1. Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded Second Edition
Chapter 1
An Introduction to Visual Basic 2005

2. Objectives After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
Explain the history of programming languages
Define the terminology used in object-oriented programming
Explain the role of the .NET Framework class library and Common Language Runtime (CLR)
Create a Visual Basic 2005 Windows-based application
Manage the windows in the Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

3. Objectives (continued)
Set the properties of an object
Add a control to a form
Use the Label, Button and PictureBox tools
Enter code in the Code Editor window
Save a solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

4. Objectives (continued)
Start and end an application
Print a project’s code
Write an assignment statement
Close and open an existing solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

5. Programmers Programs: instructions given to computers
Programmers: people who write programs
Applications programmers: write and maintain programs to handle specific tasks
Systems programmers: write and maintain programs that run the system, such as operating systems, device drivers, utilities
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

6. A Brief History of Programming Languages
Programming languages: used to communicate with the computer
Machine language (or machine code):
Instructions are written in 0s and 1s
Only way to communicate directly with the computer
Assembly languages: use mnemonics for instructions
Mnemonics: alphabetic abbreviations for instructions
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

7. A Brief History of Programming Languages (continued)
Assembler: program that converts assembly language instructions into machine code
High-level languages:
Instructions resemble English language
Require an interpreter or compiler to convert high-level language to machine code
Interpreter: translates high-level instructions line-by-line as the program runs
Compiler: translates entire program into machine code before running the program
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

8. A Brief History of Programming Languages (continued)
Procedure-oriented program: one that focuses on individual tasks and their sequence
Object-oriented program: one that focuses on objects the program can use to accomplish its goal
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

9. OOP Terminology OOP: Object-oriented programming
OOD: Object-oriented design
Object:
Represents a real-world entity
Attributes (or properties): describe the object
Methods: behaviors or operations the object can perform
Class: blueprint used to create an object
Instance: an object created from a class
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

10. OOP Terminology (continued)
Encapsulation: the class contains all the attributes and behaviors of the object created from the class
Instance: an object created from a class
Abstraction: the hiding of internal details of an object
Exposed: attributes and behaviors that are not hidden
Inheritance: ability to create one class from another
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

11. OOP Terminology (continued)
Derived class: a new class created from another by inheritance
Base class: the class used to create the new class
Polymorphism: allows the same instructions to be carried out differently depending on the object
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

12. OOP Terminology (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

13. Visual Studio 2005 Integrated Development Environment (IDE):
Contains all the tools and features needed to create, run, and test programs
Includes an editor and compiler
Visual Studio 2005:
IDE used to create Windows or Web-based programs
Includes Visual Basic 2005, Visual C , Visual C# 2005, and Visual J# 2005
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

14. Visual Studio 2005 (continued)
Application: program or suite of programs
Windows-based application:
Has a Windows user interface
Runs on a desktop computer
User interface: what the user sees and interacts with when using an application
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

15. Visual Studio 2005 (continued)
Web-based application:
Has a Web user interface
Runs on a server
Use a computer browser to access it
Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0: a platform on which you create applications
.NET languages: the programming languages included in Visual Studio
.NET applications: applications created with Visual Studio
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

16. Visual Studio 2005 (continued)
.NET Framework class library:
Contains an extensive set of classes for use in .NET applications
Reduces development time by providing reusable code
Provides consistency among applications
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

17. The Common Language Runtime
.NET language compilers translate program statements into a Microsoft Intermediate Language, also called Intermediate Language (IL)
Common Language Runtime (CLR):
Manages the execution of IL instructions
Just-in-time (JIT) compiler: translates IL into machine code
CLR allows compiled IL to be reused, regardless of which .NET language was used to create it
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

18. The Common Language Runtime (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

19. Solutions, Projects, and Files
Solution: a container that stores projects and files for an entire application
Project: a container that stores files associated with a specific part of the solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

20. Solutions, Projects, and Files (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

21. Starting Microsoft Visual Studio 2005
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

22. Starting Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

23. Starting Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

24. Creating a Visual Basic 2005 Windows-Based Application
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

25. Creating a Visual Basic 2005 Windows-Based Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

26. Creating a Visual Basic 2005 Windows-Based Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

27. Managing the Windows in the IDE
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

28. The Windows Form Designer Window
Allows you to create (design) the GUI
Graphical User Interface (GUI): what the user sees and interacts with when using the application
Windows Form object (or form):
Adds other objects such as buttons and textboxes to create the GUI
Instance of the Windows Form class
Automatically instantiated when you create an application
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

29. The Windows Form Designer Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

30. The Solution Explorer Window
Displays a list of projects contained in this solution
Displays the items contained in each project
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

31. The Solution Explorer Window (continued)
Project Designer window:
Open by right-clicking on project folder
Allows you to set options for the project
Contains 9 tabs with groups of options
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

32. The Solution Explorer Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

33. The Solution Explorer Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

34. The Solution Explorer Window (continued)
Source file: a file containing program instructions
Code: program instructions
Form file: a file containing code associated with a Windows form object
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

35. The Properties Window
Properties window: displays properties of selected object
Default property values are assigned when an object is created
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

36. The Properties Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

37. The Properties Window (continued)
Properties window includes an Object box and a Properties list
Object box:
Located immediately below Properties window title bar
Contains the name of the selected object
Properties list:
Left column displays names of properties
Settings box: Right column containing the current value of each property
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

38. Properties of a Windows Form Object
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

39. Properties of a Windows Form Object (continued)
Class definition: block of code that defines the attributes and behaviors of an object
Namespace: defines a group of related classes
Dot member access operator: the period that separates words in an object’s name
Name property: used to refer to an object in code
Hungarian notation: naming convention using a 3 or more character prefix to represent the object type
Camel casing: lowercase prefix, uppercase first letter of each word
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

40. Properties of a Windows Form Object (continued)
Pascal case:
First letter and first letter of each word is uppercase
First part of name is object’s purpose
Second part of name is object’s class
Text property: controls the caption displayed on form’s title bar
StartPosition property: determines the form’s position on the screen when application starts
Splash screen: first image to appear when application starts
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

41. Properties of a Windows Form Object (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

42. The Toolbox Window Toolbox: Controls:
Contains tools used to create an application
Each tool represents a class from which to instantiate objects
Controls:
Objects displayed on a form
Are represented as icons in the toolbox
Can be locked in place on the form
Control names use camel casing
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

43. The Toolbox Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

44. The Toolbox Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

45. The Label Tool Label tool: represents a label control Label control:
Displays text that user cannot edit
Used as “prompts” to explain controls or display output
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

46. The Label Tool (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

47. The Label Tool (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

48. The Button Tool Button tool: represents a button control
Performs an immediate action when clicked
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

49. The Button Tool (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

50. The Button Tool (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

51. The Code Editor Window Events: user actions while program is running
Event procedure: set of instructions to be executed when an event occurs
Code editor: used to enter programming code
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

52. The Code Editor Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

53. The Code Editor Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

54. The Code Editor Window (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

55. The Code Editor Window (continued)
Keyword: has special meaning in a programming language
Sub procedure: block of code that performs a task
Event’s Procedure header:
Begins with keyword Private
Procedure name includes object name and event name
Handles clause indicates for which objects’ events this code will execute
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

56. The Me.Close Method Me.Close method: closes the current form
Method: predefined VB procedure that can be invoked (called)
Sequential processing: each line is executed in sequence
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

57. The Me.Close Method (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

58. Saving a Solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

59. Starting and Ending an Application
Startup form: the form to be displayed when the application starts
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

60. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

61. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

62. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

63. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

64. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Executable file:
Can be run outside of Visual Studio 2005
Has file extension of .exe
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

65. Starting and Ending an Application (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

66. Using an Assignment Statement
Assignment statement: assigns a value to a variable or property of a control
Assignment operator: the = symbol
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

67. Using an Assignment Statement (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

68. Using an Assignment Statement (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

69. Printing Your Code
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

70. Closing the Current Solution
Closing a solution closes all projects and files in that solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

71. Closing the Current Solution (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

72. Opening an Existing Solution
Only one solution can be open at any one time
If a solution is already open, opening a different one will close the currently open solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

73. Opening an Existing Solution (continued)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

74. Programming Tutorial
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

75. Programming Example
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

76. Summary Program: directions given to a computer
Programming languages have progressed from machine language to assembly language to high-level languages
Compiler: converts high-level languages to machine instructions
Object: can be seen, touched, or used
Objects have attributes (properties) and behaviors (methods and events)
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

77. Summary (continued)
Class: a pattern from which an object can be instantiated
Class encapsulates an object’s attributes and behaviors
IDE: interactive development environment
Windows Form Designer window: used to create GUI applications
Solution Explorer window: shows names of projects and files in the solution
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

78. Summary (continued)
Properties window: sets an object’s property values
Name property: used to refer to an object in code
Text property of a form: specifies the text to be displayed in the title bar of the form
Toolbox: contains tools for creating the GUI
Label control: contains text that a user cannot edit
Event: occurs when user interacts with GUI elements
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition

79. Summary (continued)
Event procedure: the code that runs when an event occurs
Button control: performs an immediate action when clicked
Code editor: provides code templates for each object’s event procedures
Microsoft Visual Basic 2005: Reloaded, Second Edition