Website Development in ASP

Gets into specifics of websites developed in ASP (Active Server Pages)... so far I mostly cover classic ASP, though I'll add some .Net resources eventually. Note: I'm moving links into here from my old ASP links page at www.wilk4.com/links/links4.htm. Check there until this is more complete.

New Link

ASP General #

Good general sites on ASP, often containing articles, tutorials, code samples, etc.

ASP sites are hard to characterize and describe. This is partly because most do much of the same thing, have tutorial articles about coding techniques, samples and links. It's also because many of the ASP sites do a LOT of linking to the same articles on other ASP sites. Additionally, there are many articles out there that just aren't trustworthy or even correct, let alone best-practice. So, finding unique, original content that can be trusted is important to me.

Remember though, that you should test and think about any technique yourself before totally trusting the author. And then, think about how you can improve upon it. Even many original MS official documentation recommendations have been recanted given time and real testing.

4GuysFromRolla - One of the very best ASP/ASP.Net sites out there. Articles, FAQs and tutorials on some of everything. Well-written original content, well-organized, comprehensive and trustworthy.
ASP 101 - one of of the better sites out for tons of quick technique tutorials and some really interesting user-contributed code.
ASP Emporium - free ASP and .Net applications and examples by Bill Gearhart
ASP FAQ - This site has a ton of articles on topics of ASP, databases and advanced SQL. Some are the best, most exhaustive, most professional, ad best linked articles I've seen on many of these topics. Note that this is a different site than aspfaqs.com. Highly Recommended
ASP FAQ - A great reference site for checking common ASP issues. By 4GuysFromRolla.
Developersdex - a large developers site with articles and discussion forums for ASP, .Net, C#, SQL VB, XML, etc
LearnASP - Previously one of the most comprehensive ASP sites around, particularly for its comprehensive set of tutorials with code samples. Still good, though becoming overwhelmed with ad images.
The ASP Resource Index - The place to find links to ASP sites and resources. This is a huge structured directory of links with descriptions, stats, ratings and user comments.

Specific Useful Information #

Juicy nuggets!

ASPFaq: How do I log / track ASP errors on my web site? - This article will quickly guide you through creating a tiny application that will track 500 errors and allow you to review them at the end of the day. (IIS v5.0 and above needed)
ASPFaq: How do I make my ASP pages more efficient? - nc
ASPFaq: How do I manage SQL Server / MSDE? - useful faq article with plenty of detail and links to useful tools
ASPFaq: How do I prevent NULLs in my database from mucking up my HTML? - -
ASPFaq: How do I upsize from Access to SQL Server? - nc
ASPFaq: What are the limitations of MS Access? - good, detailed article on this issue
ASPFaq: What are the limitations of MSDE? (& SQL Server Express 2005) - -
ASPFaq: What are the main differences between Access and SQL Server? - nc
ASPFaq: Why do I get database-related 80004005 errors? - you *will* get these sometime, prepare by bookmarking this
Connection Strings (Prothman) - another excellent reference for data source connection strings, by Carl Prothman
ConnectionStrings.com - an easy reference for all sorts of database connection strings

ASP Web Applications #

Website functions and applications which are implemented in ASP

AnyPortal Site Manager - a web site support tool that lets you view the directory structure of your web site and then add, change or delete files using only your Internet browser. Has a one file footprint, free
SuperLinks Links Manager - Much more than a simple links manager, SuperLinks allows you to easily build and maintain a directory of links anywhere on your site (or your clients' sites). (I highly recommend this! ~jeff)

Tools and Software #

Tools, utilities, and software to help ASP developers/coders

ASP4HS: ASP/PHP/.Net Development Extensions for HomeSite - the spot for people using the HomeSite editor for ASP (Active Server Pages), ASP.Net or PHP development to find help and to exchange add-on extensions, resources, help, links, tips, requests and articles (my site)
ASP.NET Web Matrix - a community-supported, easy-to-use WYSIWYG application development tool for ASP.NET, created by Microsoft, free
ASPFaq: Which editor should I use for developing ASP applications? - a list of some of the many editors that people use for ASP coding.
Microsoft Visual Studio and SQL Server Express - Typically Visual Studio was very expensive, but now Microsoft is offering 'Express' versions of Visual Studio apps for free. "Lightweight, easy-to-use, and easy-to-learn tools for the hobbyist, novice, and student developer."

Looks like a good way to try these apps before buying, or to learn and use them until you grow to need the full ($) set.

(Currently includes Visual Web Developer, Visual Basic, Visual C#, Visual C++, Visual J#, SQL Server Express)
SiteUptime Site Monitoring - Is your Website available? a nice service for monitoring a site. free and inexpensive paid options offering email or SMS alerts, multiple protocols supported, stats reports, etc. I've had good experience with them and recommend them.
Team Remote Debugger - "enables your team to easily edit and debug Active Server Pages (ASP) remotely and locally. VBScript debugging and JavaScript (JScript) debugging is fully supported."

.Net General #

A few ASP.Net sites to get you started...

411 ASP.Net - ASP.NET Resource Index
ASP.Net - Microsoft's official site for ASP.Net, the next generation for ASP.

ASP Components #

Just a few, I'm not listing them all, so don't ask

Pensaworks Component Tests - Use their free component test ASP scripts to check the existence of components on your web server, and to test what mailer components work correctly. Free and excellent!

nCubed.com SuperLinks v1.0