Member Avatar for br_astronut

HELP! I am a medium duty VB.Net developer and want to start developing web applications and converting some of my VB apps to web apps. I know the basics and have put together a working ASP.Net application with no problem. I have the mechanics working fine. I just can't seem to make the apps look right. They just look like junk! I am using Master pages but not very much CSS and see lots of in-line styles. My web apps look so bad I want to just stop using ASP.Net and just go back to VB.Net and WinForms. I want to be able to make a MasterPage/CSS base with a nice top menu, side menu etc and then be able to use it as a template. If I can't make it look good I just don't want to build it.

Has anyone else experience this and how have you approached the problem?

Thanks for the help.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by matthewskyle

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This is a very common snag for desktop VB.Net developers moving to Web Forms: server-side logic is fine but presentation looks ad-hoc. already has the pieces (MasterPage, pages) — the missing step is a small, reusable design system: a single external stylesheet, a tiny set of layout classes (header, nav, sidebar, content, footer), and a couple of component UserControls for repeated UI (top nav, side menu, footer). That separates concerns and stops inline styles from creeping in.

Practical, low-effort path that builds on replies here: start from a Visual Studio site template as suggested or a Bootstrap-based starter (or a paid theme as suggested) so the base layout and typography are decent. Then replace inline styling generated by controls by setting CssClass on server controls and styling those classes in one CSS file. Use UserControls for menus so changes are made once and appear site-wide. ’s links to CSS fundamentals are useful for filling gaps in styling knowledge.

A minimal MasterPage pattern (keep server controls simple, give them classes):

<%@ Master Language="VB" %>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head runat="server">
  <title><asp:ContentPlaceHolder ID="TitleContent" runat="server" /></title>
  <link href="css/site.css" rel="stylesheet" />
</head>
<body>
  <form runat="server">
    <header class="site-header"><uc1:TopNav runat="server" ID="TopNav1" /></header>
    <div class="layout">
      <aside class="left-col"><uc1:SideMenu runat="server" ID="SideMenu1" /></aside>
      <main class="main-col"><asp:ContentPlaceHolder ID="MainContent" runat="server" /></main>
    </div>
    <footer class="site-footer">© Company</footer>
  </form>
</body>
</html>

Simple CSS example (flex layout, typography, spacing):

body{font-family:Arial, sans-serif;margin:0;color:#333}
.site-header{background:#2c3e50;color:#fff;padding:12px 20px}
.layout{display:flex;min-height:60vh}
.left-col{width:220px;background:#f4f4f4;padding:18px}
.main-col{flex:1;padding:20px;background:#fff}
.site-footer{padding:10px 20px;text-align:center;background:#eee}

Quick workflow tips: use browser dev tools to tweak live, build a one-page style guide (fonts, colors, button styles), and iterate—start with header/nav and the main content area, then refactor pages to the shared classes. Small, consistent changes multiply fast; a few well-chosen classes and one MasterPage produce a much cleaner site than trying to style each page individually.

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Member Avatar for matthewskyle

I don't know if this would help but I use the 4.0 framework and it comes with a nice template when you start up a blank site. I use that for my company projects and just go through and edit the css and master page to my liking but it comes with a decent top menu and layout IMO. It's good enough to make me not want to sit and make my own. Or you could try download other templates in a google search if your using an older framework.

Member Avatar for egrullard

HELP! I am a medium duty VB.Net developer and want to start developing web applications and converting some of my VB apps to web apps. I know the basics and have put together a working ASP.Net application with no problem. I have the mechanics working fine. I just can't seem to make the apps look right. They just look like junk! I am using Master pages but not very much CSS and see lots of in-line styles. My web apps look so bad I want to just stop using ASP.Net and just go back to VB.Net and WinForms. I want to be able to make a MasterPage/CSS base with a nice top menu, side menu etc and then be able to use it as a template. If I can't make it look good I just don't want to build it.

Has anyone else experience this and how have you approached the problem?

Thanks for the help.

Hello,

Good Morning

good in your case is not well know how to use css? , Well I'm going to leave an excellent tutorial book is in (Spanish), can help you.

Here is the Tutorial

http://www.librosweb.es/css/

and a lik of how to apply css to a Master Page

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa581781.aspx

Greetings

Member Avatar for br_astronut

I don't know if this would help but I use the 4.0 framework and it comes with a nice template when you start up a blank site. I use that for my company projects and just go through and edit the css and master page to my liking but it comes with a decent top menu and layout IMO. It's good enough to make me not want to sit and make my own. Or you could try download other templates in a google search if your using an older framework.

What version of Visual Studio are you using and what project type are you creating?

Member Avatar for Nfurman

There's no problem to make Masterpage or learn some basic and even advanced css tricks. If you want your site to be good-looking and don't have art taste like me, so rent some web designer or just buy a template.

Member Avatar for matthewskyle

Sorry it is taking me so long to respond, but I am creating an ASP.NET website using Visual Studio 2010 Enterprise Edition, but that edition is for work..I usual a regular edition at home and it does the same. I know CSS well enough to alter the layout tho, if you don't know CSS, this would be a PERFECT time to get better at it. Im a first year dev and was taught on the 3.5 framework and was not taught ASP extensively so I too am still learning constantly but this "free" or default template helped me extremely as far as getting on my feet in a business environment.

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