800+ Hours

"I tried to learn .NET by taking boot camp classes that cost me $6,000. After taking the classes, I discovered tons of free (and very cheap) videos on the internet created by experts in the field. I found the videos to be much better than the classrooms. The videos were presented by Microsoft presenters that knew the material backwards and forwards, and they were much cheaper and better than the classroom teachers. I have spent the last three years organizing and hunting down the videos for my own use and decided that all could benefit by sharing what I found." - Wade Harvey

Click Here for Free 24 hour pass to lynda.com.
I AM VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS AMAZING NEW DISCOVERY
Over 40,000 Top-Notch Video Tutorials (or 3,452 hours) on Lynda.com
I had stumbled across Lynda.com many times before, but never stopped to try it out. I recently took the plunge and started using Lynda.com to help me improve my javascript skills (See Javascript Essential Training 2007 by Dori Smith). It has revolutionized my understanding of the language! I love the fact that the exercise files allow you to follow along in real time with what the instructor is saying. Learning by doing is an extremely powerful technique. I have to give the site an A+ for both quality and content.

I am planning on using Lynda Videos to help me improve in:

1. HTML
2. CSS
3. Classic ASP
4. .NET (included in ASP section)
5. AJAX
6. Silverlight (in Microsoft Section)
7. SharePoint (in Microsoft Section)
8. Web Design
9. Blogging
10. SEO
11. and much more

You can learn more about Lynda.com by watching the 5-minute video at About Lynda.com. If you are only focusing on .NET, you are missing out on the "big picture" and on many of the underlying fundamentals! To be an Ideal Programmer, you need to have the largest knowledge base possible.

Looking for premium .NET Training Videos? The best premium .NET Videos that I have found are at Learn Visual Studio. Those videos are only about 50 cents per hour, as compared to $25 per hour that other sites charge!

LearnVisualStudio is currently having a 25% off sale ($50 savings) and giving away a free membership to TrainingSpot ($60 value) when LVS Lifetime Membership is purchased.




Limited Time Offer: Free Lifetime Membership to Progress Monitor ($24.95 value) when you purchase any membership at Learn Visual Studio, Lynda Videos or any hosting account at DiscountASP - just forward order confirmation to harvey007@sbcglobal.net

800+ Hours of Visual Studio, Visual Basic.NET, C# Database, SQL Server, and ASP.NET Video Tutorials

Video Series

Where Do I Start?

If you are new to .NET programming, here is the path you should take (note: most of the videos in these two beginning video series refer to 2005 editions, but 2008 is current and you should use that instead):

1. SQL Server 2005 Express (8 hours)
2. ASP.NET: Soup To Nuts (26 hours)
3. Install 2008 Express Editions of:
   1. SQL Server
   2. SQL Server Management Studio
   3. Visual Web Developer
4. Use Starter Kits to Jump-Start Your Progress
5. Use DiscountAsp to create a portfolio of websites that you can use to demonstrate your skills to others

Software 100% Free and Most of the Videos are Free

The good news is that all of the software you will download to do the coding is 100% free!

The great news is that most of the videos are also free (with the exception of 150+ hours of premium tutorials from Learn Visual Studio).

Microsoft does require that you register with them to view their webcasts and you also have to use Internet Explorer browser, instead of Firefox, Safari, etc., but it is totally free.

Watching the 100+ Hour Streamlined Syllabus once, may lead to a jr. programming position; and twice, will put you ahead of the "curve."

Simple 5-Step Plan

1. Model Ourselves After the Ideal.

We should model ourselves after the best "ideals" we can find. In the dotNET world, those ideal teachers are found at Microsoft. The best teachers are the ones that know the material backwards and forwards so that they can present it in a streamlined manner – these instructors do just that. We need to learn the material backwards and forwards too.

2. Take Massive Action to Transform Self to Ideal

Anyone can take some action to become more like the ideal. What we want to do is take massive action. Just any random action will not do! It must be highly focused, intelligent, and organized action that is executed according to a plan.

3. Use Progress Monitor to Track Your Progress

Progress Monitor gives you an easy way to keep track of the videos as you watch them.

4. De-Couple Yourself From Your Desktop Computer

You need to de-couple yourself from your desktop computer so that you can watch videos anywhere and anytime. The best way to do this is through using a laptop, as this allows you to avoid the hassles of burning DVDs by just downloading the videos to your hard-drive. However, if you can not afford a laptop right now, you can burn DVDs. Burn Microsoft Webcasts to DVD for free – This link shows you how to burn webcasts to DVD in 3 easy steps for free. This allows you to learn anywhere by using a portable DVD player or the DVD player attached to your TV!

5. Use DiscountASP Hosting when Ready to "Go-Live"

DiscountAsp is the best hosting company that I have found for .NET applications. They provide many SQL tools that make it easy to remotely manage your sql database directly from your computer that other hosting companies like GoDaddy do not. Please watch the video below or click the following link to get a list of the steps involved in "going live" with DiscountASP: "GoLive" – How to Use DiscountASP to Connect Web Site to Database (Hint: When using DiscountASP to build a portfolio of web sites to demonstrate your skills, you can use starter kits to jump-start your progress.)