDS, Samba, Dosemu and WINE with proper background information about the technologies would be a killer.

If you want to learn Samba, go read John Blair's book "Samba: Integrating Unix and Windows." Dominic Baines is also working on a book, but I have not read that yet.

For general NDS information, check out Novell's excellent documentation. For NDS on Linux I have no idea.

There are a bunch of books about Linux, most of them too basic and sketchy to be of any help. I'd recommend "Unix Powertools" and "Unix for the Impatient" for the thorough basic information, and then a book about the distribution you are using.

But, however, as Elias Legolas has already pointed out, this book is very similar to stuff already available, and does not really give any new information.

If there were no other books on this stuff (but there are plenty), then this book would be a good buy.

I remain the artist - Joe Blow. Yours Sincerely in "magical power".

This book about the Magical Imagination is Nick Farrell's second book. He is now becoming quite the author.

This second book bears many similarities to Shakti Gawain's book on Creative Visualization. But there are some real differences. This book draws on the magical tradition of the Golden Dawn, and emphasises this in a big way.

All in all, this book is okay to read.

Chapter 9 .. That's where they ask the question "What is an Active Server Page?", a question you presumably asked BEFORE reading chapters 1-8.

The truly sad part is that the book can't even competently answer the question. Maybe I should write a book about the mating habits of giant squid and call it "ASP Secrets Revealed!" ... At least you would get to read about giant squid doing the dirty.

The title and jacket suggest this book is some ASP "real-world problem" solver. At more than 500 pages this book appears to really get deep in ASP applications.

However, the first line of chapter 9 gives good insight into the true nature of the book: "Previous chapters focus on client-side scripting..."

The next paragraph is entitled: "What is an Active Server Page?" This is in chapter *9*!

However good this book may be on its own terms, please, please, go to a "real-world" bookstore and examine this book before buying.

A fine book if you want the practical side of writing an Active web page. Lots of practical examples. True it isn't just about ASP, but it is about using ASP to develop a whole Web site. Best of 3 books I have on the subject.

I like MSPress books, usually. I did not like this book. The book is thin and seemed padded (lots of empty separator pages, long boring, obscure code samples) - not much content. The book is seemed like a book about Java with some coverage of VJ++, rather than vice-versa.

How many more books have to go over the same old java vs. C++ stuff, OOD, and the Internet (hello, this book is for "intermediate programmers who know the basics of Java" - they already know about the INternet). Perhaps these sections should be replaced with real content. THis is not a Java Primer - it lacks the content required for that, yet it covers ground that would be covered in any Java Primer (which would be a prerequisite to this book). No coverage of database access, e.g. ADO...yet surely Active suggests dynamic websites, which are often/primarily used to provide database access.

The examples were...poorly chosen IMHO. ..and the paper seemed cheap and yellowed! (How about a webpage accessing a database as a more relevant example?)

Microsoft's blatant ripoff of Java should never have left Redmond. Its a shame because they can't really think up original ideas just rip good ones off. Don't buy this book!!!

Even though Java used to figure prominently in Microsoft's favorite technologies, its Visual J++ product is one of the most widely used Java development tools on the market. Scott Robert Ladd's Active Visual J++ is an excellent introduction to Java programming with VJ++ and Microsoft's Internet strategy. The book claims to be intermediate level, but you'd better already know the basics of Java programming before tackling it, or at least have a solid background in C++. The book spends its time explaining how to develop applets and applications, with very little on Java syntax.
Part 1, Object-Oriented Programming, provides an overview of Java and its role for Internet-based and full-blown applications. I liked the overview of Java class design and the comparison between Java and C++. Part 2, Component-Oriented Java, using Java for components, both for Web applications and standalone apps. The author spends a fair bit of time talking about ActiveX and COM (this is a Microsoft Press book, after all), but includes a chapter about JavaBeans and how you can mix and match them with ActiveX components. The last part, Application Java, focuses on creating standalone applications with Java, with discussions of the Abstract Window Toolkit, user-interface design, building and using components, and security issues. Over the course of several chapters, the author develops some simple but complete Java programs with VJ++.
I found the book to be generally well-written with light humor but with an inconsistency that was sometimes distracting. The author excels when describing general concepts but sometimes gets bogged down in detail. The chapter on the AWT, for example, consists mostly of the various classes listing their methods and properties (using Microsoft's terms, not Java's) with a couple of sentences explanation. I think this chapter would be more useful with a broader overview of the AWT serving as an introduction to the following chapters. Several of the diagrams look to have been hastily drawn with a marker then poorly reproduced.
Normally I don't like code listings in books that go on for several pages, but here it works. The examples are short enough to let you grasp how it works but without going on forever. The CD, of course, includes all the code.
But these are minor niggles. If you know either Java or C++ and want to use VJ++ to write anything from simple applets to full applications, this is a very good place to start.

I was amazed that they released this book with this many errors. An idiot could have done a quick proof of the book before printing and would have found loads of errors. Why is there no errata section on the mspress web site? Are they embarassed to list dozens (hundreds perhaps) of errors? I would certainly return it if it had a money back guarantee. I guess the authors think that professional programmers have plenty of time to waste trying to figure out their mistakes. If Microsoft is going to put their name on a book like this, they should at least hire a team to make sure the book doesn't have glaring errors!

This book leaves much to be desired. Although most code samples work in this book, almost all of them needed code syntax fixes. It is very apparent that this book was originally written with VB.NET in mind. There are entire sections that are not applicable to C#. Semi-colons are missing frequently. Unbalanced curly braces appear in the code. In chapter 3, the code didn't translate well when the authors copied and pasted it in. All of the quotation marks show up as question marks. (Sounds like MS Word's smart quotes...) Lastly, some screenshots mislead the reader. One example will not work unless you vary from the screenshot.

From what I can tell, MS was so bent on getting an ASP.NET programming book like this out that they spent very little fixing small errors like these. Get a WROX or O'Reilly book instead.

I'm reviewing just the book here, not the book plus software; right now there is no entry for the book by itself.

As someone who is already familiar with programming and C#, I had hoped that this book would get me going on ASP.NET. Unfortunately, the author makes the opposite assumptions. So he casually mentions that you should have IIS running, but includes a whole chapter on C# constructs (just in case I didn't know what a "while" statement is). The same pattern is followed throughout the book: loads of trivial junk that I needed to slog through, because they conceal some crucial information. It took me 15 minutes just to put a label on a web form when it was in FlowLayout. The author did explain that you need to DOUBLE click to accomplish this, but the information was buried under a discussion of how to use the VS IDE (including what a Save icon looks like!) - something I've been doing for years.

Perhaps if you know all about ASP and know nothing about C#, then this is the book for you. Perhaps. Otherwise, it's not even worth a look.