Datasheet

Although you can add any file to a project or solution, it’s not a good idea to load dozens of unrelated
files. Although you may sometimes want to refer to an unrelated file while working on a project, the
extra clutter brings additional chances for confusion. It will be less confusing to shrink the Visual Basic
IDE to an icon and open the file using an external editor such as Word or WordPad. If you won’t use a
file very often with the project, don’t add it to the project.
IDE Overview
When you first start Visual Studio, it initially displays a Startup Page by default. To change what Visual
Studio does when it starts, select the Tools menu’s Options command. Select the Show all settings check
box so you can see all of the options. Use the Environment folder’s Startup page to tell Visual Studio how
to start.
There are several reasons why Visual Studio on your system may not look exactly like the screens shown
in this book. First, Visual Studio looks different on different operating systems. The figures in this book
were taken on a computer running a pre-release version of Windows Vista, so they display the distinctive
Vista style. This computer was using the new Aero Glass style, so the forms use large, translucent borders
and other Aero-style decorations. You may see a different appearance, even if you are using Vista and you
have selected another style, or if Vista thinks your hardware won’t support Aero nicely. Additionally, some
commands may not behave exactly the same way on different operating systems.
In addition to its new Aero appearance, new features in Vista also include a new User Account Control
(UAC) security model. When you first log on, all accounts get a normal level of user privileges. Later,
when you try to run certain applications that require increased permissions, a UAC privilege elevation
dialog box appears where you can enter an administrator password. The examples in this book were
tested using a normal user account, so you should not see that dialog while running them, but you
may see it if you use other development tools. Chapter 14 provides more details about UAC.
Second, Visual Studio will look different depending on which version you have installed. The free Visual
Basic 2005 Express Edition product has fewer tools than other editions such as the high-end Visual Studio
2005 Team Suite. The figures in this book were captured while using Visual Studio 2005 Team Suite, so, if
you have another version, you may not see all of the tools shown here.
Finally, you may be using different configuration settings that the ones used while writing this book.
When you install Visual Studio, it asks you what kind of development settings you want to use. The
most obvious choice for a Visual Basic developer is Visual Basic Development Settings. This choice
customizes Visual Studio to work more easily with Visual Basic, and is a good choice if you will focus
on Visual Basic development.
Another reasonable choice is General Development Settings. This option makes Visual Studio behave more
like Visual Studio 2003 does. It’s a good choice if you are used to Visual Studio 2003, or if you expect to use
other Visual Studio languages such as C# fairly regularly.
This book assumes that you have configured Visual Studio for Visual Basic development. If you have
chosen a different configuration, some of the figures in this book may look different from what you see
on your screen. Some of the menu items available may be slightly different, or may appear in a different
order. Usually, the items are available somewhere, but you may have to search a bit to find them.
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