Visual Basic 101

Creating a Flowchart for our Mechanical Man Start Raise Arms Yes Touch Wall? A No

Stand Up Yes Touch wall? B No Take One Step

Add One to Counter Yes Turn Right Touch Wall? No Take One Step

Subtract One from Counter Is Counter = 0? Yes Turn Right B No

B Sit Down A Lower Arms Stop

Building an Application Vocabulary Words: 1. Graphical User Interface (GUI) (pronounced “gooey”): Allows you to use both text and graphical images to communicate with the computer. Example: Microsoft Windows is called a graphical user interface.

Application Software or Applications: Are computer programs that perform a certain function such as calendar, word processing, or spreadsheet. Even though they are developed by different companies, they have a similar look and feel to the computer user!

Visual Basic: Is itself a Windows application. Its function is to help you build you own special-purpose applications and application components for the Windows operating system.

Stand-alone application (also called EXE): Is one which runs independently of the Visual Basic system.

Multiple document interfaced (MDI) : Presents windows within windows and is better suited for larger monitors with higher resolutions. Single document interfaced (SDI): Presents independent windows on the desktop.

Docked : A window that can be anchored to other windows.

Design Time: Is the time during which you build an application with Visual Basic. Run Time: Is the time during which you use an application for its intended purpose. Project: These are the applications you build in Visual Basic.

Form: A project always begins with a form! Objects that become the windows and dialog boxes when the application runs. Twips: A unit of measurement used to position objects on forms. There are 1440 twips in one inch.

Controls: The command buttons, text boxes, scroll bars, and other objects that make up the user interface. Toolbox: The collection of tools that allows you to add objects to the forms you create in Visual Basic.

Properties: Are characteristics, or attributes, of a control, such as its color or the text that displays on top if it. Events: An action taken by the user or generated by some process that causes an event-driven program to respond. They are messages sent to an object when the application runs.

Methods: A command that directs an object to make a change to is state. Example: The SetFocus method causes the focus to be changed to a certain control on the form. Internal documentation: They are comments within the code statements, they explain how the code in the procedure works. Each comment line must begin with an apostrophe (‘) or the letters Rem.

Let’s start using Visual Basic!

The Properties Window Object Box Property Values Properties List

Homework: 1.) Page 1.57 True/False questions and Multiple Choice. 2.) Page 1.58 #4 Understanding VB Toolbar and Toolbox.