Author Topic: Learning Visual Basic & Access  (Read 6279 times)

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M-dub

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« on: August 16, 2004, 08:57:32 PM »
Man, this is very overwhelming.  I mean, I'm moving along with this training, but it just seems like there's SOOOOOOO much to learn.  Are there any books or websites devoted to dummies like myself?  I'm just having a hard time grasping a lot of the code and the bits and pieces that build the code.  I've been trying to just jump into developing a simple drawing databse application, but I think I need to take a step back and get some of the terms and when to use what...if that makes sense.

I'm actually taking a visual basic 'course', but the application I'm building is in Access only because of the client's standards.  Should I try to forget about the Access application until I finish this VB course or keep going at it?  I mean, are the two similar enough that I can use the stuff I'm learning in VB with Access?

I don't know...if you can tell, I'm kinda frustrated with all of this and confused. [Dr. Evil] Throw me a frickin' bone here! [/Dr. Evil]

Thanks a lot!
Mike

M-dub

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #1 on: August 16, 2004, 09:55:36 PM »
Here's another one: (This will show how inexperienced I am with this stuff...)

If I were to build this in Visual Basic, how possible would it be to convert it into an Access application?  I mean, using VB, Access would be the back end anyway, but I'm talking about the front end.  How much work would be involved?  Should I just slap myself upside the head for thinking about this or what?  I know you guys are probably thinking about how aggrivating it is to deal with these complete newbies because I know the feeling myself.  Hopefully, I will make some headway here someday and be able to make some real contributions to this forum.  Please forgive me in the meantime....:oops:

As always, Thanks very much,
Mike

MP

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2004, 10:50:14 PM »
Hi Mike,

<Warning, seemingly random sewerage>

I suggest you defer working on the Access app for now and continue and concentrate with your vanilla VB studies. Stay with the pace set out by the instructor. You can sprint later, just do the measured laps for now.

Ask your instructor lots of questions, that's what you paid him / her for -- to guide and help. (If your course is an on-line course then post yer questions here, I'm pretty sure help will find it's way to you).  

Try to get the instructor to help you establish REAL good programming habits now, they'll become second nature and will be invaluable tools down the road. Code comments, variable naming and white space are underated, under emphasized and under utilized aspects of programming in my opinion.

Once you finish this initial course, you might consider taking the next, or intermediate level VB course, and then after that perhaps the advanced one. While most of us are fully capable of learning quite well on our own thank you very much, going the course route forces you to adhere to a schedule and a structured path, with the additional benefit of an instructor  to answer those strange questions that don't seem to be easily found in course materials.

Going the course route will also tend to give you a more rounded understanding than self study, as we tend to avoid those topics that fall into categories like "not all that sexy" or "don't think I'll need that"; <sniff>.

Once you REALLY feel you've a pretty good foundation in VB then consider applying those skills to office automation like Access, either by VBA or by referencing the appropriate libraries in VB (my preference).  You'll find it easier going this route (IMO) as the only new concepts will be the actual office automation stuff; variable declaration, looping, conditional branching, error trapping, program struture, fundamental object oriented stuff, bla, bla -- all that will be old hat, a foundation you build on.

This might be a bit to chew on at this point, so I killed the next page+ of rambling (for now). If I see that further MP ranting might actually contribute to the growing discussion I might just pipe back in. For now I just hope some of this made sense and more importantly, actually helped to some degree. :)

Cheers,

Michael.
Engineering Technologist • CAD Automation Practitioner
Automation ▸ Design ▸ Drafting ▸ Document Control ▸ Client
cadanalyst@gmail.comhttp://cadanalyst.slack.comhttp://linkedin.com/in/cadanalyst

Ron Heigh

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #3 on: August 16, 2004, 10:56:06 PM »
While I haven't built an access application into my visual basic programs yet, I've done this instead.  I made an access program to deal with my autocad drawings, get data, purge, draw stuff, etc.  When I need to get important information from the drawings, I use VB to get it and process it, then export it to a csv output.  I then link my access database to this csv file for more advanced processing.  Since the Table is linked, I can add to the csv file then reopen my database to see then update data.

HTH

Slim©

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #4 on: August 16, 2004, 11:43:10 PM »
M-dub, Randall Rath over at the CADVault just started a VBA online class today, you may be able to still sign up. $50 for 4 a week class.
http://www.cadvault.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9909
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hyposmurf

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #5 on: August 17, 2004, 08:29:20 AM »
That looks like a great idea over at CADVault, though Ive missed the start date and the online chat bit would be a bit useless to me as Id be online when theyre all blowing ZZZZ's.

Slim©

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #6 on: August 17, 2004, 09:25:16 AM »
Randall says he's going to have another class later on.
I drink beer and I know things....

M-dub

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #7 on: August 17, 2004, 09:40:25 AM »
Thanks guys,
I think I'll take Michael's advice and concentrate more on the 'course' I'm already taking.  The reason why I don't consider this to be a real course is because it's one of the guys in our office who's teaching it.  I mean, he really knows his stuff, but I'm not sure how well this 'course' was actually put together.  There isn't really any 'flow' to it.  We're getting there anyway.

Thanks guys...

sinc

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #8 on: August 18, 2004, 12:15:46 AM »
Something to keep in mind is that Access is a database, while VBA is not.  VBA can write/read data to/from files and interact with databases, but it is not in itself capable of advanced database functionality.  You need Access or some other database for that.

Usually, the bulk of coding is done in a full-fledged programming language, while the data is stored in the database.  Usually the programming language available in the database is limited, and not the best (or even a valid) choice for the bulk of the programming task.  I haven't used Access in over 10 years, and back then it was a cheesy wanna-be almost-database - glorified spreadsheet was probably a more accurate description - and I have no idea what it's mutated into these days.  Microsoft has a bad habit of mixing things that shouldn't be mixed, so it wouldn't surprise me if they have a full-fledged application programming language plastered on top of Access these days.  Oracle tried doing that with a morass they called Forms, which most people seem to generally view as a failed experiment (if they don't run away screaming... :shock:  ).

hyposmurf

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #9 on: August 22, 2004, 08:12:54 AM »
You may have seen this thread m-dub but in case you missed it .

M-dub

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #10 on: August 22, 2004, 05:26:11 PM »
Thanks a lot, Hyposmurf...I'll get into it a little later on when I have some time to do so...

hyposmurf

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Learning Visual Basic & Access
« Reply #11 on: August 22, 2004, 06:37:08 PM »
Ive been thinking the same thing with VBA but everytime I go to start learning it something gets in the way.I'll have to take some days off work & hide myself away in my shed with my PC or something.