Chapter 20. Data-Bound Templated Controls

The majority of Web applications built by page developers are data driven and contain dynamic content. Web applications contain pages to present data as well as to collect data from users. A number of common Web application scenarios such as stock quote reports , product catalogs, and search engines are primarily focused on data access and data presentation. ASP.NET, the Web Forms programming model, and server controls all dramatically simplify the development of high-performance, data-driven Web applications and pages, both at run time and design time. Web applications offer a wide variety of data presentations, ranging from simple tables to more complex, visually pleasing renderings that blend seamlessly into the design and structure of the overall application.

In Chapter 16, "Data-Bound Controls," we implemented the DataBoundTable control, which illustrates basic data-binding functionality and features such as style-based customization. In this chapter, we will develop a ListView control that implements those features in addition to raising events and supporting template-based customization. ListView is a data-bound templated control that provides the ability to generate a customizable, interactive, columnar representation of data in a data source.