Programming Microsoft Visual Basic .NET for Microsoft Access Databases

Rick Dobson

PUBLISHED BY
Microsoft Press
A Division of Microsoft Corporation
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, Washington 98052-6399

Copyright 2003 by Rick Dobson

All rights reserved. No part of the contents of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dobson, Rick, 1944-
Programming Microsoft Visual Basic .NET for Microsoft Access Databases
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-7356-1819-4
1. Microsoft Access. 2. Microsoft .NET. 3. Microsoft Visual BASIC.
I. Title.

QA76.73.B3 D635 2003
005.2 768 ”dc21 2002038685

Printed and bound in the United States of America.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 QWT 8 7 6 5 4 3

Distributed in Canada by H.B. Fenn and Company Ltd.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Microsoft Press books are available through booksellers and distributors worldwide. For further information about international editions, contact your local Microsoft Corporation office or contact Microsoft Press International directly at fax [phone]. Visit our Web site at www.microsoft.com/mspress. Send comments to: [e-mail] .

Access, Excel, FrontPage, JScript, Microsoft, MSDN, Visual Basic, Visual C#, Visual C++, Visual InterDev, Visual Studio, Windows, and Windows NT are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries . Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners .

The example companies, organizations, products, domain names, e-mail addresses, logos, people, places, and events depicted herein are fictitious. No association with any real company, organization, product, domain name , e-mail address, logo, person, place, or event is intended or should be inferred.

Acquisitions Editor: Anne Hamilton
Project Editor: Barbara Moreland
Technical Editor: Jean Ross

Body Part No. X08-92511

Acknowledgments

Authors have the opportunity in their acknowledgment section to praise the kindness afforded them by the folks they believe made a book possible. It would be very difficult for me to give due recognition to all who helped on this particular book. So many persons did huge favors ”both for this book and for earlier books leading to this one.

I am going to start by thanking the one person who is closest to me in the whole world ”my wife, Mary Virginia Dobson. She vigorously encouraged me to write my first book for Microsoft Press back in 1998. In the years since then, she and I have grown professionally as well as personally closer to one another. She reviewed nearly every chapter in this book twice ”once before submittal to Microsoft Press and a second time in the galley proof phase. It is my sincere hope that her proofing added to my efforts and combined with the editorial work by persons at Microsoft Press ensures a quality book that is clear and as error-free as humanly possible.

Next, I want to thank Microsoft Press. I have worked with three other book-publishing organizations as well as numerous computer magazines. Microsoft Press exhibits a degree of care for the author and the technical accuracy of content that exceeds any other organization with which I have prepared published material. I count it an honor to be a Microsoft Press author.

An organization, such as Microsoft Press, is composed of people who reflect that firm s culture. For this book, I have the privilege of mentioning Anne Hamilton, Barbara Moreland, Jean Ross, and Michelle Goodman as significant individuals with whom I interacted. There were others who contributed meaningfully to the book, such as the book indexer, the proof editor, and various marketing persons. I want to say thank you to each of these individuals for their excellent efforts.

The content of this book spans two divisions within Microsoft ”the Visual Studio team and the Microsoft Office team. Therefore, I recruited representatives from each one. Sean Draine, from the Visual Studio team, constantly urged me to add content that reflected the new and innovative features of Visual Basic .NET. Paul Cornell encouraged me to add content and orient the book so that it served the needs of practicing Access developers. Both Paul and Sean acted as sounding boards for my own ideas both before the start of writing and into the actual authoring of the book. In spite of their heavy professional obligations at Microsoft, each of them took the time to make valuable contributions.

It is my tradition that with each new book I give thanks to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I believe that He ordered my steps to get to this point as an author. He is my Chief Technical Officer, and He is my authoring mentor. It is my prayer that you derive blessings from the wisdom that He shared with me.

Piston Ring Installer

It s easy to install and remove piston rings with the amazing piston ring installer . Tapered jaws support the piston ring, allowing you to remove and install most rings ranging in size from 3/64 inch to 1/4 inch for passenger cars and light trucks . The installer includes a special mechanism to hold it in a locked position. This tool saves you time and money by preventing breakage ”just like programming Microsoft Access with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET.

At Microsoft Press, we use tools to illustrate our books for software developers and IT professionals. Tools very simply and powerfully symbolize human inventiveness. They re a metaphor for people extending their capabilities, precision, and reach. From simple calipers and pliers to digital micrometers and lasers, these stylized illustrations give each book a visual identity and add personalty to the series. With tools and knowledge, there s no limit to creativity and innovation. Our tagline says it all: the tools you need to put technology to work .

The manuscript for this book was prepared and galleyed using Microsoft Word. Pages were composed by Microsoft Press using Adobe FrameMaker+SGML for Windows, with text in Garamond and display type in Helvetica Condensed. Composed pages were delivered to the printer as electronic prepress files.

Cover Designer:	Methodologie, Inc.
Interior Graphic Designer:	James D. Kramer
Principal Compositor:	Gina Cassill
Electronic Artist:	Michael Kloepfer
Principal Copyeditor:	Michelle Goodman
Indexer:	Seth Maislin