This book begins with you working along as Scott Guthrie builds a
complete ASP.NET MVC reference application. He begins NerdDinner by
using the File->New Project menu command within Visual Studio to
create a new ASP.NET MVC Application. You'll then incrementally add
functionality and features. Along the way you’ll cover how to
create a database, build a model layer with business rule
validations, implement listing/details data browsing, provide CRUD
(Create, Update, Delete) data form entry support, implement
efficient data paging, reuse UI using master pages and partials,
secure the application using authentication and authorization, use
AJAX to deliver dynamic updates and interactive map support, and
implement automated unit testing.
From there, the bulk of the rest of the book begins with the
basic concepts around the model view controller pattern, including
the little history and the state of the MVC on the web today. We'll
then go into the ways that MVC is different from ASP.NET Web Forms.
We'll explore the structure of a standard MVC application and see
what you get out of the box. Next we dig deep into routing and see
the role URLs play in your application. We'll deep dive into
controllers and views and see what role the Ajax plays in your
applications. The last third of the book focuses entirely on
advanced techniques and extending the framework.
In some places, we assume that you're somewhat familiar with
ASP.NET WebForms, at least peripherally. There are a lot of ASP.NET
WebForms developers out there who are interested in ASP.NET MVC so
there are a number of places in this book where we contrast the two
technologies. Even if you're not already an ASP.NET developer, you
might still find these sections interesting for context, as well as
for your own edification as ASP.NET MVC may not be the web
technology that you're looking for.