Is Visual Basic 2005 Worth It?

Any prospective programmer should be broad minded about the languages they learn. A good toolkit will involve something like C/C++, Java and Python at least. They all have their own useful situations. C/C++ will be faster to run but usually take longer to write and be more error prone. Python will run much more slowly (which sucks for games or real time applications) but is relatively fast to write applications with. Personally I think Java is a great language as long as you aren't doing any 2D/3D drawing. It's great for guis, command line apps, networking etc.

If you want to learn VB.NET, then learn it. If you want to learn C# instead, then learn that. I would say its probably worth learning C# instead of VB.NET. They use the same libraries (you can even make a library in one and use it in the other because they both use CLR), have WYSIWYG form editing and are about equally easy to write, but C# is widely used in software engineering. People tend to find VB.NET slightly easier to learn, probably because it is closer to english and some new programmers don't like the "curly bracket syntax" that C# uses.

Visual Studio Express: Visual C# - Easy to Use

They are not huge downloads or installs (at ~2GiB you seem to be talking about Visual Studio but that's not free), the express edition is free, but I don't know if you want to bother installing sql server express, which it asks you if you want (depends if you want to do database apps, and if you do, if you want to use your own computer as a server rather than just using files or an external server).
 
sage

Sure, being multilingual is good, but definitely don't learn VB as a first language -- it does bad things to the brain... and unless you're prepared to "unlearn" everything then it'll affect you for almost ever.

"It is practically impossible to teach good programming to students that have had a prior exposure to BASIC: as potential programmers they are mentally mutilated beyond hope of regeneration."
- Edsger W.Dijkstra
 
VB is a good easy way to learn some basics of OOP but like stated above. Don't get to much into it. It will teach a lot of bad habits.

It's good if you don't want to get hardcore into programming but if you do. Learn some basics of how OOP is done and then move on to C/C++/Java/etc.

VB is a very easy language but it babies you to much. Only good as a quick intro to OOP, basic Windows programming, and scripting for MS Office. Other languages are more powerful and efficient then VB.

I went from PASCAL > VB > BASIC > Java > C

VB made it easy for me to go from sequential programming to OOP though if it wasn't for learning proper coding ways in PASCAL I would have been in trouble from how much VB makes it to easy for you to do things.

Virtually all the basic objects are made for you in VB. You can edit them but it's a major hassle. It gives you everything and tells you that you can only use them the way they want yo to. No control over things and getting used to that will make programming very hard for you. So just use it as a way to learn how OOP is done with objects/classes and then move on to something better.

Of if you just want to learn VB and only VB then go for it.

NoPeace - out
 
VB used to be considered a beginners language, but with recent developments and especially VB.NET it became more mature.

But as for all languages of any type, bear in mind that each language has its own pro's and con's. It really depends what kind of program you wish to make or be part of that will determine what is a good language.

As for myself, I really dislike Java since the applets always lag, crash or give errors. Nevertheless it is a very common used language nowadays and I'm sure it can do some nifty tricks.

VB and VB.NET gives you basicly a bonus language if you learn any of them as VB is nearly the same as ASP and VB.NET nearly the same as ASP.NET, In the past I even was be able to copy large sections of code from one to the other.

As for C and C++, They are widely knows for the extensive capabilities and are often used for large or complex programs.
 
Well i recommend you not to code in .NET languages, the main reason is that large amounts of decoomopilers arround there, so if yuo want to learn go trought the native VB, but as you can see VB create bad habits, so if you want a easuy language you can go learn Delphi, and then when you learn the basics you can go to c++ and this will get easier thant learning c++ first
 
Well i recommend you not to code in .NET languages, the main reason is that large amounts of decoomopilers arround there
lol wut. Good recommendation, questionable reason. .NET was designed to be easily compiled/decompiled, a scripting system similar to Java. If you want to never worry about losing your source code, and like to write simple single-use programs, .NET is interesting; but if you want efficient programs, then no.

(Interesting fact: C#, VB.NET, and J# are essentially interchangeable with different syntax. Decompile a .NET application into C#, VB.NET, or J#, no matter which one it was originally in and then you can recompile it into a working program for the lulz.)
 
NEVER learn vb first.
Even though it's not coding, learn html first.
It gets you into that state of mind of learning computer languages.
(if your a computer language newbie)

I am pro in html, and am average in c++, and a newbie in java
 
i think VB9 is good, coz its easy and there are lost of microsoft tutorials.
And they are best, as a template :)
 
Im learning VB atm and its pritty cool making aplication's the easy way you also do learn some code when u go threw cause when u wana link pages etc..

I hope i can learn C++ Soon that will be more useful but i say go ahead its a fun program to use 'Visual Basic' nice and easy too souldnt take long to learn i still need to learn abit more tho!
 
dudes user Visual Basic 2005 it has the newest buttons in windows and more stuff! on it Visual basic 6 sucks!! Not VB 2005 doesnt Cost .
 
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