VB.NET language in a nutshell : a desktop quick reference / Steven Roman, Ron Petrusha & Paul Lomax.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The extensive changes to Visual Basic and the newness of the .NET platform call for a VB .NET reference guide oriented toward professional developers--those deeply experienced in Visual Basic and those adding VB .NET to their list of mastered languages. VB .NET Language in a Nutshell answers the call. As a reference book, it doesn't waste space on simple concepts, but documents, using practical examples, how language elements work, alternative approaches, optimal usage, and potential pitfalls.As a quick introduction, the first section of VB .NET Language in a Nutshell leads you through the important areas of programming VB .NET, including:

Variables and Data Types Introduction to Object Oriented Programming The .NET Framework: General Concepts The .NET Framework Class Library Delegates and Events Error Handling The meat of the book is the alphabetical reference to the functions, statements, directives, objects, and object members that make up the VB .NET language. As an experienced developer, you can quickly get the whole story on a language element that interests you or seems to be behaving unexpectedly in your code. To ease your transition to .NET, there's a "VB .NET/VB 6 Differences" section for each language element.A hefty appendix section includes: What's New and Different in VB .NET Language Elements by category Operators Constants and Enumerations The VB .NET Command Line Compiler VB 6 Language Elements Not Supported by VB .NET No matter how much experience you have programming with VB, this is the kind of book you'll want to have close by, both as your standard reference guide and as a tool for troubleshooting and identifying programming problems.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface (p. ix)
• Part I The Basics
• Chapter 1 Introduction (p. 3)
• Why VB .NET? (p. 4)
• What Is VB .NET? (p. 8)
• What Can You Do with VB .NET? (p. 14)
• Chapter 2 Variables and Data Types (p. 15)
• Variables (p. 15)
• Declaring Variables and Constants (p. 19)
• Data Types (p. 21)
• Arrays (p. 36)
• Object Variables and Their Binding (p. 39)
• The Collection Object (p. 41)
• Parameters and Arguments (p. 42)
• Chapter 3 Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming (p. 47)
• Why Learn Object-Oriented Techniques? (p. 47)
• Principles of Object-Oriented Programming (p. 47)
• Classes and Objects (p. 52)
• Inheritance (p. 60)
• Interfaces, Abstract Members, and Classes (p. 65)
• Polymorphism and Overloading (p. 68)
• Scope and Accessibility in Class Modules (p. 69)
• Chapter 4 The .NET Framework: General Concepts (p. 72)
• Namespaces (p. 72)
• Common Language Runtime (CLR), Managed Code, and Managed Data (p. 73)
• Managed Execution (p. 74)
• Assemblies (p. 74)
• Assemblies and VB .NET (p. 76)
• Chapter 5 The .NET Framework Class Library (p. 78)
• The System Namespace (p. 79)
• Other Namespaces (p. 84)
• Chapter 6 Delegates and Events (p. 89)
• Delegates (p. 89)
• Events and Event Binding (p. 93)
• Chapter 7 Error Handling in VB .NET (p. 97)
• Error Detection and Error Handling (p. 97)
• Runtime Error Handling (p. 98)
• Dealing with Logical Errors (p. 107)
• Error Constants (p. 109)
• Part II Reference
• Chapter 8 The Language Reference (p. 113)
• Part III Appendixes
• Appendix A What's New and Different in VB .NET (p. 563)
• Appendix B Language Elements by Category (p. 580)
• Appendix C Operators (p. 594)
• Appendix D Constants and Enumerations (p. 603)
• Appendix E The VB .NET Command-Line Compiler (p. 612)
• Appendix F VB 6 Language Elements Not Supported by VB .NET (p. 618)
• Index (p. 621)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Ron Petrusha is an editor for O'Reilly and is the author/coauthor of many books, including VBScript in a Nutshell. Ron has a background in quantitative labor history, specializing in Russian labor history, and holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Columbia University. He began working with computers in the mid 1970s, programming in SPSS (a programmable statistical package) and FORTRAN on the IBM 370 family. Since then, he has been a computer book buyer, an editor of a number of books on Windows and Unix, and a consultant on projects written in dBASE, Clipper, and Visual Basic.

Paul Lomax, author of O'Reilly's VB & VBA in a Nutshell and a coauthor of VBScript in a Nutshell, is an experienced VB programmer with a passion for sharing his knowledge--and his collection of programming tips and techniques gathered from real-world experience.