Dan Appleman's Devel. ActiveX Comp. W/Visual Basic 5.0

by Daniel Appleman

Coverage of how to programme ActiveX components with Visual Basic is provided with this book. The author aims to cut through the documentation to bring programmers information on how to avoid common... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1562765108
• ISBN13: 9781562765101
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Ziff-Davis Press
• Length: 729 Pages
• Weight: 2.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.9" x 7.3" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Superb!

Somehow Dan Appleman has managed to explain COM in a clear, consice way that doesn't require you to read it over and over again in order to understand it. After reading this you will have a thorough grounding which will enable you to develop ActiveX controls, but more importantly you will find yourself designing you applications in a more structured, efficient way.

Great book, but I give it 4.5 stars

I liked the book. It clearly explains what MS manuals should have explained. I liked the Stock Ticker as an ActiveX Exe example. My only problem with the book is that it rehashed a lot of material that I already knew. For some reason, I thought there was more to the ActiveX components. But I guess there isn't.

Appleman's writing style makes complexity understandable

The author's logical, step-by-step description of how ActiveX really works, coupled with abundant sample code, makes this book a winner. Appleman resists the temptation to re-hash the Microsoft documentation, and instead offers a path to understanding ActiveX that is lucid and interesting. His writing style makes this complex technology understandable for all levels of VB programmers. The sample code offered on the accompanying CD is an education unto itself. It is very informative to see how the heavy-hitters write VB code, and Appleman doesn't disappoint. I learned to approach my own programming a little differently by going over his code.

The Standard for all forthcoming ActiveX books.

This is not only the best available book for learning ActiveX, but possibly the best programming book I've ever read. Don't let the specific platform (VB5) scare you off--after you read this book you will understand ActiveX and COM so well that porting it to another language will be a breeze. Well done, Mr. Appleman!

A must-read for AcitveX developer-wannabees

This is a big book, but it's definitely worth slogging through. If you're new to ActiveX, you should go through the examples in the Components Tool Guide manual to learn the mechanics of creating a control. You can do that in a few hours. But to take the step from creating dummy controls to creating controls robust enough to use, you have to know what the heck you're doing. That's where this book comes in. Is it annoying that Appleman doesn't really get down to the nitty-gritty of controls until half-way through the book? Of course. But the first part of the book is really important. More important than the second half of the book, actually. It's in the first part where he tells you what ActiveX is really all about. Any bonehead can create an ActiveX control. But unless you follow Appleman's way of doing things, you're better off not writing an ActiveX control in the first place. That's because there's a lot of pitfalls you can encounter that will cause more lost time than any time you saved by having an ActiveX control. As an example, consider the compiling of an ActiveX component. The VB manual basically says "You know, it's kind of a good idea to have binary compatibility, but if you to break compatibility, that's ok." Appleman basically says "Don't break the compatibility unless you really know what you're doing, because you're going to really regret it". Appleman knows his stuff inside and out, and that allows him to have opinions, allows him to decide what to emphasize. The bottom line - if you're just starting out developing ActiveX controls, you're a damn fool if you don't buy this book.