Microsoft's Active Server Pages

Microsoft's Active Server Pages (ASP) technology provides a framework for building dynamic HTML pages which enable Internet and Intranet applications to be interactive. ASP's are implemented using server side scripting that can be performed in any language such as Visual Basic, Microsoft's JScript, Java or C. ASP allows interaction with ODBC compliant databases on the web server, such as; Microsoft Access, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Informix, or Sybase. ActiveX controls can optionally be used to encapsulate functions on the client computer that interact with ASP on the server.

An Active Server Page is developed in a text file just like an HTML page. Developers can use any text editor to create an ASP. Microsoft's Front Page product supports inserting server-side scripts and saving files as ASP.

Both Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer browsers as well as other browsers can view ASP pages because the ASP is executed on the server and delivered to the client computer as simple HTML.

ASP's initially executed only on Microsoft's IIS web server until a company called ChiliSoft developed Chili!ASP which is a software product that facilitates ASP functions on web servers other than Microsoft's IIS web server, such as; Netscape's NT-based web servers like Enterprise or FastTrack , Lotus Domino Go Webserver, or O'Reilly's WebSite. The ChiliSoft site has a nice introduction to server objects (found under Product link, then ChiliASP link). It describes the objects; Request, Response, Application, Server, and Session which provide the framework for developing Active Server Pages applications.

Active Server Pages (ASP) provides powerful and flexible Web session management to help maintain web visitors selections.

Microsoft Technical Resources

Internet Information Server is the web server embedded in Windows NT that supports Active Server Pages.

Sample ASP applications of are provided at this Microsoft site with demos and source code.

Developer Sites

ASP Developer's Network provides links to FAQ's, tutorials, commericial products, consulting services, and bug fixes. It contains working examples of active server pages along with the ASP source code.

ASPWatch Real World Active Server Pages Solutions and Resources. Features news, tutorials, ASP documentation, Source Code, tools, and more.

ASP Developer's Site contains tutorials, ASP documentation, FAQ's, ASP Source Code, developer's tools, and a consultants list. This site states it is the "unauthorized" technical support site for ASP developers.

15 Seconds provides information for Microsoft Internet Information Server developers that includes FAQs, consultant directory, mailing list, and comprehensive book reviews section. The article Ten Reasons to Choose ASP provides a brief run down of ASP platforms and capabilities.

Ken's Active Server Pages and VB Script Demos provides a few examples of Active Server Pages. Take a quick look at the Classic Hits demos to get the feel of interactivity.

Articles

ASP 101 A Database Interfacing Primer provides an introduction to how to add, change and delete records in a Microsoft Access database

Visual InterDev and ASP is a PC Magazine tutorial article that explains how to use Microsoft's Visual Interdev to develop an ASP powered web site.

The ABCs Of ASP is an article that introduces ASP as a server side scripting language. It shows examples of HTML tags used in the server side HTML.

Mailing List and News Groups

15 Seconds has instructions to get on an Active Server Pages Mailing List for technical exchange.

MSnews is a link to a news server at Microsoft for ASP's.

Extencia is a news server at news.extencia.com for ASP developers.