Very Basic Questions about Visual Basic

[justphilip2003]

I feel like Rip van Winkel just waking up and starting all over in
programming. I have dabbled with VB coding or its predecessors over the past
34 years of programming but now I need to ask some foundational questions for
a new start. My problems started when I attempted to add a photo album
linkage to one of my collection databases. I am using Access 2003 on a new
computer with MS Vista Home Premium OS. Adding linkages to object files was
relatively easy thanks to the suggestions from Roger Carlson and logic
written by Ken Getz in a procedure named modOpenSaveFile. Coding a DBM
search and display picture Access Form has eluded me. The following question
arose because I have been seeking references and I have been away from this
type of coding for several years.

Questions: (1) What Visual Basic capability (level) comes with Vista or is
it a part of Office? How do I verify level? (2) Do I need to acquire an
add-on VB package for full capability programming of “at home type
applications†that may require sophisticated object coding in Access Forms?
(3) Are books tautening COM+ or .NET appropriate references for my stated
needs? TIA JP

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

1. Visual Basic comes with Office. None of the components come with Vista.

2. Again, if you install Office (any version) you'll have what you need.

3. Mostly COM, but some .NET may be helpful. Check for books on Access by
Getz, Viescas, and Barker as the main authors (different books) and some
very good books by other authors as well.

 

[Albert D. Kallal]

Questions: (1) What Visual Basic capability (level) comes with Vista or is

it a part of Office? How do I verify level? (2) Do I need to acquire an
add-on VB package for full capability programming of "at home type
applications" that may require sophisticated object coding in Access
Forms?

The programming language and development system is included with office
2003.
(the ability to deploy to machines without ms-access is a optional add on,
but does not
change your development approach)

You can build and develop class objects in ms-access, but development
language is NOT a full object orientated language.

I talk about creating objects in ms-access here:

http://www.members.shaw.ca/AlbertKallal/Articles/WhyClass.html

for most forms, and MOST applications, you don't really need to create class
objects.

The development langue (VBA) is actually the same as VB6 (so, if you used
vb3, vb4, vb5, or vb6) you will find the syntax is 100% identical in
ms-access as compared to VB6.

However, while the syntax of the language is the same as vb6, the object
model is CONSIDERABLY different then vb6 (so, the event model for a form is
quite different).

(3) Are books tautening COM+ or .NET appropriate references for my stated
needs?

No, not at all. You need a book written for ms-access.

Here is some good references:
http://www.accessmvp.com/JConrad/accessjunkie/resources.html#Books

And, if you were a developer for years and years..and built up a whole
library of GREAT code, that code would be found here:

http://www.mvps.org/access/

I *strongly* suggest you spend some time at the above access site...it
simply #1 on my list....

 

[Larry Linson]

Questions:

(3) Are books tautening COM+ or .NET appropriate
references for my stated needs? TIA JP

Access is "Not Yet Dot Net", not even Access 2007. While Arvin and I agree
on most Access subjects, I doubt you are going to get much good out of books
on DotNet. VBA and the "classic VB" product share the same root library
VBA6.DLL. VB.NET is quite different from VB 6.0.

And, most of the COM+ books are not going to cater to VBA users. You may be
able to find some real buys on "remaindered" books for original COM, and, if
their examples are for VB 6.0 and earlier, they'll be easy to convert --
just be aware that Access natively does many things for which you have to
jump through a few hoops in classic VB (or VB.NET, for that matter).

I'd suggest the WROX book, "Access 2003 VBA", by Cardoza, Hennig, Seach, and
Stein for general VBA topics and several websites whose links you'll find by
searching the archives of this newsgroup:

Dev Ashish's "Access Web" http://www.mvps.org/access/
which has contributions from a broad spectrum of current
and former MVPs, and which site Arvin assists in maintaining

Other sites of particular interest include Tony Toews', Jeff
Conrad's, Albert Kallal's, David Fenton's, Duane Hookum's,
and a list of others far too long to include here.

Larry Linson
Microsoft Access MVP