Silverlight 2 Unleashed Review

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Silverlight 2 Unleashed ReviewI'm a developer who is intimiately familiar with C# and the .NET platform in general. I've also been playing with Silverlight 1.1-2 betas/rc's and was hoping that this book would fill in the gaps that I'd gotten through just playing with it.
But in general, the book seems to be pitched toward a less technical audience- for example, he spends a paragraph telling us how to comment out XML, another area explains how to install Expression Blend, page 68 explains to us why we've got F's in our numbers (it's hex, duh), the diff between raster and vector graphics (this was necessary?)
Chapter -8- finally gets us into some code, and it's JavaScript- but the whole point of V2 was to get us out of JS and let us use other langs for more complex apps than just adding Flash-like abilities to our .NET sites.
Even THEN, we get told that, "JavaScript ... and other C-based languages are case sensitive!", and apparently (in the next para), "...JavaScript uses -variables- (text has it in italics) to store data." Oh my!
Chapter -9- is "Understanding .NET" and finally gets into VStudio.
At page 488, you get 10 pages on calling WCF servers.
If you're a .NET developer with some familiarity with WPF/XAML and a little WCF, you're probably better off waiting for other books. This should have really been called something similar to "Beginning Silverlight 2, mostly with Javascript".
If there were any other reasonable books specifically on 2.0, I'd send it back, but there aren't yet.Silverlight 2 Unleashed OverviewFull Color Code samples appear as they do in Visual Studio and Expression Blend!Printed entirely in color, with helpful figures and syntax coloring to make code samples appear as they do in Visual Studio and Expression Blend!Silverlight is Microsoft's new web-based User Interface (UI) technology, based on Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), which is introducing many revolutionary concepts in the world of UI development. Silverlight uses XAML, with tools like Expression Design and Expression Blend, to create astonishing UI effects (such as gradients, compositions, and animations.) In addition to the richness of the UI elements, Silverlight 2 allows the use of C# or VB in addition to JavaScript to automate web pages. With Silverlight, you have the power of .NET on multiple platforms (IE and Firefox on Windows, Firefox and Safari on Macintosh, and Firefox on Linux). The author brings you up to speed very quickly with numerous hands-on examples.Use XAML to create state-of-the-art user interfaces Create XAML transforms and animations Design compelling user experiences with Microsoft Expression Blend Integrate media into your rich Internet applications Program Silverlight with both JavaScript and .NET languages Deploy Silverlight content to web pages Encode videos with Expression Media Encoder Make the most of Silverlight elements, resources, and styles Use templates to quickly change your application's look and feel Efficiently debug Silverlight code Use design tools to create graphics that import seamlessly into SilverlightLaurent Bugnion has been a software engineer since 1996. He has worked with many programming languages and environments, including C, C++, Java, HTML/CSS/JavaScript, and, since 2002, the Microsoft .NET platform. He has been honored twice as a Microsoft MVP: first for ASP.NET and now for Client Application Development. He blogs about Silverlight and related technologies at http://blog.galasoft.ch.ON THE WEB:Download all examples and source code presented in this book from informit.com/title/9780672330148Category:Microsoft Programming/Web Programming Covers:Microsoft® Silverlight 2User Level:Beginning—Intermediate

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Professional ASP.NET 3.5 Security, Membership, and Role Management with C# and VB (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review

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Professional ASP.NET 3.5 Security, Membership, and Role Management with C# and VB (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) ReviewThe author clearly understands this technology space, I have no complaints with his expertise. And I gained some useful information here and there.
However I found that book to be very dense and overall the book did not feel well edited. Each chapter does a deep dive into the technology, but the information is hard to parse through. The author embeds a lot of reference assembly names and configuration references within the written paragraphs, making it harder to absorb the information.
Perhaps my expectations were wrong. I was hoping for a book that made me feel like a practical expert who could jump straight into a project after reading the book. Instead I felt that the book was more academic treatise than practical manual. I felt like I had been imparted a lot of deep technical information. But I was left with little practical to show for it.
I am giving this book 3 starts because of the author's clear and obvious expertise with the subject matter, and the fact that I did get some useful information here that I could not find elsewhere. But I felt I had to work very hard to get to it.Professional ASP.NET 3.5 Security, Membership, and Role Management with C# and VB (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) OverviewAs the only book to address ASP.NET 3.5, AJAX, and IIS 7 security from the developer's point of view, this book begins with a look at the new features of IIS 7.0 and then goes on to focus on IIS 7.0 and ASP.NET 3.5 integration. You'll walk through a detailed explanation of the request life cycle for an ASP.NET application running on IIS 7.0 under the classic mode, from the moment it enters IIS 7.0 until ASP.NET generates a corresponding response.

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Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008 (Windows.Net) Review

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Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008 (Windows.Net) ReviewPro ASP.net 3.5: This book is a must to have book for anyone who is starting/ switching their careers to developing web applications using asp.net technologies. The authors Matthew MacDonald and Mario Szpuszta, has done a very good job of covering all sections that are useful for beginners as well as middle level developers.
For example, if you are seeing Visual Studio for the first time in your life, they dedicated a whole chapter on how to use visual studio. The reason I brought up this point is they kept the beginners in mind and they didn't leave any assumptions that the reader already know how to use Visual Studio.
At the same time for those middle level developers who wants to dive into newly released hot technologies like Ajax, LINQ and Silverlight you won't be disappointed. They have dedicated individual chapters for each of those topics. As I have been developing asp.net application from last several years, I opened this book to see what I can read about Linq and Silverlight. I enjoyed those chapters as they give you an introduction and a good kick start. I am surprised that the authors also dedicated a whole chapter for website deployment (Chapter 18) where the architectures of IIS 5.0, 6.0 and then 7.0 is explained. That is awesome that they have discussed installation of IIS 7.0 and explained the architecture as well as the new Configuration model of IIS 7.0. Everything is explained with the help of screen shots.
Of course I took for granted for all those core concepts of asp.net like developing Http Handlers, Http Modules, Customer Server controls, Custom Membership and profile providers, Security. They are all covered and are very well explained in individual chapters.
Given the broadness of the subject, the authors done a great job of covering all areas in depth methodically that way you won't be lost.
I enjoyed this book so much that I would definitely recommend this book to any .Net Web Developer and this book is going to take some space on my desk.
Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008 (Windows.Net) Overview
ASP.NET 3.5 isMicrosoft's revolutionary ASP.NET technology. It is the principal standard for creating dynamic web pages on the Windows platform. Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008 raises the bar for high–quality, practical advice on learning and deploying Microsoft's dynamic web solution.

Seasoned .NET professionals Matthew MacDonald and Mario Szpuszta explain how you can get the most from this groundbreaking technology. They cover ASP.NET 3.5 as a whole, illustrating both the brand–new features and the functionality carried over from previous versions of ASP. This book will give you the knowledge you need to code real ASP.NET 3.5 applications in the best possible style.


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WCF Multi-tier Services Development with LINQ Review

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WCF Multi-tier Services Development with LINQ ReviewI was given a project recently to "convert the back end of an existing application to WCF and LINQ". This book, judging from the title, seemed to be the place to start. I was not disappointed.
Everything works as you go through the projects in the book. It gave me enough information to complete my project. But I do have a few complaints:
1. Not everything is explained and somethings must be taken on faith. For example in the Service Contract model one is told to set the request IsWrapped property to true. Why? What does IsWrapped do? This is never explained.
2. At various points in the book one is told to enter some code and then add using clauses. Wouldn't it be more logical to do it the other way around?
3. The index is very skimpy. I never found anything I was looking for in it.
This book is not for the complete tyro. You do have to know your way around both Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server (SQL Server Express works fine by the way). It is very useful to have some knowledge of SQL before diving into LINQ. Previous experience with services would be helpful but not necessary (I didn't have any). Previous knowledge of WCF is not necessary.
In short, a useful book, with some flaws. I can recommend it.WCF Multi-tier Services Development with LINQ OverviewMaster WCF and LINQ in a multi-tier WCF service by completing practical examples and apply them to your real-world assignments. This book is for C# and C++ developers who are eager to get started with WCF and LINQ, and want a book that is practical and rich with examples from the very beginning. Developers and architects evaluating SOA implementation technologies for their company will find this book particularly useful because it gets you started with Microsoft's tools for SOA and shows you how to customize our examples for your prototypes. This book presumes basic knowledge of C# or C++. Previous experience with Visual Studio will be helpful but is not required, as detailed instructions are given throughout the book.

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Microsoft Visual Basic 2008 Step by Step Review

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Microsoft Visual Basic 2008 Step by Step ReviewI'm not new to the visual basic language (I've done some work with VBA) but I was new to visual studio. I just have to say that this book is very easy to follow, it's very detailed, and it's a great place to start learning the language and the use of the IDE.
The author guides the reader in a very easy to follow style of writing. He also goes into detail to make sure that you understand what it is that he either wants you to do or wants you to understand. He also makes no assumption regarding your skill level and basically writes so that anyone can understand.
The only thing that I wasn't crazy about was that he sometimes repeats the same things over and over in every chapter. For example, "If the form is not visible when you load it, click on it in the Solutions box to make it visible." He'll say that for every project that you open. I guess it's ok because these little things really get pounded into your brain, but I found it just a little annoying.
Finally, he does demonstrate a lot of new features in Visual Studio 2008, so the book is great even for experienced users.
Microsoft Visual Basic 2008 Step by Step OverviewTeach yourself the fundamentals of working with Visual Basic 2008 one step at a time. With STEP BY STEP, you work at your own pace through hands-on, learn-by-doing exercises. Whether you re a beginning programmer or new to this specific language, you ll understand the core capabilities and fundamental techniques for Visual Basic 2008 and rapidly build robust, elegant applications. Each chapter puts you to work, showing you how, when, and why to use the latest features of Visual Basic guiding you each step of the way as you create actual components and working applications for Windows. You ll also explore data management and Web-based development topics. PLUS get practice files with sample code and data sets on the companion CD.
Key Book Benefits
Covers the latest enhancements and features of Visual Basic 2008
Provides step-by-step guidance on how to use Visual Basic 2008 with Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 to create smart-client and Web applications
Features easy-to-follow, logically planned lessons in the popular STEP BY STEP format ideal for anyone with fundamental programming skills
Includes a companion CD with data sets and code samples

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ASP.NET 3.5: A Beginner's Guide Review

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ASP.NET 3.5: A Beginner's Guide ReviewI was familiar with ASP (the OLD version - pre ".NET") before reading this book, and I found this an extremely fast, clear, and useful way of bridging the gap to the new language and programming framework. I was literally able to breeze through the book in just a few days. I suspect there might be a bit more ramp-up time involved for someone without a pre-existing computer programming background, but anyone who already knows their way around a web programming language should do very well with this material. I'm a very satisfied customer.ASP.NET 3.5: A Beginner's Guide Overview
Essential ASP.NET 3.5 Skills--Made Easy!

Learn how to create database-driven ASP.NET 3.5 websites using C# 3.0. ASP.NET 3.5: A Beginner's Guide shows you just what you need to know to build rich Internet applications quickly and easily. You'll find details on Web controls, CSS, event handlers, validation, SQL, ADO.NET, data binding, text files, and security. Coverage of the latest technologies, such as LINQ and Ajax, is also included. All examples use Visual Studio 2008 to ease you through the learning process, and all the source code is displayed. Start building dynamic ASP.NET 3.5 Web applications today with help from this fast-paced tutorial.

Designed for Easy Learning:

Key Skills & Concepts--Lists of specific skills covered in the chapter

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Programming ASP.NET 3.5 Review

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Programming ASP.NET 3.5 ReviewThis is an excellent book on ASP.NET development. It skips over the typical "how to create a button" approach of most books and just covers the necessary information to really use some of the more interesting ASP.NET features including AJAX. Each of the controls that are covered also get a treatment for how to enhance them with AJAX.
The book also covers some of the unfamiliar areas of ASP.NET such as lifecycle management, caching, page and master directives and HTTP handlers. The book also spends quite a bit of time discussing the features that were added in v2.0 such as web parts and themes. This is missing in many books.
The only real flaw I see in the book is that it mentions v3.5 but in reality almost everything it covers is v2.0+. Someone who is only concerned with v2.0 might skip over this book but that would be a mistake. It contains enough information to be useful to anyone doing ASP.NET programming from v2.0 on. While it won't teach beginner ASP.NET folks how to write apps it will help those already familiar with the basics of ASP.NET to write impressive, performant apps under v2.0+.Programming ASP.NET 3.5 Overview
With Programming ASP.NET 3.5, you'll quickly learn to create state-of-the-art applications using Microsoft's popular web development technology and Visual Studio 2008. This updated bestseller provides comprehensive and easy-to-understand information to help you use several .NET 3.5 technologies for faster development and better web application performance-including ASP.NET AJAX for interactive user interfaces, LINQ for data access, and Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) for web services.Programming ASP.NET 3.5 includes examples and sample code that let you explore development with ASP.NET in more depth. With this book, you will:

Learn about AJAX and ASP.NET server controls included with Visual Studio 2008
Discover how to use the DataSource and data-bound controls in ADO.NET
Use the new LINQ API and learn how to make use of it within ASP.NET pages
Create a uniform look and feel throughout your application with Master Pages
Use navigation controls to build site maps, menus, and breadcrumbs quickly and easily
Build and use various web services with WCF
Detect errors during development and handle them in your production code
Learn how to configure and deploy your website

Written by Microsoft technology experts Jesse Liberty, Dan Hurwitz, and Dan Maharry, Programming ASP.NET 3.5 is the best book for learning how to build dynamic, interactive web applications using Microsoft's latest technologies.


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Programming WCF Services Review

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Programming WCF Services ReviewI struggled between purchasing this book or Michelle's 'Learning WCF', being a developer for going on 20 years now I didn't want to get another beginners 101 book. Having read many articles and a few books by Juval and knowing I like theory not wizardry I went with Juval's.
I must say I am disappointed so far, in Juval's style of great theory he just jumps right in and you are pretty much in over your head off the bat. Not that you can't understand what he is saying but the way it is explained just doesn't help understand WCF in general. While I am only on chapter 3 I had to look forward and see that it only gets deeper, it seems to explain the pieces but not how they fit together.
I had to go back and look at the intended audience for the book. It says nothing about prior WCF experience just an experienced .NET, OO developer. I have been messing with WCF for a few weeks, played with WSSF, I have built a number of production web and windows service applications as well as worked with remoting quite a bit.
I bought the book to get more detail/theory but must say it has not helped me a bit thru chapter 3. The book hasn't provided any direction on putting this stuff together into a working example and I think that is what it is missing.
I have little doubt when I get over the initial WCF learning curve this book will be a great asset but for now I'm going to shelve it and look elsewhere.
Programming WCF Services Overview
Programming WCF Services is the authoritative, bestselling introduction to Microsoft's unified platform for developing service-oriented applications (SOA) on Windows. Hailed as the most definitive treatment of WCF available, this relentlessly practical book provides insight, not documentation, to help you learn the topics and skills you need for building WCF-based applications that are maintainable, extensible, and reusable. Author Juval Lowy, Microsoft software legend and participant in WCF's original strategic design review, revised this new edition for the latest productivity-enhancing features of C# 3.0 and the .NET 3.5 SP1 Framework. The book also contains Lowy's ServiceModelEx, a framework of useful utilities, tools, and helper classes that let you simplify and automate many tasks, and extend WCF as well. With this book, you will:

Learn about WCF architecture and essential building blocks, including key concepts such as reliability and transport session
Use built-in features such as service hosting, instance management, concurrency management, transactions, disconnected queued calls, and security
Take advantage of relevant design options, tips, and best practices in Lowy's ServiceModelEx framework to increase your productivity and the quality of your WCF services
Learn the rationale behind particular design decisions, and discover poorly documented and little-understood aspects of SOA development
By teaching you the "why" along with the "how" of WCF programming, Programming WCF Services not only will help you master WCF, it will enable you to become a better software engineer.

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Programming Microsoft ASP.NET 3.5 Review

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Programming Microsoft ASP.NET 3.5 ReviewFrom the opening and throughout this book, it seems obvious that this is a hasty retread of a previous ASP.NET 2.0 edition. Most tellingly, there are numerous explanations of the way that ASP.NET 2.0 improved on such-and-such a feature of ASP.NET 1.0 or 1.1, which seem of little relevance to those looking to upgrade themselves to the latest ASP.NET. Other material and examples also seem written for an earlier time.
The meat for upgrading programmers is not only somewhat obscured in the clutter of old stuff, but is very thinly sliced when found. For example, one of my principle objectives in buying the book was to understand LINQ better, but the chapter on LINQ offers little more than a summary of the LINQ notes freely available on Microsoft's web site.
On the plus side, as owner of other books by Dino Esposito I notice that his writing gets better with every book, and he is now among the most adept of authors at clearly explaining many topics. For someone new to ASP.NET, this book can be considered seriously, but a better book exists (see my reviews).Programming Microsoft ASP.NET 3.5 Overview

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ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies Review

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ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies ReviewI am an experienced developer so I only expected to skim over the book to get familiar with any of the new asp.net 3.5 features. I found myself reading every word of every page because the book was actually "entertaining". The writing is very smooth and easy to understand. You feel as if a really good teacher who knows how to relate to people is talking to you.
I was also surprised how deep the book was able to go into each subject. For example Linq is a very complicated subject yet the book does contain enough examples for you to use it in the real world.ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies OverviewDid you volunteer to create a Web site for the softball team? Is it time to take your small business to the next level and let your customers shop online? Well, you can relax! ASP.NET 3.5 makes creating a dynamic site faster and cleaner than ever before, and ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies makes it easier.
First, you'll get an introduction to all the tools and terminology you need to understand ASP.NET. If you've used earlier versions of ASP.NET and Visual Web Developer, you can probably skip that part and jump right into what's new in 3.5. You'll make friends with LINQ and SQL, create sites in Visual Web Developer 2008 Express, and much more. Before you know it, you'll discover how to:
Integrate data, track shopping cart contents, and whisk away bugs
Create user interfaces with easy navigation
Use the ListView control for sophisticated formatting
Write LINQ queries
Add a table to a database
Create an event handler
Take advantage of the drag 'n' drop feature that lets you write less code
Put all the features to work to develop dynamic Web applications

The softball team is going to love that Web site, and your customers might enjoy shopping on your site so much that you'll have to expand your business to fill all the orders! We can't promise that, of course, but we're pretty sure that ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies will make creating Web sites easier and a lot more fun.

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ASP.NET MVC Framework Unleashed Review

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ASP.NET MVC Framework Unleashed ReviewDisclosure: I do not own this book, but the review is based on reading the first 4 chapters from my Safari subscription.
This book is a really, really great starting point for learning ASP .NET MVC. An important caveat is that you need to do the NERD DINNER tutorial first before ANYTHING! I'm real particular about my learning style and had baulked at the mere 10 reviews the book had received, but really, don't let that dissuade. This is a great book and the author breaks things down into easy to understand chunks. I will say that he isn't as detailed as the Nerddinner tutorial in explaining the Visual Studio features for adding Views & Controllers, but the description's for doing so should suffice.
Some people may not like that the code examples are in both C# & VB .NET; however, I don't mind this. It certainly adds to the size of the book, but I haven't found many books going through this stuff and showing VB .NET code, so that can only be a plus. Another gotcha is the book uses the Entity Framework for data access. I don't mind this since I haven't had exposure to it, but I think that might turn off some people. To be perfectly honest, I don't think there's a book that explains the basics of ASP .NET MVC in conjunction with NHibernate or ORM's outside of LINQ to SQL or Entity Framework. I did look at ASP.Net MVC in Action on Safari and I can tell you that it is definitely not a starter book; however, if you want exposure to using third party frameworks with ASP .NET MVC, that might be your book.
Okay after making to about chapter 19, I've come back to this review and bumped it down to 4 stars. My main bother here is that there isn't a published errata and their needs to be one. Thankfully, this doesn't come into play until Chapter's 17 & 19. The mistake made in both chapters is they start using classes without A) defining the code for the class b) without mentioning the class anywhere outside of a code example that assumes their prior creation C) a & b.
This isn't a huge deal, just download the book code and know that you will have to copy the code for the following classes:
UnleashedBlog.Models.BlogEntry (Chapter 17)
UnleashedBlog.Models.BlogServiceBase (Chapter 19)
UnleashedBlog.Tests.Factories.ControllerFactory (Chapter 19)
The last 2 really ticked me off because there is absolutely zero mention of their creation until they are magically used in code. Despite this, they aren't complicated classes and you can still understand what they are doing without the book having to elaborate.
Despite it all, I still recommend this book. I've gone through most of the chapters at this point and have found it a really good jumping off point for learning ASP .NET MVC.ASP.NET MVC Framework Unleashed OverviewIn this book, world-renowned ASP.NET expert and member of the Microsoft ASP.NET team Stephen Walther shows experienced developers how to use Microsoft's new ASP.NET MVC Framework to build web applications that are more powerful, flexible, testable, manageable, scalable, and extensible. Writing for professional programmers, Walther explains the crucial concepts that make the Model-View-Controller (MVC) development paradigm work so well and shows exactly how to apply them with the ASP.NET MVC Framework. From controllers and actions to views and models, Walther demonstrates how to apply each ASP.NET MVC Framework feature in real-world projects. In Part II, you'll walk step-by-step through building a full-fledged ASP.NET MVC blog application that implements capabilities ranging from data access to validation. Through this case study, you'll learn how to build ASP.NET MVC applications using test-driven development processes that enable rapid feedback, greater productivity, and better quality. Throughout, Walther presents extensive code examples, reflecting his unsurpassed experience as an ASP.NET instructor, a leading commercial developer, and now as a member of Microsoft's ASP.NET development team. Understand how to:Build enterprise-scale web applications far more rapidly and effectively Develop web applications that are easier to maintain and extend over time Gain unprecedented control over the appearance of your website or application Expose intuitive URLs that are friendlier to search engines and users alike Create ASP.NET MVC models that contain all your application's business, validation, and data access logic Make the most of HTML helpers, model binders, action filters, routing, and authentication Efficiently deploy your ASP.NET MVC applications Use the lightweight JQuery JavaScript library to easily find and manipulate HTML elements Create ASP.NET MVC applications using unit test and mock object framework

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Essential Windows Communication Foundation (WCF): For .NET Framework 3.5 Review

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Essential Windows Communication Foundation (WCF): For .NET Framework 3.5 ReviewI'm a big fan of the entire "Essential" series from Addison-Wesley and I expected a lot from this book. I could sum up my opinion on it by saying "It delivers".
My vantage point is a little different from most in that I was coauthor of a book on Winfx/Indigo and I teach WCF. The pool of books out there on WCF are all quite good when compared to other technologies. I think that's b/c in large part, enterprise technologies aren't usually used by beginners and there's been a general reluctance to embrace WCF from what I've seen. I suspect this is in large part b/c you have to relearn Remoting/WS/WSE/MSMQ/Enterprise Services. Once you dive into it though, you quickly realize that WCF is almost too good to be true.
This book does a few things very well. First off, it explains each of the concepts clearly. I find that the authors all write well and are very good at succinctly communicating whatever they are talking about without ever talking over your head. The level of detail is very good too. A few places they could have went deeper (for instance, I think MTOM should have gotten more than a brief descriptive few sentences) but on the whole, I think the covered topics in proportion with how much they are used in the marketplace. They use a good bit of both simple and more involved expamples so if this was your first WCF book, you'd be well served but if you've read several WCF books, you'd still be glad you bought the book. I've bought both the print version and the Kindle version (which I love) and don't believe I've come across any errors. As such, I'd have to say the editing is very good, although that's not surprising in the least from this series. Another nice feature of the book is that while it has three authors, the writing style if very similar. So you get the benefit of three different people's experience without having the problems related to three different writing styles.
I found this book to be very helpful overall and even though I was well versed in most of the stuff they cover, I still found it a great reference. I've purchased copies of it for everyone on my staff and that's perhaps the highest compliment I could pay it - in addition to buying both the hard cover and Kindle version. I suspect if you buy it, you'll be glad you did.Essential Windows Communication Foundation (WCF): For .NET Framework 3.5 Overview"Whether this is the first time or the fifty-first time you're using WCF, you'll learn something new by reading this book."--Nicholas Allen, Program Manager, Web Services, MicrosoftWindows Communication Foundation (WCF) is the easiest way to produce and consume Web services on the Microsoft platform. With .NET 3.5, WCF has been extensively revamped--and Visual Studio 2008 gives developers powerful new tools for utilizing it. Essential Windows Communication Foundation shows developers exactly how to make the most of WCF with .NET 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008. Drawing on extensive experience working with early adopters, three Microsoft insiders systematically address the topics developers ask about WCF. The authors approach each subject with practical advice and present best practices, tips, and tricks for solving problems. Throughout, you'll find detailed explanations, solutions for the "pain points" of WCF development, and an extensive collection of reusable code examples. Coverage includesUsing WCF contracts to define complex structures and interfaces

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Professional Enterprise .NET (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review

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Professional Enterprise .NET (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review
Ok I admit it, I buy too many development books. Most of these I never get around to reading properly. Most of that is my fault. Some of the time I'm put off by dry academic type text that doesn't engage with reader. It must by hard too, right? to produce a book covering topics that are far from exciting whilst still making it enjoyable to read.
So it comes as a pleasant, scratch that, 'fantastic' surprise to read this book that manages to convey a vast amount of information on a broad range of key design patterns and methodologies, like TDD, Inversion of control, Dependency Injection, Entity Frameworks and MVP/MVC and yet still remain a joy to read. I own and have part read books on similar subjects from the most established of authors, the likes of Martin Fowler and Bob Martin. While there is no denying these authors have a wealth of knowledge (having developed many of these patterns and methodologies), it's Professional Enterprise .Net that manages to cut past the waffle and terse examples and provide me with the key information I require.
Highlights for me are the topics on TDD and Refactoring, Inversion of Control and Dependency Injection, Business Logic layer patterns (Active Record & Domain Model patterns) and Data Access Layers including ORM. The examples given lead from the simple solution to the most complete and preferred solution. Each chapter is concise enough to be read through again for reference and is a great book to keep at hand when developing.
Minor quibbles I have are the inclusion of the C# primer in the appendix, I feel this has been used to pad out the book. The book is short for this sort of subject (at around 470ish pages), but I count that as a positive. Also I'd like to see a few more common patterns and practices included and given the same treatment relating to examples are guidance on when to use (maybe we need a 2nd book).
I thoroughly recommended this book, don't be put off by the 'Enterprise' in the title, this book is not dry and should be on any developers bookshelf who wants to improve and advance their code.Professional Enterprise .NET (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) OverviewComprehensive coverage to help experienced .NET developers create flexible, extensible enterprise application code
If you're an experienced Microsoft .NET developer, you'll find in this book a road map to the latest enterprise development methodologies. It covers the tools you will use in addition to Visual Studio, including Spring.NET and nUnit, and applies to development with ASP.NET, C#, VB, Office (VBA), and database.
You will find comprehensive coverage of the tools and practices that professional .NET developers need to master in order to build enterprise more flexible, testable, and extensible .NET applications with minimal upfront costs.
Helps C#, VB.Net, and ASP.NET developers who wish to migrate both their applications and their own skillsets to newer, more flexible enterprise methodologies
Describes each new pattern or feature along with its benefits, then outlines the pros and cons of its implementation
Includes an introduction to enterprise development and a comprehensive overview of the differences between new enterprise patterns and older, traditional Microsoft programming
Explains how to implement these patterns by upgrading an existing code base
Covers benefits including flexibility, automated testing, extensibility, and separation; modular code; test-driven development, unit test, test automation, and refactoring; inversion of control; and object relational mapping
Also covers enterprise design patterns: MVC including Ruby on Rails, Monorail, and ASP.NET MVC, MVP, observer, and more
Contains a primer on object-oriented design

Professional Enterprise .NET focuses on the often-inevitable compromise between forward-thinking design and the needs of business, helping you build applications that serve both.

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Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) Review

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Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) ReviewThis third edition is yet another outstanding textbook in the first author's collection and his writing skills seem to improve with every book. As the contents can be seen at a glance, it remains to say that each topic is, in fact, dealt with in a most comprehensive manner. In order to remove any ambiguity that might remain from any descriptive passage, there are rich examples that accompany each chapter. In fact, it was the superb set of examples for every chapter that were included with Matthew MacDonald's Pro WPF in C# 2008, second edition, that prompted me to buy this book, for which I have no regrets However, it is perhaps advisable to work through Beginning ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008, second edition, especially for the database work, before moving on to this book.
If Matthew MacDonald keeps up this standard of writing and presentation, not only for as ASP.NET, but also for WPF and Silverlight, it is going to be very difficult for any other author to do better. Despite the fact that other viewpoints are, and should be, always welcome, I find myself returning to MacDonald's books for helping me reach a more solid understanding.
I would like to conclude with a message to the publishers: the layout and print for the Beginning... book is excellent, if the heavy content is borne in mind. Unfortunately, there seems to have been some downsizing on the font size in the Pro... book that seems to make it disproportionally harder (for me, at least) to read. Perhaps, when better economic times come, the publishers would consider going to two volumes for Pro... books for what, each time, is a huge amount of reading material.
Pro ASP.NET 3.5 in C# 2008: Includes Silverlight 2 (Expert's Voice in .NET) Overview

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Pro ASP.NET MVC Framework Review

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Pro ASP.NET MVC Framework ReviewI read this book about a week after reading the wrox-published "four talking heads" book by Guthrie, et. al.
It was like night and day. This book is, simply put, perfect. I could not put it down. Sanderson does such a magnificent job at taking the reader from "Hello, MVC" all the way through fairly advanced application concepts that I have a whole new threshold for what a "good" programming book is.
Throughout the book, he does a wonderful job of keeping true to good, solid principles of design, using proven patterns of Test-Driven Design, Domain Modeling, and Dependency Injection; but (to borrow another reviewer's term) never from an "ivory tower" perspective. His approach is always well-grounded in real developer concerns and application needs.
I sincerely hope this isn't Mr. Sanderson's last programming book.Pro ASP.NET MVC Framework OverviewThe ASP.NET Model-View-Controller (MVC) Framework is a widely anticipated extension and improvement to the way that ASP.NET applications are architected and developed. MVC frameworks have been widely and successfully employed in other technology areas, such as Java, for some time. This is Microsoft's long-awaited version for the .NET framework and community interest is very high.This book aims to give the average ASP.NET developer everything they need to make the leap from traditional ASP.NET practices to ASP.NET MVC techniques. It details the minutiae of the MVC framework, and the official MVC developer's toolkit that supports it, before going further and demonstrating these techniques in action by creating a working eCommerce website - a design that has been widely deployed in traditional ASP.NET and that will serve to highlight the differences well. Finally, the book provides readers with a rapid run-down of how traditional ASP.NET features are applied differently in ASP.NET MVC to get them up and running quickly and to provide a valuable reference as they begin their own projects.

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