Contents Overview

This book is divided into three sections. The first and last sections provide general material about Microsoft technologies that are currently available and that will be available in the future. The middle section describes how to design, implement, test, debug, and deploy a three-tier application based on COM and MTS.

Part One: Technology Overview

This section provides an overview of Windows DNA, the three-tier application architecture, and the technologies used to create solutions based on Windows DNA—COM, data access, MTS, and Active Server Pages (ASP). We'll also take a look at other enabling technologies, such as the COM Transaction Integrator (COMTI) and Microsoft Message Queue Server (MSMQ), which integrate with MTS.

Part Two: Building Applications

This section shows you one way to architect and model three-tier business solutions. It discusses tools, techniques, and thought processes for modeling data, business objects, and various types of clients, and it examines practical issues that must be considered during design, such as security considerations and performance requirements.

The section next looks at how to implement the three-tier application. The emphasis here is on building business objects and data objects. We will also look at writing clients for the Internet and intranets using ActiveX Controls, Distributed COM (DCOM), ASP, and Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language (DHTML).

Finally, this section looks at interactive debugging techniques using the Microsoft Visual Basic and Microsoft Visual Studio debuggers, techniques for checking three-tier solutions against the performance requirements established during application design, and techniques for deploying three-tier solutions.

Part Three: Beyond MTS

This section shows you how to extend your applications to integrate with other platforms using existing technologies such as COM, MSMQ, and COMTI. You'll also get a glimpse of the future direction of COM and MTS, called COM+.