[...]... learning Visual Basic and the Visual Studio Integrated Development Environment (IDE) is that you can use many of the same tools to write programs for Microsoft Visual C++ 2010, Microsoft Visual C# 2010, Microsoft Visual Web Developer 2010, and other popular products Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Step by Step is a comprehensive introduction to Visual Basic programming using the Visual Basic 2010 software... of Visual Basic 2010 and Visual Studio 2010, but especially with the tools and techniques available in Visual Studio 2010 Professional and Visual Basic 2010 Express Although Visual Basic 2010 is similar in many ways to Visual Basic 2008, there are many important differences and improvements, so I recommend that you complete the exercises in this book using the Visual Basic 2010 software Note  The Visual. .. Start, click All Programs, and then click the Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 folder The folders and icons in the Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 folder appear in a list 2 Click the Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 icon Tip  If you are using Visual Basic 2010 Express, click the Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Express icon If this is the first time you are starting Visual Studio, the program will take a few m ­... you will need to download Visual Web Developer 2010 Express to complete the exercises Visual Web Developer is included in Visual Studio Professional, Premium, and Ultimate, but not Visual Basic Express Introduction xix Downloading Visual Basic 2010 Express As noted previously, if you don’t have Visual Studio 2010 Professional, Visual Studio 2010 Premium, or Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate, you can complete... support for the Visual Studio 2010 software and this book’s contents xxviii Introduction Visual Studio 2010 Software Support For questions about the Visual Studio 2010 software, I recommend two Microsoft Web sites: n http://msdn .microsoft. com/vbasic/ (the Microsoft Visual Basic Developer Center home page) n http://www .microsoft. com/communities/ (the home of technical communities related to Microsoft software... exercises in this book by downloading Visual Basic 2010 Express from the Web for free This will give you an opportunity to learn Visual Basic programming and see for yourself if you want to upgrade to a full release of the Visual Studio software To download Visual Basic 2010 Express, complete the following steps: 1 Open a Web browser (such as Internet Explorer), and go to http://www .microsoft. com/ express... chapters, and 56 step- by -step exercises and sample programs By using this book, you’ll quickly learn how to create professional-quality Visual Basic 2010 applications for the Windows operating system and a variety of Web browsers You’ll also have fun! xvii xviii Introduction Visual Basic Versions So how did we get here, anyway? Between 1991 and 1998, Microsoft released six versions of Visual Basic (versions... browser within Visual Studio n Get Help and manage Help settings n Customize IDE settings to match this book’s step- by -step instructions Are you ready to start working with Microsoft Visual Studio 2010? This chapter gives you the skills you need to get up and running with the Visual Studio 2010 Integrated Development Environment (IDE)—the place where you will write Microsoft Visual Basic p ­ rograms... integrated with Visual Studio that it is available only as a component in the Visual Studio 2010 programming suite, which includes Visual C#, Visual C++, Visual Web Developer, and other Microsoft NET development tools Since 2005, both Visual Basic and Visual Studio have been marketed without the “.NET” moniker, although they are still based on the NET Framework technology Visual Studio 2010 is distributed... browser within Visual Studio, get more information by using the online Help documentation, and customize the IDE to match this book’s step- by -step instructions These are common tasks that you’ll use in most Visual Studio p ­ rogramming sessions, and they will soon become second nature to you (if they are not already) 3 4 Part I  Getting Started with Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 The Visual Studio Development . Microsoft Visual C++ 2010, Microsoft Visual C# 2010, Microsoft Visual Web Developer 2010, and other popular products. Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Step by Step. Visual Basic 2010 and Visual Studio 2010, but especially with the tools and techniques available in Visual Studio 2010 Professional and Visual Basic 2010