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Programming Atlas

By Christian Wenz
September 2006
Pages: 404
ISBN 10: 0-596-52672-5 | ISBN 13: 9780596526726
(Average of 4 Customer Reviews)

Description

Programming Atlas is not just another "drag and drop" ASP.NET book, but one that teaches you the fundamental Ajax technologies that make Atlas work. You'll begin with a tour of JavaScript, XMLHttpRequest, JSON and the DOM. With the fundamentals in place, author Christian Wenz unpacks the Atlas framework and shows you how to put its tools to work building more interactive web sites. Also available is a free guide that shows readers of this book how to migrate its content and examples to ASP.NET AJAX Version 1.0, the successor to Atlas.
Full Description

Learn how to deliver richer, more interactive web experiences to your users using ASP.NET Atlas, Microsoft's new framework for building Ajax-savvy web sites. Web developers of all persuasions have embraced the Ajax suite of technologies (JavaScript, HTTP, XML and more) as a way to implement pages that are faster, livelier and more desktop-like in their behavior. Now Atlas brings the power of Ajax to ASP.NET 2.0 developers with controls, script libraries and server support that delivers engaging results without the pain that writing complex JavaScript can entail. Better yet, Atlas web pages are standards based and even run cross-browser.

Programming Atlas is not just another "drag and drop" ASP.NET 2.0 book, but dives into the technologies that make it work. You'll begin with a tour of the technologies most often associated with Ajax, from JavaScript and XMLHttpRequest to JSON and the DOM. With the fundamentals in place, author JavaScript expert Christian Wenz unpacks the Atlas framework and shows you how to put its tools to work. You'll learn to:

Understand the architecture of Atlas and the role played by server conrols, such as ScriptManager and UpdatePanel
Use core Atlas controls and extenders to build more interactive pages with text fields that autocomplete, user input that is validated, controls that can be dragged and dropped, and much more
Bind, display, and update data without causing the entire page to refresh and use the Atlas web services bridge to consume third-party services beyond the domain of your application
Incorporate Microsoft Virtual Earth into an application, use Atlas with Web Parts, and create a Windows Live Gadget
Use Atlas with PHP and explore other non-Microsoft Ajax tools for ASP.NET

Featured customer reviews

Author posted a PDF with 1.0 changes; brings book up to date, March 09 2007

Rating:

Submitted by Anonymous Reader [Respond | View]

Many people slam this book because the code examples weren't updated yet for the 1.0 release of MS AJAX. But the author did release a PDF with the 1.0 updates. Go to the "Post-purchase benefits" section of the Oreilly book page and click on "Version 1.0 Update".

I understand the author is currently updating the code for the download zip.

Examples not longer work, December 11 2006

Rating:

Submitted by Joe L [Respond | View]

I bought this book at a place called Half Price Books. No wonder it was 1/2 price. It is already out of date. Also the download examples show three zip files with no help on which ones to download. But it doesn't make any difference as none of the code now works with ASP.NET AJAX (the laster namve for Atlas as of December 2006). Otherwise, there is still interesting background information. Just don't use as a reference or you will be confused in your coding.

already out of date, November 06 2006

Rating:

Submitted by Alex [Respond | View]

Only get this book if you are really desperate to learn it now. Much of the topic has already changed with first Beta release. It's not even called Atlas anymore. Still, until something more up-to-date comes along, some of it can be useful as an introduction until although I wish it had more detail on things like JSON serialization. Hopefully the will update it fast.

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Good background but already outdated, November 03 2006

Rating:

Submitted by Anonymous Reader [Respond | View]

This book rovides a good background for understanding what Atlas is however since the release of Web Extentions (formerly Atlas) Beta 1.0 it is severly outdated. Most examples no longer work and some discribed features have been eliminated.

Recommendation is to pass on this title and wait for a release version.

Media reviews
"The definitive work on a compelling new platform. Wenz does for Atlas what Grisham does for courtrooms. Superb!"
-- Jeff Prosise, Wintellect

"...provides a comprehensive, in-depth look at Atlas, and give you everything you need to know to build rich web applications, gadgets, and components with Atlas."
-- Shanku Niyogi, Product Unit Manager, UI Framework and Services Team, Microsoft

"So... If you're already using Visual Studio tools and .NET to program your applications, definitely use Atlas to let Microsoft do the heavy lifting for you. This particular book can help you consolidate all the information that's been written to date on the technology, and allow you to get moving more quickly than you would if you decided to dig it all out via the Web."
-- Thomas Duff, Duffbert's Random Musings

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"The definitive work on a compelling new platform. Wenz does for Atlas what Grisham does for courtrooms. Superb!"
--Jeff Prosise, Wintellect

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