Books UPDATE
Just as any other ASP.NET book available out there, also my Programming Microsoft ASP.NET book from Microsoft Press is going to be updated for ASP.NET 2.0. Today, it counts 1200 pages and this number will likely grow up to 1800 to incorporate coverage of the several new features of ASP.NET 2.0. My goal is to make the book cover all aspects of Web programming with ASP.NET technologies, regardless of the specific version one could use. If the project succeeds, the book will be the state-of-the-art as far as Web development with ASP.NET is concerned. Each and every topic and feature is covered for what it is, represents and provides to developers, rather than as the delta from the previous version. For example, I will have a chapter on data binding that explains old-style binding (via DataSource and IEnumerable) as well as data source controls. Same perspective, same goal, different set of capabilities and programming features. In this way, I hope to update the old book just as Microsoft updates the ASP.NET platform: with new features without breaking backward compatibility. The estimate of 1800 pages is anyway too much for a single book. For this reason, with Microsoft Press we decided to split the book in two--Fundamentals and Advanced of approximately 900 pages each.
The first book should hit the bookshelves in the November timeframe by the time Microsoft is expected to release the new 2.0 platform. It'll cover what you absolutely need to know to plan and realize an ASP.NET powered Web site. Topics include: HTTP runtime, pager authoring, server controls, forms, master pages, themes, profiles, ADO.NET, data binding, data source controls, grids, security, state management, caching, providers. The second book will follow shortly after (ideally by Christmas time or early January). It will discuss modules and handlers, custom controls, user controls, Web Parts, site navigation, Web services, mobile programming, viewstate, build providers, custom providers, Web Forms internals, and more advanced techniques for page authoring and data binding.
If possible, I'll try to post updates regularly. As of today, I completed Chapter 9 (out of 17) of the first book.