VB.NET Language Pocket Reference

Visual Basic .NET is a radically new version of Microsoft Visual Basic, the world's most widely used rapid application development (RAD) package. Whether you are just beginning application development with Visual Basic .NET or are already deep in code, you will appreciate just how easy and valuable the VB.NET Language Pocket Reference is.

VB.NET Language Pocket Reference contains a concise description of all language elements by category. These include language elements implemented by the Visual Basic compiler, as well as all procedures and functions implemented in the Microsoft.VisualBasic namespace. Use it anytime you want to look up those pesky details of Visual Basic syntax or usage. With concise detail and no fluff, you'll want to take this book everywhere.

Customer Reviews:

difficult to use and extremely poorly organized

By rconnolly@mtroyal.ab.ca - May 20, 2003

I've found the O'Reilly C# Language Pocket Reference extremely useful and sensibly organized. Unfortunately, this pocket reference for the other main .NET language is just the opposite. To my mind, a poorly organized pocket reference is a fatal flaw. For example, the table of contents is 2 and 3/4 pages long. Almost two of those pages describes pages 1-17 in the book (covering constants and enumerations in detail), while the other 3/4 of a contents page describes, with no detail, the remaining 125 pages. With no index as well, it is almost impossible to find what you are looking for except by looking page-by-page. Want to find, say, the syntax of a select statement? Then you have to wade through a hundred-odd pages of non-alphabetically listed function descriptions.

Overcomplicating a simple language; doesn't include objects.

By canrocks - July 30, 2004

There were many reasons why I was disappointed by this book, but I did manage to get some use out of it. First of all, I can't believe I payed 24 dollars for it at a B&M store, especially considering what it's going for here. It's a small book, a pocket reference. My first beef, as I walked out of the store with my wallet a little lighter, was that it has absolutely nothing about objects. If you're looking for help with objects and their properties, do not buy this book. If you're looking for a definitive reference of the structure of the language, ie. constants, data types, math, interaction with files, and help with the registry, go for it. It's worth it for amazon's price. Also, one distinct note. This book, as with many other O'reilly books, is not FOR DUMMIES. The wording is obtusely complicated and will have you (or at least me) re-reading passages. In my opinion, that is a ridiculous oversight, because at heart, VB is a simple language, and overcomplicating it is a bit... read more

I can't agree with the critics here

By David A. Leon - May 12, 2005

I'm a guy who has been programming professionally since 1994. Many, even most, of the contracts I have worked on have been VB contracts. I've been on board with VB since version 3. I was one of the many who were completely thrown off by the conversion to VB.NET, hence I decided to switch to C# rather than make the jump to VB.NET. After learning C# I was forced by professional circumstance to use a little VB.NET on projects where conversion to C# was not an option. This little book gave me all of the information I needed to make the jump, and make it quick. It contains a gold-mine of information at every little glance. It's not a tutorial, it is a quick reference. I think it is a terrific little book.