Visual Basic .NET and the .NET Platform: An Advanced Guide

Book Review by John J. Maggiore

Visual Basic .NET and the .NET Platform: An Advanced Guide is a comprehensive book on VB.NET, in both the number of topics covered and the depth in which they are covered.  The author, Andrew Troelsen, has done an outstanding job of making this book a broad and pleasurable source of information.  The book is well suited for experienced VB programmers who are preparing to use VB.NET, as well as those who are already well into using VB.NET.

Early chapters of the book discuss the philosophy embraced by Microsoft in developing .NET.  The early chapters also discuss the .NET core components, along with the features of the VB.NET language.  Topics such as the Common Language Runtime (CLR), the use of namespaces, the use of the VB.NET compiler from the command prompt, and numerous other topics are well covered.  The early chapters transition into coverage of the Visual Studio Interactive Development Environment (IDE), followed by VB.NET language fundamentals, and object oriented programming (OOP) in VB.NET and the significant enhancements in VB.NET in that area.  These early chapters are not simply boring, lengthy discussions.  Instead, the writing is well interlaced with “nuts and bolts” coding examples that keep the reader’s interest.

Beyond the early chapters of the book, more technically specific chapters follow.  These chapters include ”Delegates, Events, and Callback Interfaces,” “Programming with Windows Form Controls,” “Interacting with Unmanaged Code,” “Data Access with ADO.NET,” “Web Development and ASP.NET,” “Building and Understanding Web Services,” plus other such chapters intermixed with these.

The author has skillfully patterned his writing on each topic: first, what a topic is all about; then why it is the way it is in VB.NET; how coding is to be done; and, finally, projects that are examples of the coding.  If an experienced VB programmer were to own only one book, Troelsen’s book would be an excellent choice.