VBScript Pocket Reference [Paperback]

Paul Lomax (Author), Matt Childs (Author), Ron Petrusha (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0596001266 | ISBN-13: 978-0596001261 | Publication Date: February 8, 2001 | Edition: 1

Microsoft's Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript), a subset of Visual Basic for Applications, is a powerful language for Internet application development, where it can serve as a scripting language for server-side, client-side, and system scripting. Whether you're developing code for Active Server Pages, client-side scripts for Internet Explorer, code for Outlook forms, or scripts for Windows Script Host, VBScript Pocket Reference will be your constant companion.

Don't let the pocket-friendly format fool you. Based on the bestselling VBScript in a Nutshell, this small book details every VBScript language element--every statement, function, and object--both in VBScript itself, and in the Microsoft Scripting Runtime Library. There's a special emphasis on the following details:

• The syntax, using standard code conventions
• The arguments accepted by the function or procedure, if any exist

Entries are arranged alphabetically by topic, so that you can, for instance, easily find details about that string-handling function that you can't quite remember. In addition, appendixes list VBScript operators and VBScript intrinsic constants.

Regardless of how much VBScript programming experience you have, the VBScript Pocket Reference is the book you'll pick up time and time again as your standard quick reference guide to the VBScript language. It is indispensable for anyone writing scripts with VBScript.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Paul Lomax, author of O'Reilly's VB & VBA in a Nutshell and a coauthor of VBScript in a Nutshell, is an experienced VB programmer with a passion for sharing his knowledge--and his collection of programming tips and techniques gathered from real-world experience.

Matt Childs is a vice president with Integrity Solutions Inc., one of Alaska's leading custom software development companies. Matt is responsible for overseeing all in-house development, and over the past year has worked with the State of Alaska and Alaska's two largest telecommunications companies. Matt has worked in the information technology field for nine years, and has been a VB programmer since Visual Basic 3. During most of his early career, Matt was an information technology manager for a large transportation company, where he developed custom software solutions and systems integration for the company's largest clients. Matt has industry experience with utilities; express transportation; and chemical, petroleum, and retail companies. In the winter, Matt spends his free time with his telescope, and during the long Alaska summer days, he enjoys playing softball and spending time with his family. Matt, his wife LeAndra and their daughter Meghan recently returned to Anchorage, Alaska, after spending some time in the southern United States. Matt is also a fiction writer and a freelance journalist.

Ron Petrusha is an editor for O'Reilly and is the author/coauthor of many books, including VBScript in a Nutshell. Ron has a background in quantitative labor history, specializing in Russian labor history, and holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Columbia University. He began working with computers in the mid 1970s, programming in SPSS (a programmable statistical package) and FORTRAN on the IBM 370 family. Since then, he has been a computer book buyer, an editor of a number of books on Windows and Unix, and a consultant on projects written in dBASE, Clipper, and Visual Basic.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1 edition (February 8, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596001266
• ISBN-13: 978-0596001261
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #750,380 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #47 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Computers & Internet > Programming

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for non VB programmers., June 14, 2001

By 

Seth Wagoner "Sethop" (New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: VBScript Pocket Reference (Paperback)

I like the O'Reilly pocket reference series. They don't take up a lot of desk real estate, and you can generally find what you need to know in a hurry.

From the perspective of a programmer who hasn't touched basic since he had a Sinclair Spectrum, I found this book got me up to speed reasonbly quickly. However I suspect it will attract a fairly small audience - a non programmer would find it too terse to be a good learning book, and an experienced VB programmer would probably be better off with a book specific to the environment they're using (eg, ASP) because this book does not cover any enviroment specific objects, and VBScript has no enviroment specific functions. It does however cover the filesystem objects and the dictionary object, which is handy.

Every now and then I get frustrated with the book when I can't find a function that I want, but then I usually discover that the function doesn't exist in VBScript, which is really such a trivial language that a pocket reference can cover it more or less completely.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very handy little book, June 17, 2006

By 

Richard D. (VA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: VBScript Pocket Reference (Paperback)

It you want to learn VBScript go elsewhere. However, if you just want a quick reference that you can take anywhere this is the only book for you. It is remarkably concise and very well written. Its perfect for the VBScritp programmer that needs a little help from time to time looking up a hard to remember command and its syntax.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Could be better, June 17, 2006

By 

Harry L. Criswell Jr. - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: VBScript Pocket Reference (Paperback)

The reference material seems accurate but I have found more detail in the free help file that comes with VBS 5.6. Return values and types and the actual values of the builtin constants, which I didn't find in the book.

I apparently overlooked the note that this book was based on VBS 5.5 when I ordered it. I have several pocket references and this is the first that fell short of my needs.