ASP.NET MVC was New 18 Months Ago
I first heard about ASP.NET MVC in October 2008 (at the VSLive! conference). Scott Hanselman gave a keynote that presented an overview and announced the beta release. At that point, it looked interesting, but with all of the new technologies that have been thrown at us over the last several years, I couldn't devote any time to look into it. Plus, I was comfortable with WebForms, having spent the previous 3 years developing fairly significant web apps.
So, here we are a year and a half later. I was struggling with a project at work. I knew that I could accomplish the task with WebForms, but all of my UI designs that I had worked through on the whiteboard seemed to come out as a mess. I had a nagging feeling that ASP.NET MVC was the solution to this problem. I took some time to look into it some more, and it turns out that it was the right direction.
Why ASP.NET MVC was the Answer
My main problem is that I needed to present data to the user in a different format depending on the record type. And I wouldn't know the record type until run time. ASP.NET WebForms is a "page first" model. This means that the user requests a particular page (through a URL). The page is then processed on the server which then presents the output to the user. ASP.NET MVC is an "action first" model. This means that instead of requesting a physical page, the user requests an action (also through a URL). This action is processed by a Controller. In my situation, the Controller can instantiate the Model (from my business layer) and then, based on the record type, can present the specific View (aspx page) that is appropriate.
So, I've taken a crash course in ASP.NET MVC. After going through some on-line training and working through a simple test app, I'm convinced that this is the right solution for this particular project. The design is much cleaner and will be easier to maintain.
Resources
I was fortunate enough to win a 1-year subscription to the Pluralsight OnDemand! library. In the library is a 10 hour on-line course for ASP.NET MVC, and I took a couple of days last week to go through it. This was an excellent resource. (If you are interested in trying Pluralsight OnDemand! yourself, just stop by the website; they offer 7-day trial subscriptions if you drop them a note.)
In addition, I picked up "ASP.NET MVC Framework Unleashed" by Stephen Walther as a printed reference. I'm still working my way through the book, but I've found a lot of useful information so far.
More to Come
Stay tuned for more to come. My project at work is still in progress. I'll have a lot of learnings from it (as I do with most of my projects). When I run across interesting items, good tips, and pitfalls, I'll be sure to post them here.
Happy Coding!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Jeremy on .NET Rocks! (sort of)
Okay, so now that I have your attention, I wasn't really on .NET Rocks!. But Carl and Richard did read my e-mail on show #525. Here's a link (if you're curious): .NET Rocks! Show #525. You can skip ahead to about 4 minutes in.
And BTW, they are sending me a hoody.
And BTW, they are sending me a hoody.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Quick Byte: Statement Lambdas
Overview
The first time I came across a lambda expression, I was perplexed. I could tell that something important was going on, but I got stuck on the new syntax. As I studied them some more, I had an "aha" moment, and it all clicked into place. This is a brief runthrough of that process with statement lambdas.
Get It Here
You can get the walkthrough (just a short 3-page one) and sample code here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Direct Links:
PDF Walkthrough
Code Download
Let me know what you think. If you find this useful (or not), drop me a note at feedback@jeremybytes.com.
Happy Coding!
The first time I came across a lambda expression, I was perplexed. I could tell that something important was going on, but I got stuck on the new syntax. As I studied them some more, I had an "aha" moment, and it all clicked into place. This is a brief runthrough of that process with statement lambdas.
Get It Here
You can get the walkthrough (just a short 3-page one) and sample code here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Direct Links:
PDF Walkthrough
Code Download
Let me know what you think. If you find this useful (or not), drop me a note at feedback@jeremybytes.com.
Happy Coding!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
SoCal Code Camp
Thank you!
A big thank you to everyone who attended my sessions at the SoCal Code Camp. I had a great time, and I hope that all of you did, too.
As a reminder, for all of my sessions: the slides, code samples, and walkthroughs are available here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Drop me a note if you had a chance to attend. I'd love to hear what you thought.
A big thank you to everyone who attended my sessions at the SoCal Code Camp. I had a great time, and I hope that all of you did, too.
As a reminder, for all of my sessions: the slides, code samples, and walkthroughs are available here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Drop me a note if you had a chance to attend. I'd love to hear what you thought.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Introduction to XAML with WPF
(Editor's note: I will be presenting this topic at the SoCal Code Camp Jan 30 & 31, 2010.)
Overview
Understanding XAML (eXtensible Application Markup Language) is a key to creating the latest .NET user experiences in WPF and Silverlight. We will introduce the basic concepts around XAML and take a look at various features such as namespaces, elements, properties, events, attached properties and some basic layout. We’ll create a simple WPF application that covers these fundamentals. Although you will probably end up doing most of your UI design with a drag-and-drop tool such as Expression Blend, knowing the internals gives you a leg up in making the final tweaks to ensure an excellent user experience.
Get It Here
As mentioned in a previous post, the demos are now available in PDF form here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Direct Links:
PDF Walkthrough
Code Download
Happy coding!
Overview
Understanding XAML (eXtensible Application Markup Language) is a key to creating the latest .NET user experiences in WPF and Silverlight. We will introduce the basic concepts around XAML and take a look at various features such as namespaces, elements, properties, events, attached properties and some basic layout. We’ll create a simple WPF application that covers these fundamentals. Although you will probably end up doing most of your UI design with a drag-and-drop tool such as Expression Blend, knowing the internals gives you a leg up in making the final tweaks to ensure an excellent user experience.
Get It Here
As mentioned in a previous post, the demos are now available in PDF form here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Direct Links:
PDF Walkthrough
Code Download
Happy coding!
Monday, January 4, 2010
Introduction to Data Templates and Value Converters in Silverlight 3
(Editor's note: I will be presenting this topic at the SoCal Code Camp Jan 30 & 31, 2010.)
Overview
Business applications are all about data, and laying out that data is critical to creating a good user experience. Fortunately, Silverlight 3 has several tools, including Data Templates and Value Converters, that make this easier for the business application developer to manage. Today, we'll take a look at consuming a WCF service and creating the layout of the data. By the time we're done, you should have a good understanding of the basics of Data Templates and Value Converters.
Get It Here
As mentioned in a previous post, the demos are now available in PDF form here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Here's some direct links:
PDF Walkthough
Code Download
Happy coding!
Overview
Business applications are all about data, and laying out that data is critical to creating a good user experience. Fortunately, Silverlight 3 has several tools, including Data Templates and Value Converters, that make this easier for the business application developer to manage. Today, we'll take a look at consuming a WCF service and creating the layout of the data. By the time we're done, you should have a good understanding of the basics of Data Templates and Value Converters.
Get It Here
As mentioned in a previous post, the demos are now available in PDF form here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
Here's some direct links:
PDF Walkthough
Code Download
Happy coding!
Friday, January 1, 2010
More Demos Coming
A New Direction
Okay, so I've posted several demo articles here so far. The unfortunate thing is that the blogging tool I've been using is not the easiest thing to use for these demos. One of the primary shortcomings is the inability to have code samples that can easily be copy/pasted. With this in mind, I've decided to post upcoming demos as PDFs (along with downloadable code samples). I think this should improve usability for me and my readers.
You can get the PDFs and code samples here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
If you miss the HTML walkthroughs and really want to see them again, just post me a message at feedback@jeremybytes.com, and I'll see what I can do for future articles.
Okay, so I've posted several demo articles here so far. The unfortunate thing is that the blogging tool I've been using is not the easiest thing to use for these demos. One of the primary shortcomings is the inability to have code samples that can easily be copy/pasted. With this in mind, I've decided to post upcoming demos as PDFs (along with downloadable code samples). I think this should improve usability for me and my readers.
You can get the PDFs and code samples here: http://www.jeremybytes.com/Demos.aspx.
If you miss the HTML walkthroughs and really want to see them again, just post me a message at feedback@jeremybytes.com, and I'll see what I can do for future articles.
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