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Beginning VB 2008 databases : from novice to professional
Agarwal V., Huddleston J., Apress, Berkeley, CA, 2008. 409 pp. Type: Book (9781590599471)
Date Reviewed: Jul 21 2008

As I usually work with Visual Basic (VB) and databases, I definitely enjoyed reading this book. I was pleasantly surprised at the ease in understanding the text.

This is a good book on database access using Microsoft VB 2008 as a development tool. In about 400 pages, structured into 20 chapters, it introduces relational databases, providing from the very beginning examples of SQL Server 2005, VB 2008, and .NET Framework 3.5, resulting in an easy-to-read yet serious book.

This is a book that will be appreciated by all VB programmers, but foremost by beginners in developing .NET application projects. It assumes no prior database experience; it teaches all the fundamental concepts of relational databases, and also shows, using didactic code examples, how to access data using VB applications.

Well organized and clearly written, the book is logically structured into two parts. The first part (chapters 1 to 13) is primarily a language and database textbook for novice .NET software developers, and will serve them well during their first projects. The second part (chapters 14 to 20) acts as a reference book that allows programmers to quickly locate information for specific VB language features or special techniques used in database manipulation. The techniques are discussed with useful code examples that reference real-life tasks.

Beginning with chapter 4, almost every code example needs to access a database, presenting all the fundamentals you may ever need to develop professional database applications.

The book is also pertinent to students trained in information technology (IT), who seek to become software developers. It can substitute course material, inside and outside the classroom, and in-group or individual study. The information is presented clearly, in steps and stages that entail theory, code examples, and graphics that permit the easy execution of the techniques presented. The book can also be used as a reference by beginning developers who have not used relational databases or the .NET Framework previously, as many of the examples given can be introduced in real applications with only the slightest modifications to actual code sequences.

The book is adequately structured into chapters with self-explanatory titles, working progressively from fundamental to complex notions. Each chapter contains a didactic presentation that does not assume any previous knowledge of concepts. The new techniques are then defined and showcased in “Try It Out” sections that enunciate, then gradually construct, the relevant code sample; building examples are heavily supplemented by graphics of the used selections. Each “Try It Out” is followed by a “How It Works” section that details every instruction and command. In a pure academic vein, every chapter concludes with a brief summary of the material that was presented and exemplified.

What is distinctly missing, which would perfect the book’s didactic utility, is a set of questions and answers, as well as problems, with eventual solutions, that would help consolidate the knowledge accumulated throughout the tutorials.

The book has been fully revised and upgraded for .NET 3.5, offering best practices in this core programming area.

The novice’s part of the book focuses on: how to install and configure necessary tools (Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server Management Studio Express) in a step-by-step presentation; the essential tool options and how to use the development tools already installed; relational database concepts; essential SQL query, update concepts, and syntax; the T-SQL stored procedures utility and how to call them from VB programs; Extensible Markup Language (XML), its related technologies, and how to use it in database applications; database ADO.NET connections, ADO.NET commands and transactions, exceptions, and events; and how to access database data in a connected fashion, using data readers, data sets, and data adapters.

The second logical part deals with building Windows applications using the latest revision of VB and the .NET 3.5 Framework. Important topics covered are: concepts related to Windows Forms; user interface design principles and object-oriented programming, controls, properties, methods, and events; ASP .NET applications; and handling exceptions, creating menus, and working with graphics.

I found interesting the topics about using LINQ to simplify VB database programming and XML, text, and binary data, within a VB 2008 context.

The book ends with a handy index chapter.

This book fulfills its basic purpose as a beginner’s textbook for developing database applications, and as a reference book for early VB programmers. It teaches IT professionals to develop database applications, and is designed to take the reader “from novice to professional.”

Reviewer:  M. J. Iordache Review #: CR135856 (0905-0429)
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  Reviewer Selected
 
 
Relation Systems (I.2.4 ... )
 
 
SQL (H.2.3 ... )
 
 
SQL Server (H.2.4 ... )
 
 
Visual Basic (D.2.2 ... )
 
 
Design Tools and Techniques (D.2.2 )
 
 
Languages (H.2.3 )
 
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