Building Applications with Microsoft Outlook Version 2002 (Pro Developers) (Paperback)

by Randy Byrne (Author) "Microsoft Outlook 2002 offers incremental improvements to Outlook 2000 for collaborative application developers..." (more)
Key Phrases: object model guard, items collection object, folder home page, Visual Basic, Portal Server, Web Parts (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
With its built-in mail client, scheduling and organizing capabilities, and integration with each of the applications in Office XP, the Microsoft Outlook Version 2002 messaging and collaboration client can help anyone get the most from Office XP. BUILDING APPLICATIONS WITH MICROSOFT OUTLOOK VERSION 2002 provides the information, strategies, and sample applications you need to take advantage of the power of the Web Storage System in Exchange 2000 and the new tools in Office XP to develop dynamic, feature-rich collaborative applications for all types of clients, from WAP phones to rich Outlook-based clients. The companion CD-ROM contains all the source code and files necessary to create and use the sample applications in the book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 882 pages
• Publisher: Microsoft Press (August 25, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735612730
• ISBN-13: 978-0735612730
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #387,710 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #48 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Microsoft > Applications > Outlook
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent technical programming book, September 19, 2003

By	Steven D. Hohensee (Easton, KS USA) - See all my reviews

The only significant criticism I have of this book is that I have to agree, it is indeed very, very similar in content and organization to its predeceessor, "Building Applications with Outlook 2000." For those who also purchased the earlier book, there is a queasy feeling of having bought the same book twice, even though Byrne's version does contain updated content. Microsoft should offer a healthy discount to those people who bought both books.

Criticism in other reviews focus on minor details seems to me to nitpick on irrelevant details, while ignoring the fact that Byrne exhaustively discusses Outlook programming with Visual Basic and VBA, including Outlook functionality and the use of the Outlook Object Model (and CDO as well as a little MAPI as relates to Outlook programming). The book is filled with relevant explanation and analysis (not just minimalist captions or code comments, or explaining the obvious).

For a book of this size and scope, a certain number of errors are inevitable. I'm surprised there are so few.

An absolute beginner with programming would probably find this book took too difficult. On the other hand, it's ideal for someone who is familiar with Visual Basic and wants to program Outlook. Byrne discusses the structure and implementation of Outlook (and CDO) methods, properties and objects in sufficient detail to be useful even to an advanced programmer who needs a good Outlook intro and reference with sample code.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A likeable author who knows his stuff, February 21, 2004

By	Daniel R. Grünfeld "Daniel" (Illinois, United States) - See all my reviews

I am currently reading this book for the third time, and would like to add my opinions to those of the others here.

Byrne admits in his introduction that he had a difficult time completing this book because of all the security restrictions that MS has placed into the Outlook object model. Clearly, it was a blow to many developers, Byrne included, when MS did this. But as Byrne concedes, MS really had no choice. Byrne discusses strategies for circumventing the security restrictions throughout his book. Byrne is a likeable guy: he's not arrogant, and it's clear that he knows his stuff.

There are a number of subtle and confusing points that must be understood when designing an Outlook application. One example is the concept of "one-off" forms. Do you store the form def in an organization's form library, the application's public folder, or do you send the form def with the item? Byrne does an admirable job in discussing the distinction, but it may take several readings to fully understand it, and the implications behind it. Because of the security restrictions, VBA code will not execute in an one-off form. So, pitfalls abound.

Contrary to what one reviewer has stated, the Outlook object model is discussed in minute detail. Unfortunately, you won't find it until you have gotten through hundreds and hundreds of pages of relatively introductory material, some of which is prone to repetition. That is one of the biggest weaknesses of this book: too much repetition in the early chapters. One example: we don't need to know how to publish a form more than once, but there are at least three step-by-step examples of how to do this.

The structure of the book is such that the early chapters are oriented toward beginners and the later chapters toward more advanced programmers. That is as it should be. But I have to agree with other reviewers who have criticized the beginning chapters of the book as being just too elementary, too repetitious, and too sophomoric (eg, that silly vacation request form).

Overall, I came away from this book feeling Byrne's enthusiam for the Outlook object model, as well as his acute disenchantment at the new security restrictions that have been built into Outlook. This book was published before .NET was finalized, so criticism that it doesn't contain .NET material is unfair. I agree that the book is way over-priced.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Examples are in VB 6.0 instead of VB.Net, January 5, 2004

By	RebDewinter "RebDewinter" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

Althought this book provides some very useful subject matter, the sample code provided is written in Visual Basic 6.0 rather than the new Visual Basic .Net - a fact that was rather dissappointing given that this is a version 2002 book. Since converting complicated code like comm add ins from 6.0 to .Net is no easy endeavor, I'm finding the usefulness of this book pretty limited for my purposes. If Mr. Byrne will write the same book with .Net examples or if Microsoft and Mr. Byrne will release an updated companion CD with .Net examples, the book and its companion CD will be a lot more helpful.