This article covers some of the most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
about non-technical issues for Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows. You can
find this and other FAQ articles by querying on the keyword "FAQ." You can
find additional general references in the Microsoft Knowledge Base by
searching on "article list."
- Q. What is Visual Basic?
A. Visual Basic is a programming language developed by Microsoft to be
the fastest way to create Windows applications. It provides a point-
and-click integrated development environment that allows users to create
a custom user interface without a single line of code. Code can be added
to the forms and controls to cause them to respond to the user's
actions. Visual Basic (VB) was designed from the start to be extensible
and there are currently hundreds of ActiveX controls on the market
(commercial, shareware, and freeware) to implement new features.
Visual Basic includes advanced features such as native code compilation,
high-speed database access, and an improved development environment. In
addition, the component creation capabilities of the ActiveX
technologies in Visual Basic 5.0 allow the more than three million
developers using Visual Basic to quickly create component-based
applications targeting the Internet, intranet, and traditional
client/server environments.
- Q. Where do I get Visual Basic?
A. To order Microsoft Visual Basic or other Microsoft Visual Tools, or
to receive a reseller referral, in the United States or Canada, call
(800) 621-7930, Dept. A334WB. Outside the United States and Canada,
please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary.
- Q. Where can I place an order or get upgrade and pricing information
about Microsoft Visual Basic version 5.0 for Windows?
A. A list of estimated retail prices for Visual Basic 5.0 products is
available at http://www.microsoft.com/visualtools/uspricing.htm. Contact
your local Microsoft reseller for exact pricing and availability. For
the name of a local Microsoft reseller, in the United States and Canada,
call (800) 621-7930.
- Q. What is the current version of Visual Basic for Windows?
A. Visual Basic for Windows 6.0 is the latest version of Visual Basic.
This version comes in Learning, Professional, and Enterprise editions.
For more information about Visual Basic 6.0, please see the Visual Basic
site at http://msdn.microsoft.com/vbasic.
- Q. What are the differences between the Standard, Professional, and
Enterprise Editions?
A. The core features of the Learning, Professional, and Enterprise
Editions are the same. The Learning Edition is the latest edition of the
version 5.0 product line and is designed for people who have never
programmed before. This edition comes complete with Visual Basic 5.0, as
well as a self-paced, interactive CD-ROM tutorial.
The Professional Edition contains all the features of the Learning
Edition with advanced features such as native code compilation, high-
speed database access, and an improved development environment. In
addition, the component creation capabilities of the ActiveX
technologies in Visual Basic 5.0 will allow the more than three million
developers using Visual Basic to quickly create component-based
applications targeting the Internet, intranet, and traditional
client/server environments.
The Enterprise Edition is specifically designed to address these unique
requirements by integrating all of the tools and support systems needed
for successful enterprise application development, deployment,
debugging, tuning, and support. This edition also ships with Microsoft
Visual SourceSafe, a project-oriented version control system.
For more information about Visual Basic, see the Visual Basic Web site
at http://www.microsoft.com/vbasic
- Q. Where can I get the latest updates for Visual Basic files?
A. You can identify available updates by searching for the pointer
article in the Knowledge Base (described elsewhere in this document).
Search on the keyword UPD or SOFTLIB. To get the latest release of
Visual Basic updated files, download the appropriate file (the updates
are all stored as self-extracting .EXE files) from the Microsoft
Software Library (MSL).
For more information about downloading files from the Microsoft Software
Library, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:
Q119591
How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services
- Q. What is the Knowledge Base? What are the Qxxxxx numbers that people refer to and where can I find a Microsoft Knowledge Base article?
A. The Knowledge Base is a collection of articles written by
Microsoft Support professionals (and others) on a wide range of
product-specific issues. The Knowledge Base is designed to attempt to
put all of the "known" issue information at your fingertips. The Qxxxxx
numbers are the ID numbers of the articles. You use this number when
searching the Knowledge Base.
You can find the Knowledge Base on Microsoft's World Wide Web Site on
the Internet:
On the www.microsoft.com home page, click the Support icon. Click
Knowledge Base and follow the instructions on that page.
- Q. How do I find a summary of Knowledge Base articles by topic?
A. Search for the text "Article List" in the title text, and a group of
articles is retrieved that lists other Knowledge Base articles grouped
by topic.
- Q. What can you tell me about the next version of Visual Basic?
A. The answer is, we can tell you nothing. We cannot discuss
unannounced products: That is the standard Microsoft policy. Individuals
involved in Beta testing our products our bound by a similar
non-disclosure agreement, which requires that they not discuss the
product.
- Q. What is Visual Basic for Applications?
A. Visual Basic for Applications is the edition of the Microsoft Visual
Basic programming system that is designed to provide rich development
capability from within an application environment. Originally released
as part of Microsoft Excel, Visual Basic for Applications was added to
Microsoft Project in 1994 and to Microsoft Access in 1995. With this
integration, these applications became full-fledged development
platforms that more than three million Visual Basic developers worldwide
could immediately access and use. Visual Basic for Applications made it
easier and faster for developers to customize these applications and to
write extensions and add-ons for their customers. Because these custom
solutions were built with Visual Basic (and not a proprietary macro
language), they could integrate easily with other desktop applications.
For more information about Visual Basic for Applications, go to
http://www.microsoft.com/vba/about/solutions.htm
- Q. What do I do if I have a problem with Visual Basic?
A. You have a number of options for assistance from Microsoft as well
as other developers. They include:
- Standard No-Charge Support by telephone
- Standard No-Charge Support via the Internet
- Pay-Per-Incident Support
- Priority Annual Support
- Priority Plus
- Consult Line
- Premier Support
- Microsoft Certified Support Centers
- Microsoft Solution Providers
For more information about these different support options, see
http://www.microsoft.com/supportnet
- Q. What should I do before I ask for help?
A. Read the manuals. The Visual Basic manuals cover every keyword and
most common programming situations. This information is also available
in the online Help files.
Look in the Knowledge Base. The Microsoft Developer Knowledge Base is a
tremendous resource for dealing with Microsoft products. Developer
Support professionals at Microsoft create solutions and explain problems or
techniques that come up in the course of using Microsoft products. You
can access the Knowledge Base through the Visual Basic Support Home
Page at http://www.microsoft.com/vbasicsupport.
Look at the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list. This file is one of
several FAQs made available to the public by Microsoft Developer
Support. Its goal is to answer only the most commonly asked questions
as succinctly as possible. These FAQs are divided by technical areas in
Visual Basic. Even if you're a long-time MSBasic native, these FAQs
will be useful if only to direct beginners to the quick answers. These
FAQs are available at the Visual Basic Support Home Page at
http://www.microsoft.com/vbasicsupport
Isolate the problem. Isolating the problem often leads to the solution.
- Q. Where else can I get information about Visual Basic?
A. Download files are available from the Microsoft Software Library
(MSL).
For more information about downloading files from the Microsoft Software
Library, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:
Q119591
How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services
Other potential sources of Visual Basic information include:
- ftp.microsoft.com:
/softlib/mslfiles
/msdn
/msdn/vbtech
/devtools/lang/vb/public
Microsoft has three services for customers on the Internet:
www.microsoft.com World-Wide-Web Server
gopher.microsoft.com Gopher Server
ftp.microsoft.com FTP server
All three servers are registered in the Internet's Domain Name Service
(DNS), so customers merely have to reference any of the servers by
name:
ftp ftp.microsoft.com
In mosaic connect to: <LINK TYPE="GENERIC" VALUE="http://www.microsoft.com">http://www.microsoft.com</LINK>
In gopher connect to: gopher.microsoft.com, port 70, type 1
For additional information, please see the following article in the
Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Q120734
Microsoft Windows NT Internet Servers
- Q. What are some books that might be of use to a Visual Basic
user/developer?
A. There are hundreds of relevant books for Visual Basic and
programming in general, but to name a few:
Title: Visual Basic 5.0 Programmer's Guide to the Win32 API
Author: Daniel Appleman
ISBN: 1-56276-446-2
Publisher: Ziff Davis Press
Title: Microsoft[ASCII 174] Visual Basic[ASCII 174] 5.0 Programmer's Guide
Author: Microsoft Corporation
ISBN: 1-57231-604-7
Publisher: Microsoft Press
Title: Visual Basic 5 Step by Step
Author: Michael Halvorson
ISBN: 1-57231-435-4
Publisher: Microsoft Press
Title: Active Visual Basic[ASCII 174] 5.0
Author: Guy Eddon, Henry Eddon
ISBN: 1-57231-512-1
Publisher: Microsoft Press
- Q. How do I apply for the beta program?
A. You can request to become a beta site by writing to:
Microsoft Corporation
Attn: XXXX Beta Test Administrator
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052-6399
Where XXXX is the product you want to apply for. Various products
within Microsoft have varying capacity to respond to those who are
not elected. Unfortunately, due to the volume of requests, the Visual
Basic group is not able to inform those who were not selected for the
beta.
- Q. Where can I find out more about Visual Basic certification?
A. For information regarding the Microsoft Certified Professional
program, the developer certification, or the Visual Basic or Access
exams, please refer to the Microsoft Training and Certification Web
site at http://www.microsoft.com/train_cert.
- Q. How do I send suggestions for product features/improvements to
Microsoft?
A. Contact the Microsoft Wish Line at (425) 936-WISH [936-9474].
If it takes more than two minutes to describe, you can:
a. Fax it to us at 425-936-7329
b. Write to us at:
Attn: Microsoft Wish
One Microsoft Way
Redmond WA, 98052