Visual Basic 6 Windows 32 API Tutorial Book

For those with a yen to take Visual Basic beyond the creation of on-screen forms, controls and dialogue boxes it's necessary to tackle the API head-on. The Windows API (Application Programming Interface) provides a variety of methods to gain access to the inner workings of the operating system, cutting out the electronic "middlemen" often invisibly employed by languages like Visual Basic to help software execute properly on the host machine. For such a complex subject author Jason Bock has adopted a very relaxed style of writing, designed to entertain and inform as he explains the core concepts behind the API rather than plunging into thousands of pages of exacting detail on every switch of every call. Tying code samples in with real-world situations helps the reader to rationalise what's going on without getting tied up in knots over vague and unhelpful abstract examples. Bock's running theme, which involves the creation of a custom encryption routine, pulls all of the strands of this interesting topic together into a rather pleasant bundle. The possibilities for failure in a book designed to introduce the Windows API could have been huge. The examples could have been unhelpful and the overall tone could have been cold. Happily it's none of these things. For VB programmers looking to stretch their legs and challenge the operating system to do something more than usual this is an invaluable guide.Read More