Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic

By Steven Roman, Ph.D.
First Edition November 1999
Pages: 534
ISBN 10: 1-56592-631-5 | ISBN 13: 9781565926318
(Average of 4 Customer Reviews)

Book description

This book provides the missing documentation for VB programmers who want to harness the power of accessing the Win32 API within Visual Basic. It shows how to create powerful and unique applications without needing a background in Visual C++ or Win32 API programming.
Full Description

The Win32 API, or Application Programming Interface, is of immense use in extending the power of Visual Basic. The Win32 API is the collection of functions and subroutines that provides programmatic access to the features of the operating system. It allows Visual Basic programmers far greater access to the inner workings of the Windows operating system without having to suffer through the steep learning curve associated with Visual C++ style Windows programming. The book is designed for users with an intermediate-level (or higher) knowledge of Visual Basic version 4 or later and a desire to stretch VB into the realm of Windows system programming. Users do not need any background in Visual C++, nor do they need any previous experience programming the Win32 API. This book teaches users how to do relatively simple tasks, such as adding tab stops to a list box and gathering system information (i.e., which version of Windows is running on a system and the number of buttons on the user's mouse). It also teaches users about several advanced programming techniques such as synchronizing two VB applications so they can work in cooperation with each other and how to extract data from controls that belong to another application. Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic also spends a good deal of time describing the basic operations of the Windows NT and Windows 95/98 operating systems. Microsoft's documentation seldom takes into account what the reader knows or does not know. Hence, a solid grounding in the basics of the Windows operating systems will help VB programmers to better understand Microsoft's documentation. This book helps VB programmers eliminate the trial and error process that is usually associated with calling the Win32 API from Visual Basic and does so in a practical, straightforward fashion that is the hallmark of author Steve Roman's style.

Browse within this book

Cover | Table of Contents | Index | Sample Chapter | Colophon

Featured customer reviews

excellent book, December 05 2006

Rating:

Submitted by motolep [Respond | View]

All programmers know the complex of the application programming interface (API).
i buy 4 books for api programming ,but this book has many features such as the simplicity ,excellent explain, simple examples.
in actualy i understand the api from this book.
realiy Dr.Roman always on the top .
note :i think this book is not good for profissionals.

Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic Review, March 13 2004

Rating:

Submitted by Jerry French [Respond | View]

Like Bruce McKinney I did not read the entire book.

Unlike Bruce I was very worried by the sample chapter.

The author is making a song and dance about GetWindowText moving the location of a String

<blockquote>

cTitle = GetWindowText(hnd, sText, 255)

sText = Left$(sText, cTitle)

</blockquote>

- when it is the Left$ reassignment that is moving the StrPtr

This is such a fundamental error, from which he draws such wide inferences, that it amazes me that the chapter has not been radically revised.

Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic Review, March 15 2003

Rating:

Submitted by Sathyaish Chakravarthy [Respond | View]

Contrary to what everyone else has to say, I found this book better than Dan Appleman's book on API. Appleman's book contains myriads of API documentation that is best used as reference material, with not as much description of the concepts. I fervently admire Dan Appleman for all his books and products Desaware brings out every year, but I must thank Mr.Roman for giving us a very vernacular commentary on the intimidating issues incidental to using API. For instance, the sixth chapter on Strings was a treat. I mostly re-read the first six chapters of the book late at night like they were bed-time stories. Although I haven't completed reading the whole book, I come back again and again to a select few topics every now and then. For instance, he explains the two's complement better than Hank Marquis did in his VB Developer's Toolkit. Then, I never found a book that took you on an inside tour of the PE file format. Admittedly, a few portions are really redundant - the seventh chapter on system information, the chapter on error handling is a little elusive, and chapters ten throught thirteen are a little too brief. Also, chapter nineteen on hooks leaves you hungry, but then I wanted something just like this - a little lightweight. Since I first came accross the chapter String on my MSDN a few years back, it has been sitting there in my favorites. I love this book better than a few others that I've picked up on the API. I rate this book the second after Charles Petzold's Programming Windows (of course, which has nothing to do with VB). I'd been thinking for a long time about congratulating the author for such a wonderful book. And it feels so ticklish to be writing a comment after Bruce McKinney, one of the icons I rever as a God, on the same subject. Bruce, can I say Hi! Do you hear that? Feels like a dream come true, like I am almost meeting you. If you ever come accross this comment, I am one of your ardent devotees.

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Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic Review, March 25 2002

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Submitted by jrichins   [Respond | View]

The applications I am responsible for incorporate a lot of the Win32 API, and I purchased this book believing that it would serve as an excellent resource. However, I am sorry to say that I have not received very much new information from this book. I am frustrated by the author's pretentiousness (he is an excellent programmer, just ask him), and his constant disclaimers and qualifiers about the information in the book. For example, the line "... for the sake of space and clarity of purpose, we will not employ <name a topic> in the examples in this book." Then why did he just mention it?

I really wish Mr. Roman would not tell me about things that he isn't going to cover, and spend his time thoroughly covering the topics instead. I don't need a high-level overview - I need an in depth resource and reference guide. I can get an overview from Microsoft marketing materials. The book reads like a collection of notes-to-self and afterthoughts, glued together with self-aggrandizing transitions and teasers about what's going to be covered next. The problem is, that it never gets covered.

This book is the poorest example in my large O'Reilly collection.

Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic Review, March 05 2000
Submitted by ed robinson   [Respond | View]

I was looking for a nice easy-to-read version of Appleman's definitive tome but this is not it.

Mr Roman knows his subject and with much perseverance I've learned quite a bit but I'm going to search for another simple tutorial-type book and return to this later as a reference when I'm a bit more au fait with API's.

Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic Review, December 22 1999
Submitted by Bruce McKinney   [Respond | View]

I didn't read the whole book because I don't do Visual Basic programming any more, but I was certainly impressed with the sample chapter. In his first edition the author has figured out some things about strings that it took me two and and half editions of "Hardcore Visual Basic" to figure out.

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