on the .NET Frameworks team, offers the following advice for getting started learning and coding
Step 1: Download and Install the .NET SDK
ASP.NET is provided as part of the .NET SDK, which is a collection
of all the technologies necessary to create, build, and test .NET
Framework-based applications. Download and install the .NET SDK. The download is about 111 MB; there is, however, an option to download the SDK as a series of smaller files.
Step 2: Install the .NET Framework Quickstart Samples
Once you've installed the SDK, you should also install the .NET
Framework Quickstart Samples. Included within the .NET SDK, the
Quickstart samples contain detailed examples of various ASP.NET
features and other .NET technologies.
To install the Quickstart samples:
- Open the SDK Overview link (".NET Framework SDK Overview"), which is added to your desktop during the SDK installation.
- Once this HTML page is open, follow the "The .NET Framework Samples" link.
- Follow the installation steps to install the samples.
- After installation is complete you can access the samples at http://localhost/quickstart/default.htm.
- Finally,
once you navigate to the default document, you can select the ASP.NET
link at the top of the page. This link contains a listing of the
ASP.NET samples.
Step 3: Join the ASPNG Discussion List
Charles Carroll, one of a growing group of ASP.NET community
leaders, is graciously hosting an e-mail-based discussion list for
ASP.NET.
This discussion list is one of the best places to learn and
contribute to the growing pool of developer knowledge surrounding
ASP.NET. Charles monitors and filters all messages to ensure that
posted topics are relevant to the list, so you'll never get any spam or
off-topic discussions.
In addition to the community aspects of the list, the Microsoft .NET
Framework team regularly participates in the discussions and posts
sample code. Most recently, Scott Guthrie posted a dynamic
image-generation ASP.NET sample.
To join the discussion list simply visit http://www.asplists.com/asplists/aspng.asp.
On this page you will find a complete listing of ASP.NET related e-mail
discussion lists on a variety of topics. The most active list, and the
one that I suggest joining, is ASPNGBeta. Select ASPNGBeta from the
list. You can even visit http://www.asplists.com/asplists/aspngbeta.asp directly and select the options for how you wish to receive the e-mail distribution.
Step 4: Frequently Asked Questions
Will my existing ASP application break if I install the SDK and use ASP.NET?
No, ASP.NET applications can run side-by-side with existing ASP applications.
The file extensions used by ASP (.asp, .asa) and those used by
ASP.NET (.aspx, .asax, .ascx, .asmx, etc.) are completely separate and
do not override each other. Furthermore, a separate ISAPI extension
handles the processing of ASP.NET applications.
One caveat: Although ASP and ASP.NET applications can run
side-by-side, even within the same directory, they share no application
information. For example, settings made within global.asa will not
apply to ASP.NET applications; settings made in global.asax will not
apply to ASP applications. Similarly, Application and Session state
information is not shared. Session data added for a user in an ASP.NET
application is not available for that same user in an ASP application
unless it is re-created.
Is Visual Studio or some other tool required to create ASP.NET pages?
No. Although Visual Studio .NET will provide an amazing design,
coding, and debugging environment, it is not required to build ASP.NET
applications. ASP.NET follows the same "just hit save" design principle
of ASP: Any text-based editing application may be used to create
ASP.NET applications. When an ASP.NET page is first accessed, it is
compiled automatically, and future requests will access the compiled
resource.
Does ASP.NET run on Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows Me?
No. You can certainly use one of these platforms as your development
machine, but your ASP.NET application must run on a Web server, either
Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003, with IIS installed.
Step 5: Learn more
In this step I've attempted to outline some of the great resources
already available online, in print, and in person. I will continue to
list new resources and upcoming events as I learn about them.
IBuySpy Microsoft ASP.NET Sample Application
IBuySpy is a
full-feature, e-commerce application that provides an excellent
introduction to building high-performance, scalable Web applications by
using ASP.NET. You can browse the sample application online, including
full source code and documentation, or you can download a complete C#
or Visual Basic .NET version of the application.
ASP.NET Hosting
Brinkster Inc.,
the largest free ASP Web host, is now offering free ASP.NET hosting.
Members get 5 MB of space to test and learn ASP.NET. The membership is
for testing and learning purposes, and will give developers an
opportunity to explore this new technology. Brinkster has been offering
free ASP hosting for more than a year and is a leader in the
ASP/ASP.NET hosting market.
Community Sites and Distribution Lists
The community (people, events, discussion lists, newsgroups, etc.)
forming for ASP.NET is fantastic, not to mention one of the best places
to get questions answered and problems solved. A few of the sites are
hosting Quickstart samples online—which means that you can try ASP.NET,
but never install it!
- http://www.aspfree.com—This
is one of the more comprehensive ASP.NET community sites, run by Steve
Schofield. Here you can find a dozen articles on ASP.NET, along with
the ASP.NET Quickstart samples online; a great alternative for learning
ASP.NET if you can't install the .NET SDK. As a bonus, Chapter 1 from
the Wrox Press book, A Preview of ASP.NET, is available online as well.
- http://www.aspng.com—Another
of the more comprehensive ASP.NET related sites. ASPNG includes links
to ASP.NET classes hosted by Charles Carroll and ASP.NET workshops
hosted by Stephen Walther. Finally, ASPNG hosts one of the more active
e-mail discussion lists (see http://www.asplists.com).
- http://www.ASP101.com—A couple of ASP.NET related articles and an ASP.NET forum for threaded, Web-based discussions.
- http://www.asptoday.com—Wrox
Press's online magazine already has 10 articles written on ASP.NET,
ranging from ADO+ to building server controls.
- http://www.4guysfromrolla.com—4GuysFromRolla
has a bunch of articles and other related resources, including some
articles on ADO+, as well as a detailed overview article of ASP.NET
itself.
- http://www.devx.com—Finally,
devx.com contains one of the more comprehensive listings of ASP.NET and
.NET-related resources available. From books to Web sites to events,
you'll find something of interest here.
