| Master this massive programming language upgrade that raises Visual Basic functionality to the level of the .NET platform. Coverage includes all core topics—plus security, debugging, and helpful information on migrating existing Visual Basic projects to Visual Basic.NET.
Before I introduce the chapters I want to tell you what this book is not. It is not a book that caters to migrating from the earlier versions of VB to Visual Basic .NET.
There are several reasons for not talking about what was and what now is. In many cases, the effort to migrate is not worth your time; you might as well start from scratch. Besides, you must learn the new language. Also, anything written in classic VB is unlikely to carry over well from the design and architecture points of view (especially the much earlier versions of VB). While I don't know VB prior to VB 5 and 6 very well, I know enough about the latest versions to tell you that there is a huge difference between classic VB and Visual Basic .NET. You will undergo a shift in psyche, from being a VB programmer to being a Visual Basic .NET programmer. You have to change the way you thinkthinking in objectsnot only change the way you write software. Now is a good time to rebuild your VB application from ground level and put it on a solid object−oriented foundation.
While I have made a few notes in places about the differences, it is only to reflect on interesting points and anomalies. I believe that if you are an expert in "classic" VB you will know exactly where to look to find the differences; you'll adapt both personally and with the software with relative ease. I work with VB 6 every day. I also work with VB programmers every day, some of them with one leg in VB 6 and the other in .NET. We don't run to find a book that explains the differences between interfaces and arrays, for example. We get into it and find out the differences at the moment we are most disposed to encounter them. |