Tutors Sue Cahill and Colin Duley

A Visual Basic program is created in 5 stages:

1. Creating a new form, which will be the interface between the user and the program. The form will hold the various controls.  A program must have at least one form and more complex programs can have several.

2. Attaching controls to the form. Controls are selected from the toolbox and drawn in the size and position that you, the programmer, require.

3. Setting the “properties” of the controls. These properties decide the initial appearance of the control and can govern how it works.

4. Writing code.  You will write code to respond to the events associated with the controls.

5. Testing the program. The program is tested thoroughly and errors or bugs eliminated. A final working .EXE file will be produced.
 

Below are listed some of the controls and what they can be used for.

Control name	Use	Example
Label	Display a message	“Please enter your name”
Text Box	Allow a user to enter data	Respond to a request as above
Command Button	Click for action	OK, Exit, Yes, No
Image Box	Display a graphic	Put a picture or drawing on your form
Option Button	Choose one from several options	Choosing character size
Check Box	Select one or more option from a set	Setting options on or off