Visual Basic in easy steps, 2nd edition

Visual Basic in easy steps shows you how to quickly create Windows applications using the latest Visual Basic programming environment. It provides code examples, screenshots, and step-by-step instructions that illustrate each aspect of Visual Basic.

Visual Basic in easy steps begins by describing the installation process then introduces form controls, application properties, the programming language, and problem-solving techniques. It illustrates, by example, how to build and deploy a complete Windows application. It also explores scripting with Visual Basic to create macros for Microsoft Office and exciting dynamic web pages for Internet Explorer. The book demonstrates how to incorporate external data into your applications from text files, Excel spreadsheets, XML documents, live RSS web feeds, and SQL databases. You need have no previous knowledge of any programming language so it's ideal if you're a newcomer to Windows programming. Each chapter builds your knowledge of Visual Basic. By the end of this book you will have gained a sound understanding of Visual Basic programming and be able to create your own interactive applications.

Visual Basic in easy steps has an easy-to-follow style that will appeal to anyone who wants to begin Windows programming. It will appeal to programmers who want to quickly learn the latest Visual Basic techniques, and to the student who is studying computing at school or college, and to those seeking a career in Information Technology who need a thorough understanding of Visual Basic programming.

Mike McGrath now lives in South-east Europe, on the sun-kissed shores of the Aegean Sea. Mike gained his extensive knowledge of computer languages while working as a developer contracting to companies around the world. His interests include coins of ancient Greece, dining-out with friends, and the ongoing evolution of the world wide web.

1. Getting started
   • Introduction
   • Installing Visual Basic
   • Exploring the IDE
   • Starting a new project
   • Adding a visual control
   • Adding functional code
   • Saving projects
   • Reopening projects
   • Summary
2. Setting properties
   • Form properties
   • Meeting the property editor
   • Editing property values
   • Coding property values
   • Applying computed values
   • Applying user values
   • Prompting for input
   • Specifying dialog properties
   • Summary
3. Using controls
   • Tab order
   • Using Button
   • Using TextBox
   • Using ComboBox
   • Using Label
   • Using PictureBox
   • Using ListBox
   • Using CheckBox
   • Using RadioButton
   • Using WebBrowser
   • Using Timer
   • Summary
4. Learning the language
   • Elements of a program
   • Declaring variable types
   • Understanding variable scope
   • Working with variable arrays
   • Performing operations
   • Branching code
   • Looping code
   • Calling object methods
   • Creating a sub method
   • Sending parameters
   • Creating a function
   • Doing mathematics
   • Generating a random number
   • Summary
5. Building an application
   • The program plan
   • Assigning static properties
   • Designing the interface
   • Initializing dynamic properties
   • Adding runtime functionality
   • Testing the program
   • Deploying the application
   • Summary
6. Solving problems
   • Real-time error detection
   • Fixing compile errors
   • Debugging code
   • Setting debug breakpoints
   • Detecting runtime errors
   • Catching runtime errors
   • Getting help
   • Summary
7. Extending the interface
   • Color, Font & Image dialogs
   • Open, Save & Print dialogs
   • Creating application menus
   • Making menus work
   • Adding more forms
   • Controlling multiple forms
   • Playing sounds
   • Playing multimedia
   • Summary
8. Scripting with Visual Basic
   • An introduction to VBA macros
   • Creating a Word macro
   • Creating an Excel macro
   • Running advanced macros
   • An introduction to VBScript
   • Scripting for Internet Explorer
   • Scripting ActiveX objects
   • Running dynamic web scripts
   • Summary
9. Harnessing data
   • Reading text files
   • Streaming lines of text
   • Reading Excel spreadsheets
   • Reading XML files
   • Creating an XML dataset
   • Reading RSS feeds
   • Addressing XML attributes
   • Summary
10. Employing databases
    • An introduction to databases
    • Designing a database
    • Creating a database
    • Adding database tables
    • Defining table columns
    • Making table relationships
    • Entering table data
    • Creating a database dataset
    • Adding form data controls
    • Binding meaningful data
    • Building custom SQL queries
    • Summary

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