Approaching ASP.NET Application Performance and Scalability Improvement

I have been a long time reader of the 4GuysFromRolla.com website articles. (How long? Since the time it had any ads at all). I often marvel at how well Scott Mitchell has consistently been churning high quality articles since 1998. He is a prolific writer & his literary output never ceases to amaze me. It is not surprising that someone who explains complex technical concepts so authoritatively is also an avid developer & trainer. Each of his roles is fodder for the other.

I keenly follow his blog (as well as that of 3 other Scotts - Scott Guthrie, Scott Hanselman & Scott Allen. I find it is an interesting coincidence that besides sharing the same name, all of them have an entertaining & simple style of writing). In a recent posting Scott Mitchell mentioned about training events he is conducting, one of which is titled "In Depth Website Performance and Scalability". I was impressed with the way he has organized the course plan -

I. Performance and Scalability Overview
a. Common Performance and Scalability Issues
b. Measuring Performance
c. Identifying Bottlenecks

II. Improving Data Access
a. Using the Appropriate Provider
b. Writing Efficient Queries
c. Tuning the Database System
d. Efficiently Paging through Large Amounts of Data

III. Reducing Page Size
a. Using the Right Web Control for the Job
b. Disabling ViewState
c. Minimizing the Rendered Markup

It is indirectly a good strategy for developers embarking on a Performance and Scalability improvement exercise & those not attending the training can use it as a learning plan for self study.