I found this book to be OK as an introduction, but not very deep on the UpdatePanel, which is one of the core components for Microsoft's AJAX solution. Also, the book is based on the earlier Atlas CTPs, and the newer [...] Betas have drastically changed some things. Worthwhile, but I'm not finding it a reference that I have by my side all the time. Probably should be updated when GA comes out.

If you're not already using Microsoft's new framework for building Ajax-savvy web sites, you should be - and PROGRAMMING ATLAS is the perfect vehicle to take you there. It may look like a 'cookbook' of recipes, but it's not - it's a survey of the underlying technology concepts that make Ajax work, from those most often associated with Ajax to understanding its design and tool intentions. With these basics in hand programmers will find Atlas a snap to master - thanks to PROGRAMMING ATLAS.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Programming Atlas, by Christian Wenz, is a good treatment of the upcoming ASP.NET Ajax release. Microsoft decided to change the name of the product from Atlas to ASP.NET 2.0 Ajax after more than two years in development. Even though the name may be out of date, the material in this book is not.

Wenz does a great job explaning how Ajax works and the role of JavaScript in it. He quickly covers basic JavaScript syntax and moves quickly into client side programming using Atlas. His methods of presenting segmented and documented code examples followed by the complete example is very reinforcing.

The topics covered are broad, including:

Client Side Ajax
Server Side Programming for Ajax
Atlas Controls
Databinding with Atlas
Creating custom components
XML-Script
Ajax.NET

I was confused when I saw the chapter on Ajax.NET. I wouldn't expect to see a chapter on Castle if I bought a book on Spring.NET, or IBatis.NET in a book on NHibernate. It seems the space could have been used for a deeper treatment of other topics.

The book is well written, with very few errors. I would recommend this for anyone who has some development skill, works in .NET 2.0, and does web-client development.

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for understanding what Atlas is, however, since the release of Web Extentions (formerly Atlas) Beta 1.0 it is severly outdated.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.

Are you a web developer? If you are, then this book is for you. Author Christian Wenz, has done an outstanding job of writing a book for developers who are using ASP.NET and would like to take their applications a step further by using the Ajax technology; and, for developers who are using another technology, but are interested in the Atlas framework.

Wenz, begins with an overview of Ajax and the Atlas framework and then covers the installation of Atlas, a review of its structure, and a first simple example. Then, the author conducts a concise introduction to JavaScript. Next, he explains the technologies beyond the hype. The author continues by describing the client-side controls that come with Atlas. He also covers how you can perform declarative data binding, meaning that you can program without having to write code. Next, the author shows you the built-in behaviors of Atlas and how to attach their functionality to client-side controls and components. The author also focuses on graphical effects you can implement with Atlas, including opacity animations and automatic positioning of page elements. Then, he describes how Atlas enriches the functionality of client-side JavaScript by adding new OOP-like features and even re-implementing some classes ofthe.NET Framework so that they can be used on the client side. The author continues by explaining how you connect to databases. He also deals with XML web services. Next, the author focuses on the extender controls in atlas that do what their name suggests. The author also shows you how easy it is to use the Virtual Earth API from Atlas. Then, he shows you ways to reuse Atlas components. Next, the author introduces the Atlas Control Toolkit and shows you how to write custom extender controls. He continues by proving that some parts of the Atlas framework are not tied to ASP.NET 2.0. Finally, he presents alternative ways to use the Ajax technology with ASP.NET, be it with ASP.NET.x or by using ASP.NET 2.0 without Atlas.

This most excellent book is also suitable for JavaScript programmers who would like to avoid some of the headaches caused by the necessity of writing cross-browser code. More importantly, this book will show you how to create professional, dynamic web pages by using the Microsoft Atlas framework.