VBScript Pocket Reference (Paperback)

by Paul Lomax (Author), Matt Childs (Author), Ron Petrusha (Author)
Key Phrases: object programming, array handling, valid string expression, Return Value, Pocket Reference, Description Returns (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
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, this book will be your constant companion. 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. 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 experience you have programming with VBScript, this 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.

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: 118 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Inc.; 1 edition (February 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596001266
• ISBN-13: 978-0596001261
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #106,317 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #2 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Programming > Languages & Tools > Basic
  #72 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Microsoft > Development > Visual Basic

• This item is part of The O'Reilly Pocket Guides Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 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

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.

2 of 2 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

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.

2 of 3 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)

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.