If you’re reading this article, either you’ve already started coding ASP.NET pages or you’re thinking about learning it. There’s a lot to know in the .NET world. Few of us are truly experts, even if we hold certifications. I’m always learning something new, and I’ve been developing with .NET for 3 years now.

There is so much to know and there are so many sources of knowledge, that it can seem like a daunting task to jump in and start doing useful things. Your mind might spin, and you don’t know where to start. No worries, there is a method to the madness. Grab an IDE, a practice database, and start reading…

Getting an IDE

Get Visual Studio (costs money, sometimes provided by your company) or Visual Web Developer Express (free download here from Microsoft). I don’t know any serious ASP.NET developer who isn’t using one of those tools, so anyone offering you help will assume you have one. I’m sorry, but Dreamweaver sucks for .NET development. If you were using it for classic ASP, you’ll want to ditch it for ASP.NET.

When you get Studio or Web Developer Express, you’ll be prompted to download and install the .NET Framework if you haven’t yet done so.

Get a database to query

You can download SQL Server Express edition from Microsoft for free. Grab the AdventureWorks database as well as the older Northwind database. While Northwind was written for SQL Server 2000, it mounts just fine for 2005, and its data structure is far simpler and easier for a new person to work with.

Actually, I’m not new and I still prefer Northwind for its simplicity, as I usually use it for testing and learning .NET things, not database things. If you want to be a DBA, use AdventureWorks. If you want to learn to code .NET, use Northwind.

Learning the .NET platform

Now that you have the basic developer tools, you’re ready to dive in and learn to code.

1. Read the basic tutorials on the ASP.NET QuickStart guide. Read it all at a high level first and let it sink in. After reading and digesting, go back through them again and actually follow with Visual Studio or Visual Web Developer Express to make them work.
2. Check out the beginner tutorials on w3schools.com
3. Get familiar with the MSDN documentation. You should know how to check out members, methods, properties, and events for the objects you use. For example, if you need to know how to get a record count when you’re using SqlDataReader, you pop over to the documentation and look up the class. If you look under Members, you will see a RecordsAffected member; click on that link and scroll down to Remarks, you will see details on how it works, and a caveat that it only works after all rows are read and the reader has been closed.
   I believe that learning to read and use the MSDN documentation is the single most important skill you will need in order to develop with .NET.
4. Visit the walkthroughs on MSDN. There are thousands of walkthroughs, so you’re sure to find some that apply to what you need to do. Nearly all ASP.NET sites deal with CRUD operations with a database, so be sure to check out the Basic Data Access in Web Pages walkthrough.
   If you find yourself thinking that a particular task you’re trying to accomplish is far too complicated you’re probably doing it wrong. Check these walkthroughs to make sure you’re Keeping It Simple.
5. Start lurking on forums.asp.net. The forums are a GREAT place to learn. I don’t know about you, but I have a hell of a time coming up with problems to solve, especially since I know how to do the basics already. I learn by doing, so I need a task to complete. As you lurk, see how many of the questions you can figure out the answers to. Try to solve the problems yourself, even if you never post a thing. Follow the answers given by others.
6. Get RSS feeds / bookmarks of your favorite developer sites. Some of my favorites, in no particular order: Code Junkies, The Daily WTF, DevX, CodingHorror, StackOverflow, Digg.com Programming, ITToolbox,  and C# Corner.

Do you have any more pointers to share with us? Sites that helped you learn and grow as a developer? Share them in the comments! Did you find this article helpful? I write these in order to help my fellow developers, so if you found it helpful, I’d love it if you shared it and passed it along. Thanks!