The Microsoft Expression Web Developer's Guide to ASP.NET 3.5: Learn to create ASP.NET applications using Visual Web Developer 2008

Description

The Microsoft® Expression Web Developer’s Guide

to ASP.NET 3.5

 

Learn to create ASP.NET applications using Visual Web Developer 2008

 

Jim Cheshire

 

“This book is a great reference for web designers new to ASP.NET who are looking to jump start their development with

Visual Web Developer 2008.”

Mikhail Arkhipov

Principal Development Manager – Web Development Tools

Microsoft Corporation

 

Expression Web introduced ASP.NET to a new group of web developers. This book is designed to help you start using ASP.NET right away to add powerful new features to your website. Don’t worry, you won’t have to learn a lot of programming; instead, you’ll create an ASP.NET application from start to finish using Visual Web Developer 2008, while writing only a very small amount of actual programming code.

 

DETAILED INFORMATION ON HOW TO…

     •    Create and work with websites in Visual Web Developer 2008

     •    Use the different compilation and code models in ASP.NET

     •    Configure ASP.NET security and other settings

     •    Use ASP.NET master pages and user controls

     •    Take advantage of ASP.NET membership features for a password-protected website

     •    Use form validation in ASP.NET

     •    Use CSS, skins, and themes

     •    Access, edit, and add data to a database using ASP.NET

     •    Send email using ASP.NET

     •    Use Ajax and ASP.NET Web services

     •    Debug and troubleshoot ASP.NET

          . . . and much more!

 

Jim Cheshire is the author of several books, including Special Edition Using Microsoft Expression Web. He has been working with ASP.NET since before its release. He has been heavily involved in the web design community for more than a decade and is widely considered an expert in Microsoft’s web design technologies. Jim currently works as an escalation engineer on the ASP.NET team at Microsoft.

 

Introduction

Part I Understanding ASP.NET Architecture

Chapter 1 Installing and Configuring ASP.NET

Understanding the .NET Framework and ASP.NET

Configuring ASP.NET

    Configuring ASP.NET on IIS 5.1 or IIS 6.0

    Configuring ASP.NET on IIS 7

    Using the ASP.NET Development Server

Troubleshooting IIS

Chapter 2 ASP.NET Code Models

Understanding ASP.NET Web Form Code

    ASP.NET Directives

    ASP.NET Design-Time Code

Server-Side Code Models

    Inline Server-Side Code

    Code-Behind Server-Side Code

Switching Server-Side Code Models

    Moving from Code-Behind to Inline Code

    Moving from Inline Code to Code-Behind

Choosing a Code Model

Chapter 3 ASP.NET Compilation Models

ASP.NET Compilation

    The Web Application Compilation Model

    The Website Compilation Model

    The Precompilation Model

Automating aspnet_compiler.exe in Visual Web Developer Express Edition

Chapter 4 ASP.NET Events and the Page Lifecycle

An Event-Driven Architecture

Application and Session Events

    Application Events and the Application Lifecycle

    Session Events

Page Events and the Page Lifecycle

    The Importance of the Lifecycle

Investigating the Page Lifecycle

Chapter 5 ASP.NET State Management

A Connectionless Environment

Understanding Application Variables

    Setting an Application Variable

    Retrieving an Application Variable

Understanding Session Variables

Using ASP.NET Caching

    Page Output Caching

    Fragment Caching

    The Cache API

    Retrieving Items from Cache

ASP.NET Viewstate and Control State

Chapter 6 ASP.NET Configuration and Performance

Overview of ASP.NET Configuration

ASP.NET Configuration Files

    Machine Configuration Files

    Application Configuration Files

The Web Site Administration Tool

    Security Tab

    Application Tab

    Provider Tab

ASP.NET Configuration in IIS

    IIS 5.1 and IIS 6

    IIS 7

Encrypting Information in the Configuration Files

Chapter 7 Basic ASP.NET Security

Authentication and Authorization

Configuring Windows Authentication

    Disabling Anonymous Browsing in IIS 5 and 6

    Disabling Anonymous Browsing in IIS 7 (Windows Vista)

Understanding Forms Authentication

Configuring Forms Authentication

    Configuring Forms Authentication with the ASP.NET Web Site Administration Tool

    Configuring Forms Authentication with the ASP.NET Configuration Settings Dialog (IIS 5 or 6 Only)

    Configuring Forms Authentication with the IIS Manager (IIS 7 Only)

Other Forms Authentication Settings

ASP.NET Authorization

    Configuring Authorization with the ASP.NET Configuration Settings Dialog (IIS 5 and 6 Only)

    Configuring Authorization with the IIS Manager (IIS 7 Only)

Why Not Windows Authentication?

Part II Creating ASP.NET Applications and Web Forms

Chapter 8 Creating Websites

The Structure of an ASP.NET Website

    Special Folders in an ASP.NET Application

Creating a Web Application in Visual Web Developer

    File System

    Local IIS

    FTP

    Remote Site

Start Options in Visual Web Developer

    Start Actions

    Server Options

Chapter 9 Creating ASP.NET Web Forms

Creating Web Forms in Visual Web Developer

    Creating ASP.NET Web Forms

    Other File Types Available in Visual Web Developer

Creating Web Pages in Expression Web

Choosing the Right Tool for ASP.NET Application Development

    Using the Code-Behind Model

    Using the Inline Code Model

A Suggested Workflow

    Use Either Tool to Create the Website

    Use Visual Web Developer to Create Pages

    Do Design Work in Either Tool

    Use Either Tool to Configure ASP.NET Controls

    Use Either Tool to Preview Your Pages

    Test ASP.NET Code in Visual Web Developer

    Publish Your Website with Expression Web

Part III Master Pages and User Controls

Chapter 10 Creating and Using Master Pages

An Introduction to Master Pages

Structure of Master Pages and Content Pages

Creating a Master Page

    Adding Content to the Master Page

    Formatting the Master Page

Configuring Navigation Controls

    Creating a Sitemap File

    Configuring the Menu to Use the Sitemap File

Connecting a Page to the Master Page

    Connecting a New Page

    Connecting an Existing Page

Checkpoint

Chapter 11 Creating and Using User Controls

What Are User Controls?

Creating a User Control

Adding User Controls to a Page

    Creating a User Control

    Editing a User Control

Converting a Page to a User Control

Checkpoint

Part IVASP.NET Membership

Chapter 12 Configuring a Membership Database

An Introduction to ASP.NET Membership

    The Membership Provider

Using the Default Membership Database

Using SQL Server 2000 or SQL Server 2005 for Membership

    Configuring the Database

    Configuring the Provider for the New Database

    Configuring the Connection String in IIS 5 or IIS 6

    Configuring the Connection String in IIS 7

    Configuring the Connection String in a Disk-based Application

Checkpoint

Chapter 13 Adding and Managing Users and Roles

Users and Roles

Configuring Authentication

Adding New Users

Enabling and Adding Roles

    Enabling Roles

    Creating Roles

    Adding a User to a Role

Configuring Access Rules

What Happens Under the Hood?

    Configuring Authentication

    Enabling Roles

    Creating Access Rules

Checkpoint

Chapter 14 Adding and Configuring Login and User Management Pages

Configuring the Login Control

    Configuring the Appearance of the Login Control

    Configuring the Behavior of the Login Control

Using the LoginView Control

Creating Accounts Using the CreateUserWizard Control

    Adding the Create User Page

    Adding a Confirmation Page

Resetting Lost Passwords

    Creating the Password Recovery Page

    Configuring ASP.NET for Sending Email

Changing Passwords

A Few Finishing Touches

    Adding a Link to Reset Password

    Adding a Change Password Link

    Fixing the Logo Graphic on the Master Page

Checkpoint

Part VASP.NET Forms and Validation

Chapter 15 Creating Forms Using ASP.NET

Introduction to ASP.NET Forms

Adding and Configuring ASP.NET Form Controls

    Required Elements for the Contact Us Page

    Adding Controls to the Contact Us Page

    Configuring the Topics DropDownList Control

Processing ASP.NET Forms

    The AutoPostBack Property

    The Button Control

    The IsPostBack Property

Displaying a Form Confirmation

    Placing the Form into a Panel

    Adding a Confirmation Message

    Adding Server-Side Code

Checkpoint

Chapter 16 Adding Form Field Validation Using ASP.NET

The Necessity of Form Validation

ASP.NET Validation Controls

    RequiredFieldValidator Control

    RangeValidator

    RegularExpressionValidator Control

    CompareValidator Control

    CustomValidator Control

    ValidationSummary Control

Common Validation Control Properties

    The Text Property

    The Display Property

    The ErrorMessage Property

    The ControlToValidate Property

    The EnableClientScript Property

    The SetFocusOnError Property

    The ValidationGroup Property

Adding and Configuring ASP.NET Validation Controls

Checkpoint

Part VIStyling Web Forms in Visual Web Developer 2008

Chapter 17 Creating and Managing CSS Styles

An Introduction to CSS

    Basic CSS Rules

    External Style Sheets

    Embedded Style Sheets

    Inline CSS Styles

Exploring CSS Classes and IDs

    CSS Classes

    CSS IDs

Using the Style Builder Dialog to Create Styles

    Creating a Simple Style

    Creating a New CSS Class

Using the Style Application Toolbar

    Using the Style Application Toolbar to Apply Formatting

    Applying Formatting to Existing Styles

Managing CSS Styles

    The Manage Styles Pane

    Using the Manage Styles Pane to Add New Styles

    Using the Manage Styles Pane to Modify Styles

Checkpoint

Chapter 18 Applying CSS to Web Forms

Using the Apply Styles Pane

    Applying a Style

    Removing a Previously Applied CSS Class, CSS ID, or Inline Style

Using the CSS Properties Pane

    Examining CSS Styles

    Applying CSS Styles

Checkpoint

Chapter 19 Using ASP.NET Themes and Skins

Introduction to ASP.NET Themes

    Makeup of a Theme

    Global Themes and Page Themes

    Skin Files

Creating a Theme

    Creating the Folder Structure

    Creating a Skin File

    Generating Formatting Code for Controls

    Transferring Formatting Code to the Skin File

Applying a Theme

Default Skins and Named Skins

Using a Theme with CSS Files

Checkpoint

Part VIIData Access with ASP.NET

Chapter 20 ASP.NET Data Controls

Accessing Data in ASP.NET 3.5

ASP.NET Data Source Controls

    SqlDataSource Control

    AccessDataSource Control

    LinqDataSource Control

    ObjectDataSource Control

    XmlDataSource Control

    SiteMapDataSource Control

Configuring a Data Source Control

Other ASP.NET Data Controls

    GridView Control

    DataList Control

    DetailsView Control

    FormView Control

    ListView Control

    Repeater Control

    DataPager Control

Checkpoint

Chapter 21 Displaying Data from a Database

Configuring the Data Source

    Adding an AccessDataSource Control

    Configuring the AccessDataSource Control

    Ordering Data

    Filtering Data

Using Data Controls to Display Data

    Adding a GridView Control

    Adding Paging and Sorting Features

Creating a Master/Detail View

    Configuring the GridView Control

    Adding a Data Source Control for the DetailsView

    Adding and Configuring the DetailsView Control

Checkpoint

Chapter 22 Adding, Editing, and Deleting Records

Creating the Editing Interface

    Adding and Configuring a GridView Control

    Adding and Configuring a New Data Source

    Adding and Configuring the FormView Control

Configuring the Functionality of the Editor

    Adding New Records

    Editing Records

    Deleting Records

Modifying Templates

    Modifying the InsertItemTemplate

    Modifying the EmptyDataTemplate

Checkpoint

Part VIIISending Email with ASP.NET

Chapter 23 Configuring ASP.NET for Email

How ASP.NET Sends Mail

    The System.Net.SmtpClient Class

    The System.Net.MailMessage Class

Modifying the Configuration File for Email

    Adding Email Configuration to the web.config File

    Using the Web Site Administration Tool

Checkpoint

Chapter 24 Sending Form Results to Email

Adding Server-Side Code to Send Email

    Reviewing the Contact Form

    Adding the Code

    Explaining the Code

Sending HTML Emails

Sending Emails with Attachments

Checkpoint

Part IXAjax and Web Services

Chapter 25 Creating and Testing an ASP.NET Web Service

An Explanation of ASP.NET Web Services

    The Structure of a Web Service

    The WSDL Document

Creating an ASP.NET Web Service

Invoking a Web Service Directly

Creating a Dataset for Use with a Web Service

    Creating the Dataset

    Connecting to the Database

    Adding a Parameter

     Using a Dataset with a Web Service

    Testing the Web Service

Using a Web Service in a Web Form

    Adding a Reference to the Web Service

    Adding a Data Source for the DropDownList Control

    Completing the Configuration of the Web Form

Checkpoint

Chapter 26 Adding Ajax Functionality

What Is Ajax?

Microsoft’s ASP.NET AJAX

    Microsoft AJAX Library

    Microsoft ASP.NET AJAX Extensions

    Microsoft AJAX ASP.NET Control Toolkit

Adding Ajax Functionality to a Web Form

    Targeting the .NET Framework 3.5

    Adding a ScriptManager Control

    Adding an UpdatePanel Control

Using the AJAX Library

    Adding Controls to the Web Form

    Creating the Client Library

    Adding the Client Script to the ScriptManagerProxy

Checkpoint

Part XDebugging and Troubleshooting ASP.NET

Chapter 27 Debugging ASP.NET Applications

The Basics of Debugging

Enabling and Configuring Debugging for an ASP.NET Application

    Enabling Debugging

    Configuring Debugging

Debugging Server-Side Code

    Setting a Breakpoint

Examining the State of an Application

    IntelliSense

    The Locals Window

    The Watch Window

    The Immediate Window

Debugging Client-Side Scripts

Using the Error List to Locate Application Errors

Checkpoint

Chapter 28 Handling Errors in an ASP.NET Application

Exceptions and the .NET Framework

    Exception-Handling Blocks

    Bubbling Exceptions

Implementing Structured Exception Handling

    Modifying the btnSend_Click Method

    Adding a Panel to Display Errors

Throwing Exceptions

Adding a Global Exception Handler

Using the <customErrors> Element

    <error> Elements

Checkpoint

Chapter 29 ASP.NET Tracing and Other Troubleshooting Techniques

ASP.NET Tracing

    Enabling Tracing

Analyzing Trace Output

    Request Details

    Trace Information

    Control Tree

    Session State

    Application State

    Request Cookies Collection

    Response Cookies Collection

    Headers Collection

    Response Headers Collection

    Form Collection

    Querystring Collection

    Server Variables

ASP.NET Health Monitoring

    Configuring the Application for Health Monitoring

    Viewing Health Monitoring Logs

Monitoring the Network with Fiddler

Checkpoint

Part XIDeploying ASP.NET Applications

Chapter 30 Publishing an ASP.NET Application

Using the Copy Web Site Tool

    Connecting to a Remote Site

    Copying Websites with the Copy Web Site Feature

Special Considerations for Membership Websites

    Obtaining the Application Name from the Database

    Editing the web.config File

Wrapping Up

Appendix Application Settings in Visual Web Developer