Preparing for the Sample Application[1]

Preparing for the Sample Application
The sample application is built using Microsoft SQL Server's Northwind
sample database. If you do not have Microsoft SQL Server available, you can
use the Access/Jet version of the same database, Northwind.mdb file
supplied with the sample files for this book.

TIP

If you're going to use the Northwind database, you'll need to change the
connection string in DataHandler.vb to point to the Northwind.mdb file
supplied with the examples. You can find the connection string in the
DataHandler.vb file in the completed Northwind sample project. You will be
unable to run the examples that involve stored procedures, because
Microsoft Access (and the Jet database engine) doesn't support stored
procedures.



Installing the Examples
We have supplied a Microsoft Installer 2.0 (MSI) file that will create all
the sample applications for this book on your machine. Before you can
install the examples, the following items must be installed on your
computer:

Operating system. You must be running Windows NT Workstation or Server,
Windows 2000 Professional or Server, Windows XP Professional, or Windows
.NET Server. If you have any other OS, you may not be able to run Visual
Studio .NET. Check with Microsoft to see if your operating system will run
Visual Studio .NET. Some operating systems (such as Windows NT) require
additional service packs in order for Visual Studio to run.

Visual Studio .NET. Every example in this book requires you to have Visual
Studio .NET 2002 installed on your computer.

Internet Information Server. IIS is an optional component in non-server
operating systems (such as Windows XP Professional, Windows 2000
Professional, and so on). Use the Control Panel's Add or Remove Programs
option to install IIS.

SQL Server. Although this database system is highly recommended, you can
also use the supplied Access MDB file.

If you have all the installation criteria, you should be able to run all
the examples for this book. To install the sample files, follow these steps:

Go to http://www.pdsa.com/ASPNETJumpstart. You can download the sample
files (and any updates) from this Web site.

Download ASPNETJumpstart.MSI to a location on your local hard drive.

Execute the MSI file by double-clicking it in Windows Explorer.

Follow the prompts presented by Windows Installer, as it installs the
examples.

Once you're done installing the examples, you'll find a new folder tree,
starting with <d>:\ASP.NET Jumpstart. Under this folder, you will find
other folders that are described in the next section.

Before You Get Started
Before you get going, it's important to review some issues that will affect
you as you follow the examples and create your own Web pages throughout the
book. We'd like to take this opportunity to mention some important general
instructions that apply to all the following chapters. Not all these issues
will seem relevant as you're getting ready to start working through the
chapters, but you may want to refer back to this section later on梞ake sure
you at least skim through this list before proceeding so you know what's
covered here:

Folder structure. We've supplied three directory "trees": Jumpstart,
Jumpstart-Completed, and Jumpstart-SampleCode. The Jumpstart folder
contains completed projects, ready for you to run (for example, the
Debugger, ErrorHandling, FrameworkClasses, and VBLanguage folders). These
projects exist outside the main Northwind example and show off particular
features that didn't fit into the main project. This folder also includes
the Northwind-Completed subfolder, which contains the finished sample
project you'll create as you work through this book. You'll also create
your Northwind sample project in this folder, as well as other projects
throughout the book. The Jumpstart-Completed folder contains a series of
subfolders, one corresponding to each chapter in the book in which you
modify the Northwind sample project. Each subfolder contains a full copy of
the Northwind sample project, up to the point of completion at the end of
the corresponding chapter. See the "Typing code" bulleted point for more
information about the third directory tree.

Building the sample project. Our intent, when writing this book, was that
you would work through the chapters in order, building the sample
application as you go. (Some chapters load other projects or have you
create projects not directly related to the Northwind sample project, but
the majority of the chapters foc