Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET

Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET

by Chris Sells, Justin Gehtland
Released October 2003
Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
ISBN: 0321125193

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Book description

Praise Page for Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET

“This is the .NET WinForms book to have. If you have been looking for a good Windows Forms book for your bookshelf, here it is. Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET covers everything from ‘Hello World’ to multithreading the user interface. Sells and Gehtland definitely understand Windows Forms and VB and are able to bring many new .NET techniques and concepts to the VB masses.”

         —Darrin Bishop, Senior Technical Specialist

“Not only does Sells do a great job of breaking down all the quintessential components that anyone developing a Windows Forms application should know, but he also covers the critical pieces of functionality, like multi-threaded programming and resource management, which every Windows Forms developer should incorporate into his or her applications.”

         —Colin Bowern, Senior Consultant, Microsoft Corporation

“With its excellent content, this book is easily an important component for any Visual Basic .NET developer’s toolbox.”

         —Amit Kalani, coauthor of MCAD/MCSD Developing and
             Implementing Windows®-based Applications with
             Microsoft Visual C#™ .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio®.NET
             Exam Cram 2 (Exam Cram 70-316)

“If you are a VB.NET developer—or one coming from a ‘classic’ VB background—and you want a no-nonsense guide to the key elements of WinForms development, this book is for you. In-depth practical experience shines through each chapter.”

         —Martin Naughton, Independent Freelance Software Consultant

“If you’re planning on using the .NET Framework, this book is an invaluable resource. Chris dives straight into the heart of what makes the Windows Forms Framework tick. He has a real talent for striking the proper balance between showing you the theory behind the software and demonstrating coding techniques that will make you instantly productive.”

         —From the Foreword by Ted Pattison, VB .NET Guru and author of
             Building Applications and Components with Visual Basic .NET

“This book contains consistent and detailed hands-on examples about Windows Forms. Whether you are new to programming in .NET or already experienced, Chris Sells gives you the thorough grounding you need to write Windows Forms applications.”

         —Erick Sgarbi, Software Engineer

“This is a great book for programmers who need to get work done with WinForms, and don’t have time to read a 1,200-page tome. Unlike many of the other WinForms books out there, it goes beyond the available Microsoft documentation and gives you critical tips and tricks you won’t find in the manuals. Chris really knows his stuff when it comes to WinForms programming and lays out in-depth information clearly and logically. His actual working experience with WinForms is obvious throughout the book, which has the information you need to know if you want to get beyond simple demos and write serious WinForms applications. The chapter on Web deployment is worth the price of admission just by itself. I’d definitely recommend this title to anyone who is serious about WinForms development.”

         —Henry Stapp, Software Development Lead, Youbet.com, Inc.

"If you are just beginning to use WinForms, or even if you are already an experienced hand, you will find this book an antidote for confusion and a friendly companion on the road to writing modern applications."—Alan Cooper, Father of Visual Basic

Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET is the ultimate guide to using the Microsoft .NET forms package. Readers will learn how to build applications that take full advantage of both the rich user interface features of the Microsoft Windows operating system and the deployment features traditionally associated with HTML-based applications.

Authors Chris Sells and Justin Gehtland draw upon their WinForms research and programming experience to go beyond the Windows Forms documentation to give you a clear picture of exactly how Visual Basic .NET programmers can use WinForms. Readers will gain an understanding of the rationale behind aspects of WinForms design and learn how to avoid or solve common problems. Throughout the book, detailed illustrations of WinForms user interface features and working code samples demonstrate best practices. All code has been tested with Visual Studio .NET 1.1 and is available at www.sellsbrothers.com, where readers will also find updates to the book.

This book focuses on the topics developers need to know in order to build real-world applications, including:

  • Form layout

  • Multiple top-level and non-rectangular windows

  • Classes outside the System.Windows.Forms namespace, including System.Drawing and System.Security

  • Custom drawing

  • Hosting and building controls

  • Design-time integration of controls and components

  • Data binding

  • Multithreaded user interfaces

  • Deploying WinForms controls and applications over the Web

  • Moving from Visual Basic 6

    • Well-written and easy to navigate, Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET is the tutorial for Windows programmers who are serious about mastering Windows Forms.

    Table of contents

    1. Copyright
    2. Praise Page for Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET
    3. Microsoft .NET Development Series
    4. Figures
    5. Tables
    6. Foreword by Alan Cooper
    7. Foreword by Ted Pattison
    8. Preface
    9. Color Section
    10. Hello, Windows Forms
      1. WinForms from Scratch
      2. Windows Forms in Visual Studio .NET
      3. Arranging Controls
      4. Controls
      5. Application Settings
      6. Resources
      7. Dialogs
      8. Drawing and Printing
      9. Data Binding
      10. Multithreaded User Interfaces
      11. Deployment
      12. Moving from VB6
      13. Where Are We?
    11. Forms
      1. Showing Forms
      2. Form Lifetime
      3. Form Size and Location
      4. Form Adornments
      5. Form Transparency
      6. Form Menus
      7. Child Controls
      8. Layout
      9. Multiple Document Interface
      10. Visual Inheritance
      11. Where Are We?
    12. Dialogs
      1. Standard Dialogs
      2. Styles
      3. Data Exchange
      4. Data Validation
      5. Help
      6. Where Are We?
    13. Drawing Basics
      1. Drawing to the Screen
      2. Colors
      3. Brushes
      4. Pens
      5. Shapes
      6. Paths
      7. Images
      8. Where Are We?
    14. Drawing Text
      1. Fonts
      2. Strings
      3. Where Are We?
    15. Advanced Drawing
      1. Page Units
      2. Transforms
      3. Regions
      4. Optimized Drawing
      5. Where Are We?
    16. Printing
      1. Print Documents
      2. Print Controllers
      3. Basic Print Events
      4. Margins
      5. Page Settings
      6. Printer Settings
      7. Where Are We?
    17. Controls
      1. Standard Controls
      2. Custom Controls
      3. User Controls
      4. Drag and Drop
      5. Where Are We?
    18. Design-Time Integration
      1. Components
      2. Design-Time Integration Basics
      3. Extender Property Providers
      4. Type Converters
      5. UI Type Editors
      6. Custom Designers
      7. Where Are We?
    19. Resources
      1. Resource Basics
      2. Resource Localization
      3. Where Are We?
    20. Applications and Settings
      1. Applications
      2. Environment
      3. Settings
      4. Where Are We?
    21. Data Sets and Designer Support
      1. Data Sets
      2. Designer Support
      3. Typed Data Sets
      4. Where Are We?
    22. Data Binding and Data Grids
      1. Data Binding
      2. Data Grids
      3. Custom Data Sources
      4. Where Are We?
    23. Multithreaded User Interfaces
      1. Long-Running Operations
      2. Asynchronous Web Services
      3. Where Are We?
    24. Web Deployment
      1. Hosting Controls in Internet Explorer
      2. Code Access Security
      3. No-Touch Deployment
      4. Partially Trusted Assembly Considerations
      5. Increasing Permissions
      6. Authenticode
      7. Where Are We?
    25. Moving from VB6
      1. A Few Words about Visual Basic 6.0
      2. VB6 versus WinForms
      3. Where Are We?
    26. Delegates and Events
      1. Delegates
      2. Events
      3. Happiness in the Universe
    27. Serialization Basics
      1. Streams
      2. Formatters
      3. ISerializable
      4. Data Versioning
    28. Standard WinForms Components and Controls
      1. Components and Controls Defined
      2. Standard Components
      3. Standard Controls
    29. Bibliography

    Product information

    • Title: Windows Forms Programming in Visual Basic .NET
    • Author(s): Chris Sells, Justin Gehtland
    • Release date: October 2003
    • Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
    • ISBN: 0321125193