The core of the book is the object reference for ASP coding. Six chapters document all the key programmable ASP objects and each includes an area on Comments/Troubleshooting, Properties Reference, Methods Reference, and Events Reference and offers further explanatory text where necessary. Weissinger uses frequent, brief coding examples to illustrate each important topic. He closes the middle section of this book with details on pre-processing directives and the Global.ASA file.

The last part of the book discusses ActiveX Data Objects, NT Server Collaboration Data Objects, and a number of server components (such as the Ad Rotator, Content Rotator, My Info, Page Counter, and Permission Checker) in depth. ASP in a Nutshell provides a concise but detailed breakdown of all key ASP coding topics. --Stephen W. Plain

Product Description
Active Server Pages (ASP) has become a standard for developing server-side Web applications. Prior to the development of ASP and other earlier scripting solutions, such as Sun's Java, Netscape's JavaScript, and Microsoft's VBScript, all information served to the client's browser was static -- the Web server did not dynamically generate any part of the site's content. ASP allows Web developers to dynamically generate browser-neutral content.

ASP in a Nutshell provides the high-quality documentation that developers really need to create effective ASP applications. It focuses on how features are used in a real application and highlights little-known or undocumented features as well. This book also includes an overview of the interaction of the latest release of Internet Information Server (version 4) and ASP, with an introduction to the IIS object model and the objects it comprises. The examples given in this section and throughout the book are illustrated in VBScript.

This book is written for Web developers with an extensive knowledge base and years of experience behind them. Like other books in the In a Nutshell series, this book offers the facts, including critical background information, in a no-nonsense manner that users will refer to again and again. It is a detailed reference that enables even experienced Web developers to advance their ASP applications to new levels.

The main components covered in this book are:

• Active Server Pages Introduction. Brief overview of the ASP application paradigm with examples in VBScript. Also an introduction to Microsoft's Internet Information Server 4.0, the IIS object model, and the objects that it comprises.
• Object Reference. Each object is discussed in the following manner: descriptions, properties, collections, methods, events, accessory files/required DLLs, and remarks, including real-world uses, tips and tricks, and author's experience (where applicable). The objects: Application, Response, Request, Server, Session, ObjectContext, as well as ASP Directives, Global.ASA, and SS Includes all follow this paradigm.
• Component Reference. This section follows the same paradigm detailed in Object Reference. The discussion covers Active Data Objects, Ad Rotator, Browser capabilities, File Access, Tools, and more.
• Appendices. Gives examples in one or two objects and components using Perl, REXX, and Python in ASP.

  The information in this book is written in a no-nonsense manner. Readers will find high-quality documentation and useful examples throughout. It is a detailed reference that provides Web developers with the information they need to develop effective ASP applications.

The book helped me *VERY* quickly go through ASP 3.0 and now I feel very comfortable reading the .NET books and can now truly appreciate ASP.NET.

A GREAT reference book!


Needs a VBScript/JScript book to complement it...   February 20, 2003
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Be warned, if like I did, you think that this is the only book you'll need to be able to build ASP scripts; you're very much mistaken. Whenever I recommend this book, I always recommend it alongside VBScript in a Nutshell as you really need knowledge of an ASP supported scripting language before you can use ASP in a Nutshell to it's full potential!

This is yet another reference book that I've owned both editions of because I thought it was useful enough to update; but then, my site is developed using ASP, so I'm probably biased in this respect. Ok, so I got the 1st Edition late on in the game and was a little reluctant to part with cash for the new edition - but as IIS 5 started to become standard for Windows hosting, and I had access to it after getting Windows XP Pro... I thought it was about time I updated it.

ASP in a Nutshell is my first point of reference when I'm looking up the properties of a particular ASP object. I've also found it an invaluable guide for connecting and manipulating ASP scripts that used ADO for data storage and manipulation. For a while it was the only book I owned that covered the issue of connecting ASP scripts to databases.

Most of the installable components I'd never heard of before getting the book, just as well really because few are of much use - even if they aren't available on your system, a lot can be easily reproduced. The areas I find myself most frequently refering to are the main set of ASP objects, the FileSystem Object and the ActiveX Data Objects. These go into enough detail to keep all but the experienced programmers happy.

For those new to the Windows scene, there is a brief but detailed guide to setting up ASP to work with your IIS server; but it's hardly rocket science since a clean install of IIS will set up most (if not all) of what you need anyway! If you use ASP regularly, or you intend to, then ASP in a Nutshell should be on your desktop... but please remember it won't fulfill all your ASP development needs without another book to fill in the language gaps. What book you choose to accompany it depends on your language and experience... I personally like VBScript in a Nutshell.