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I’m about to write quite a big web site that will basically be a forum, divided to (many) different subjects and allow users’ score.

I’ll be using MVC, so I (“naively”) asked this question about how to partition the Model portion  of MVC, which is likely to be very large.
Two things I realized from the answers I got:

  1. I really don’t know much about designing software.
  2. There are many ways to implement MVC

So I have now two questions:

  1. (That’s a bit theoretical-) Would you say designing a software is completely deterministic i.e.- For a specific set of requirements there is one best design? If not- why?
  2. What are the common components (necessary and optional) of MVC that I should consider in writing my site (resources for beginners would be great)?
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Oren A
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  • Just curious: what platforms are you considering? Rails, ASP.NET MVC, or something else? I'm not sure if when you say MVC you mean specifically "ASP.NET MVC", or the design pattern. – Jeff Ogata Sep 28 '10 at 16:32
  • I do use ASP.NET MVC, but my question isn't specifically about it.. – Oren A Sep 28 '10 at 16:54
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    Although Java/JSP/Servlet targeted, you may get some useful insights out of [this answer](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3541077/design-patterns-web-based-applications/3542297#3542297). – BalusC Sep 28 '10 at 23:30
  • @BalusC: can you make that a "formal" answer so that I can mark it as accepted? – Oren A Oct 03 '10 at 11:03

3 Answers3

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Although Java/JSP/Servlet targeted, you may get some useful insights out of this answer. It describes the common patterns to be used in MVC and the approach how to fit them all together. Here's a summary:

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BalusC
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Software is definitely not deterministic. Theories in programming are constantly developing and improving, which is what makes the field such a fast-paced and exciting place to work. Also, what may seem like the best approach to a software problem right now could be obsolete in a matter of months by a newer, improved technology.

Jonathan Schroeder
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For ASP.Net MVC, a good entry level, free tutorial is the 'MVC 2 Music Store' by Jon Galloway. You can find it here. Note that the current version of ASP.Net MVC is MVC 2.

A more thorough tutorial is the Nerd Dinner tutorial. However the creators are still in the process of updating it to MVC 2. You can check for updates and downloads here.

I would recommend using resources for MVC 2 as there are some significant improvements over the first version. Also MVC 3 is on the horizon and you want to hit the ground running.

I would also recommend keeping an eye on MVC 3 improvements if you're serious about getting up to speed in this space. A good blog to subscribe to is Phil Haack's Haacked. Phil is the project manager for MVC at Microsoft.

In terms of textbooks, the gold standard is Steven Sanderson's 'Pro ASP.Net MVC 2 Framework'. The first review on Amazon is from Scott Guthrie, a Microsoft VP, who raves about the book. He also has a competing book of his own. You can get the ebook from Apress here. Do a google search for Apress promo codes and you may save a few dollars.

Good luck.

Dean
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  • Actually I read Pro ASP.Net MVC 2 Framework right now.. That's what got me wondering about implementing MVC (in general) in the first place. But thanks for all the resources.. – Oren A Sep 29 '10 at 16:40