Advanced Programming in Visual Basic 6.0 w/Cd [Paperback]

Julia Case Bradley (Author), A. C. Millspaugh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 6, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0072420243 | ISBN-13: 978-0072420241 | Edition: Bk&CD-Rom

This textbook is intended for use in an advanced programming course, which assumes completion of an introductory course. Emphasis is on advanced programming skills using the most up-to-date features of Visual Basic, including updating databases using an ADO data control, the Data Environment, and the ADO object model in code. Students learn to develop multi-tier client/server applications, create Active X DLL and EXE code components, author ActiveX controls, develop Web-based database applications, create DHTML and IIS Internet applications, build HTML Help files, call Windows API methods, and package applications for distribution. The text is designed to prepare students for the Microsoft Certified Systems Developer Desktop Application exam (Exam 70-176).

Product Details

• Paperback: 655 pages
• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill College; Bk&CD-Rom edition (April 6, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072420243
• ISBN-13: 978-0072420241
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,640,939 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful resource for students and teachers, September 12, 2000

By 

Linda T (Cape Girardeau, MO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Advanced Programming in Visual Basic 6.0 w/Cd (Paperback)

I teach Visual Basic Programming, and have read a dozen books on Advanced VB while searching for a new textbook. This book does the best job of both giving good examples and explaining how VB works. Some books have lots of coding examples, but leave you with little understanding of how to design on your own. This book also has far less errors than any other book I've used. The accompaning CD has programs to go along with every chapter. It's a wonderful book, and the one I'll be using next year! It covers ADO well, and is the best introduction to ASP I've read.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Really Good...Except for..., February 6, 2001

By 

K. Brooks "rhodylady" (Olympia, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Advanced Programming in Visual Basic 6.0 w/Cd (Paperback)

This book may not be perfect, but it's close. I've been teaching with the Bradley & Millspaugh books for 3 years now and was excited about this new one that focuses on database and objects. I like the fact that there is not a lot of fluff included. Code at the end of every chapter that illustrates chapter concepts is welcome.

The book is fine, however I find the instructor resources to be abysmal. For instructors publishers typically provide programs as answers to the programming exercises at the end of the chapters - but the teacher examples for this book are horrid. The database programs won't run at first because the samples don't use the author's advice about using VB's App.Path. At times various forms won't load; again because App.Path isn't used. Instructions say to do a certain thing but the example doesn't implement it. There are no comments and little indentation in the code examples. In order to use the sample code included for instructors, you have to re-write a lot of it yourself.

So, if you want just the book - that's fine. But if you're looking for teacher resources to accompany the text...well...

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Worst textbook I have ever used, March 7, 2002

By 

Donald G. Hoffman (Greenfield, IN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Advanced Programming in Visual Basic 6.0 w/Cd (Paperback)

...I gave it one star because I couldn't give it none.

While I'm only in VB II, I have over 200 hours of college credit and 18 hours of computer science. This is the worst textbook I have ever used.

Why?
It is filled with errors--ex. p. 23, used MCSD instead of MSDN, p. 95, "The key field ...may be a text field, such as last name, or a combination, such as last name and first name (I guess this is technically correct, but I sure don't want the authors designing any databases for me), p. 223, program code Sets variables but doesn't declare them first.

The different chapters appear to be written by different authors. Chapter 3 uses a step-by-step tutorial in excruciating detail. None of the other chapters up through 5 use this style. Chapter 5 doesn't even give program snippets complete enough to see what the authors are trying to do. On the other hand p. 177 gives three examples of a sort procedure, changing only the field name.

The authors introduce topics without giving enough detail to determine their significance. They may or may not come back to them in later chapters. Example, unbound controls on p. 175 and p. 215. Parameterized queries are introduced on p. 185 and not even discussed with the Command object in chapter 5.

The coverage of SQL is pathetic, at best.

The first 200 pages of the text emphasize the DataControl and the DataEnvironment and then on p. 208 the authors say "You will find that most professional VB database applications use ADO code except in "quick and simple" projects." Then why did we just spend six weeks on them?

I wouldn't waste shipping charges on this book. Surely, there is something better.