README.TXT for Professional Edition of VB 3.0 for Windows

Last reviewed: July 20, 1995
Article ID: Q100493
The information in this article applies to:

- Professional Edition of Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows,

  version 3.0

SUMMARY

The following article contains the complete contents of the README.TXT file distributed with the Professional Edition of Microsoft Visual Basic version 3.0 for Windows.

MORE INFORMATION

README.TXT

Release Notes for Microsoft (R) Visual Basic (R) Professional Edition Version 3.00. (C) Copyright Microsoft Corporation, 1993

This document contains release notes for Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition version 3.0 for Windows. Information in this document is more current than that in the manuals or online Help.

How to Use This Document

To view README.TXT on screen in Windows Notepad, maximize the Notepad window.

To print README.TXT, open it in Windows Write, Microsoft Word, or another word processor. Then select the entire document and format the text in 10-point Courier before printing.

******************************************************************* Read Part 1 - Software Installation Information - before installing. *******************************************************************

Contents

Part Description 1 Software Installation Information 2 Notes and Tips 3 Notes for "Learning Microsoft Visual Basic" Tutorial 4 Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic Online Help 5 Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Programmer's Guide" 6 Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Language Reference" 7 Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Custom Control Reference" 8 Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Data Access Guide"

Part 1: Software Installation Information

To install Visual Basic, use the Program Manager or File Manager to start SETUP.EXE as you would any other Windows-based application. For example, if you are installing from drive A:

  • From the Program Manager File menu, choose Run.
  • In the Run dialog box, type A:SETUP and choose OK.

    -or-

  • From the File Manager, double-click the SETUP.EXE file icon on drive A.

File Sharing for OLE and Data Access

You will need SHARE.EXE to enforce file and byte range locking if the following programs are running simultaneously:

  • Two Visual Basic applications that perform data access
  • Two instances of one Visual Basic application that performs data access
  • Microsoft Access and a Visual Basic application that performs data access

If you are running Microsoft Windows 3.0 or Windows 3.1 (i.e. not Windows for Workgroups), you will need to change your AUTOEXEC.BAT as follows:

     SHARE /L:500 /F:5100

If the /L or the /F setting to SHARE has a larger value than listed here, leave the setting as it is rather than reducing it.

Please make this change as soon as possible in your system.

NOTE: If you ship .EXE files to users that use OLE or data access, they must add this setting to their AUTOEXEC.BAT file as well.

Visual C++ and GRID.VBX

If you plan to install Microsoft Visual C++(TM) Development System for Windows on your system, you may overwrite the grid control in your Windows \SYSTEM directory. Before installing Visual C++, make a backup of GRID.VBX. If you have already installed Visual C++, you can re-install GRID.VBX by running Setup again, choosing the Custom Installation button, and then selecting the Microsoft Visual Basic option.

Using Visual Basic 3.0 with SQL Server and Access 1.0

If you choose to install the SQL Server ODBC driver, you will find the file INSTCAT.SQL in the \VB\ODBC directory. This is a stored procedure file that the SQL Server administrator must run on the server to prepare the server to accept Visual Basic as a client. However, this version of INSTCAT.SQL is incompatible with Microsoft Access 1.0. If you are also using Access 1.0 as a client for that SQL Server, you should use the INSTCAT.SQL that was included with Access 1.0. Visual Basic 3.0 will work correctly with INSTCAT.SQL from Access 1.0 except that it will be unable to delete indexes from tables.

Setup and LZEXPAND.DLL

Visual Basic's Setup program uses LZEXPAND to install ODBC. If you encounter a system error while Visual Basic is calculating free disk space, check for this file in your Windows \SYSTEM directory. If an older version of LZEXPAND.DLL exists along your path, remove the file and continue with Setup.

Part 2: Notes and Tips

Data Access Compatibility - Visual Basic 2.0 and 3.0

The new functionality of the Microsoft Access engine in Visual Basic 3.0 will affect the behavior of your VB 2.0 code. Visual Basic 3.0 will now assume that all SQL statements take the form of Access SQL (see the Access documentation). You can passthrough SQL to ODBC; as a second parameter to the CreateDynaset method, you must specify &H40 to indicate SQL passthrough. Note that if you used backend-specific SQL with CreateDynaset, you must add this parameter.

ATI Driver

If you have an ATI Wonder card, moving the data control around at design time may cause a GP fault. Contact ATI for more information.

BackColor Displayed Incorrectly with 256-Color Bitmaps

If you have a 256-color bitmap in any control (or the form) that has a BackColor property, it is possible that the background color of that object will not display correctly if no color in the bitmap's palette matches the background color.

"Communication Link Failure" Error

If you receive a "Communication Link Failure" error when executing queries against a Microsoft or Sybase SQL Server, you can retry the operation with asynchronous execution disabled. To do this, add the following entry to your VB.INI file:

     [Debug]
     RmtTrace=16

Visual Basic will continue to run synchronously until this line is removed from VB.INI.

OLE Class Names

To get a reference to a currently running OLE application by using its class name, you must use:

      GetObject(, "classname")

that is, GetObject has to have an empty file name. A file name of "" will create a new instance of the server for class name. This is contradictory to what is documented.

OLE Control: In-Place Activation

The Visual Basic OLE 2.0 control supports "Inside-Out Activation," which corresponds to "activation on GetFocus." If a server designates this capability and you specify AutoActivate = GETFOCUS, then:

  • The object is initially deactivated the first time the control gets the focus.
  • The object is not fully deactivated when the control loses focus. Instead, the object is directed to tear down any floating user interface it may have, such as tool pallettes.

Note that AutoActivate = GETFOCUS is only supported if the server claims to be "inside-out-capable," further reducing the possibility of looping re-activation when a non-insitu server closes and gives focus back to the control.

OLE Control: Pasting Objects from the Clipboard

Applications that provide objects behave differently when an object is deleted. When you delete an OLE object (set Action = 10), the object's application may or not close. If the application does close, any objects on the Clipboard associated with that application may also be closed. Because of this, you may not be able to cut an object (copy, then delete), since deleting the object may also cause the data on the Clipboard to be deleted.

Another instance of this behavior is when you try to copy an object, then paste the object back onto itself. This action may cause an error, because in order to paste over an existing object, the existing object is first deleted. If the application associated with the object closes, and subsequently deletes any objects it has on the Clipboard, the Clipboard no longer contains an object to paste.

OLE Control: The PasteOK Property

The following applies to objects on the Clipboard that come from an OLE object:

  • When PasteOK returns True, there is no guarantee that the Paste operation will succeed. For example, PasteOK returns True and the Paste fails when there is a linked object on the Clipboard and you are pasting into an object whose OleTypeAllowed property is set to 1 (Embedded).
  • PasteOK returns False when there is a linked object on the Clipboard and you are pasting into an object whose OleTypeAllowed property is set to 0 (Linked).

OLE Control: Link Target

You cannot activate a linked object as hidden (set Verb = -3). You can, however, activate an embedded object as hidden.

OLE Constants in CONSTANT.TXT

OLE has also defined two new standard verbs relating to the two states that an in-place-active object can have. The following corresponding constants have been added to CONSTANT.TXT:

Constant                  Description
VERB_INPLACEUIACTIVATE    Object is fully in-place active, including
                          floating UI. Only one at a time per top-level
                          form can be in this state.

VERB_INPLACEACTIVATE      Object is semi-active; it is running and ready to
                          respond to user input like clicking within the
                          object or changing the mouse pointer as the user
                          moves the mouse over different parts of the
                          object. Any number of objects can be in this
                          state at a time.

So, if you have a number of inside-out-capable objects on a form, where the user has specified AutoActivate = ONGETFOCUS, the objects take turns at being in-place-UI-Active. The new verbs allow the Visual Basic programmer to cause these objects to be in the in-place-active state. For example, if you want to create a form with several of these objects, and you want the form to be as responsive as possible to user input, you would put the following code for each control into your Form_Load event handler:

     OLEControl.Verb = VERB_INPLACEACTIVATE
     OLEControl.Action = OLE_ACTIVATE

See the file CONSTANT.TXT for more information.

Windows 3.0 and the PopupMenu Method

Under Windows 3.0, pop-up menus invoked during a MouseDown event in some cases do not recognize menu selections made with the mouse. If that occurs, you can still make a selection using the arrow keys and the Enter key.

Saving ASCII Forms in Source Code Managers

When using source code managers, you need to change the read-only bit on the binary file (.FRX) as well as the form file (.FRM) to save the form.

Crystal Reports for Visual Basic

All prices in the Crystal Reports for Visual Basic editor, CRW.EXE, are listed in US dollars.

If you are calling Crystal Services from outside the United States for support or more information, please contact your local international long distance carrier if you need assistance.

Part 3: Notes for "Learning Microsoft Visual Basic" Tutorial

Save Project Before Run

The Save Project Before Run Environment Option (under the Options menu) should be set to "No" when running the "Learning Visual Basic" tutorial. Some of the lessons may be impaired if this option is set to "Yes." By default, this setting is "No."

Part 4: Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic Online Help

Error Message Help

Online Help is not available for dialogs or error messages that occur at design time. For ISAM errors, use the Search dialog in Help.

"Couldn't find installable ISAM"

An external file dynamic link library (DLL) file couldn't be found. This file is required for operations such as attaching or accessing external tables.

Possible causes:

  1. An entry in the [Installable ISAM] section in VB.INI or <APPNAME>.INI is incorrect. For example, this error occurs if you're accessing a Paradox external table, and the Paradox entry of the .INI file points to a nonexistent directory. Exit Visual Basic, make necessary corrections in VB.INI or <APPNAME>.INI using Microsoft Windows Notepad or another text editor, restart Visual Basic, and try the operation again.

  2. One of the entries in the [Installable ISAM] section in VB.INI points to a network drive, and that drive isn't connected. Check to make sure the network is available and the proper drive letter is established, and try the operation again.

Part 5: Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Programmer's Guide"

Page Section/Note 188 The New Keyword

       In the example at the top of the page, the local form
       variable F is declared with the New keyword using the
       Dim statement. To make the form variable and the
       loaded form instance persist, use a Static or Global
       variable instead.

194 Determining the Type of an Object Variable

       You can use the If...TypeOf statement to determine the
       control type of a custom control:

    If TypeOf object Is objecttype

       The identifier you use for 'object' is the class name of
       the custom control. See the section "Specific Control
       Object Types" (p. 186) for more information.

461 The Options Property

       The constant values shown are in hexidecimal and should be
       preceded with the &H notation. For example,
       DB_SQLPASSTHROUGH = &H40, not decimal 40. See online Help
       (Options Property) or the file DATACONS.TXT for the correct
       values.

462 The RecordSource Property

       The following text and example should be changed:

       For example, the following SQL query returns all of the columns
       in the bibliography for authors who live in New York:

    Data1.DatabaseName = "BIBLIO.MDB"
    Data1.RecordSource = "Select * from Titles where state = 'NY'"
    Data1.Refresh

       The above should read:

       For example, the following SQL query returns all of the columns
       in the bibliography for publishers based in New York:

    Data1.DatabaseName = "BIBLIO.MDB"
    Data1.RecordSource = "Select * from Publishers where state = 'NY'"
    Data1.Refresh

465 Adding a New Record

       In the second paragraph in this section, the last sentence
       should read, "Notice that using the buttons on the data
       control or one of the Move methods to move to another record
       will automatically save your added record."

530 Determining How an Object Is Displayed

       In the first paragraph, the second sentence should read,
       "the Icon check box," not "th eIcon check box."

550 Creating Invisible Objects

       In the sample code, the following line has incorrect syntax:

   MyWord = ObjVar.SuggestWord MyWord

       The code should look like this:

   MyWord = ObjVar.SuggestWord (MyWord)

552 Limitations in Visual Basic

       Under the discussion "Arrays and User-Defined Types," the third
       bulleted item should read: "You cannot...Assign the return value
       of a property or method to an array variable or a variable of a
       user-defined type."

554 Closing an Object

       In the paragraph after the sample code, second sentence:  It is
       not true that invoking a Close method on an object sets variables
       that refer to the object to Nothing.

582 Determining the Files You Need to Distribute

       The following additional files are required for distributing
       your Visual Basic applications:

       DLL Name       Required by (Professional Edition Only)
       ------------------------------------------------------
       PDIRJET.DLL    Crystal Reports for Visual Basic
       PDBJET.DLL     Crystal Reports for Visual Basic
       MSAJT110.DLL   Crystal Reports for Visual Basic
       MSAES110.DLL   Crystal Reports for Visual Basic
       PDSODBC.DLL    ODBC and Crystal Reports for Visual Basic

Part 6: Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Language Reference"

Page Section/Note 21-22 Action Property (OLE)

       In the Settings table, in Setting 5, the reference to None in the
       second sentence of the third paragraph should read as follows:
       "If the Paste was not successful, the OleType property will be set
       to 3 (None)."  In Setting 12, the constant should be
       OLE_READ_FROM_FILE, not ReadFromFile. In Setting 14, the constant
       should be OLE_INSERT_OBJ_DLG.

41 AutoActivate Property

       In the Note, replace the words "the double-click event" with
       "a DblClick event."

53 BorderStyle Property

       The OLE control cannot have a setting of 2. Remove the setting and
       description for Setting 2 in the OLE control table.

65 Check Box Control

       Add DataField and DataSource to the Properties list.

82 Color Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (Color dialog)."

89 Common Dialog Control

       Add "FilterIndex" and "MaxFileSize" to the Properties (File dialogs)
       list.

93 Connect Property

       In the Note, change "SourceTable" to "SourceTableName."

97 Copies Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (Print dialog)."

100 CreateDatabase Function

       In the code example, replace "False" with "DBVERSION10."  Also, in
       the table above the code example, replace "DB_COMPACT_ENCRYPT" with
       "DB_ENCRYPT."

111 Data Control

       Add UpdateControls and UpdateRecord to the Methods list.

112 Database Object

       In the Properties list, the QueryTimeout Property should be
       identified as being available only in the Professional Edition.

117 DataText Property

       In the code example, change the two instances of "MSDRAW" to
       "MSGRAPH."

134 DefaultExt Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (File dialogs)."

185 Field Object

       The Properties list should refer to SourceField and SourceTable, not
       SourceFieldName and SourceTableName.

195 FileTitle Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (File dialogs)."
       Add the following to the Remarks section:

       Note: If the OFN_NOVALIDATE flag is set, the FileTitle property will
       not return a value.

198 Filter Property (Common Dialog)

       At the beginning of the topic, add "Applies To...Common dialog (File
       dialogs)."  In the Remarks section, after the third paragraph, add
       this text:

       Here is an example of a Filter in which the user can choose text
       files or picture files that include bitmaps and icons:

       Text(*.txt)|*.txt|Pictures(*.bmp;*.ico)|*.bmp;*.ico

199 FilterIndex Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (File dialogs)."

229 Frame Control

       Add the Name Property to the Properties list.

231 FromPage, ToPage Properties

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (Print dialog)."

240 GetAttr Function

       The final Sub...End Sub block in code should read as follows:

Sub File1_Click ()
Const ATTR_READONLY = 1, ATTR_HIDDEN = 2       ' Declare constants.
Const ATTR_SYSTEM = 4, ATTR_ARCHIVE = 32
Dim Attr, FName, Msg   ' Declare variables.
If Right(Dir1.Path, 1) = "\" Then      ' See if root file.
   FName = Dir1.Path & File1.FileName  ' Get file path.
Else
   FName = Dir1.Path & "\" & File1.FileName    ' Get file path.
End If Attr = GetAttr(FName) ' Get attributes. If Attr > 7 Then Attr = Attr Xor ATTR_ARCHIVE ' Disregard Archive.
Select Case Attr       ' Look up attributes.
   Case 0: Msg = "Normal"
   Case ATTR_READONLY: Msg = "Read-Only"
   Case ATTR_HIDDEN: Msg = "Hidden"
   Case ATTR_HIDDEN +  ATTR_READONLY: Msg = "Hidden and Read-Only"
   Case ATTR_SYSTEM: Msg = "System"
   Case ATTR_READONLY +  ATTR_SYSTEM: Msg = "Read-Only and System"
   Case ATTR_HIDDEN +  ATTR_SYSTEM: Msg = "Hidden and System"
   Case ATTR_READONLY + ATTR_HIDDEN +  ATTR_SYSTEM: Msg = "Read-Only,"
      - + Msg = " Hidden, and System"
End Select
MsgBox UCase(FName) & " is a " & Msg & " file."   ' Display message.
End Sub

256 hDC Property

       The Usage line should read:

       {[form.] [commondialog. | picturebox.] | Printer.}hDC

       Also, the second paragraph of the Remarks should read, "With a
       common dialog control, this property returns a device context for
       the printer selected in the Print dialog box when the..." (the rest
       of the text remains the same).

258 Height, Width Properties

       The See Also line should refer to the "Width # Statement," not the
       "Width Statement."

274 Image Control

       Add DataField and DataSource to the Properties list.

280 InitDir Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (File dialogs)."

297 KeyDown, KeyUp Events

       The See Also should refer to the SendKeys Statement, not the
       SendKeys Method.

299 KeyPress Events

       The See Also should refer to the SendKeys Statement, not the
       SendKeys Method.

303 Label Control

       Add the DataField, DataSource, and Parent properties to the
       Properties list.

336- ListFields Method 338
       In the second table, the fifth and sixth entries in the Field column
       should be SourceTable and SourceField, not SourceTableName and
       SourceFieldName. The code example and the headings of the table
       below it should also refer to SourceTable and SourceField.

345 ListTables Method

       In Remarks, the first paragraph under the TableType field table
       should read: "When you use the ListTables method to create a
       Snapshot, you can evaluate the contents of the Attributes field in
       the Snapshot by referring to the TableDef property settings table in
       the Attributes property topic.

361 Max, Min Properties (Common Dialog)

       At the beginning of the topic, add "Applies To...Common dialog
       (Font, Print dialogs)."

363 MaxFileSize Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (File dialogs)."

390 Name Property

       The "Applies To" line should include the Database object.

432 Partition Function

       In the code in Example 3, the second five lines of code duplicate
       the first five lines and should be deleted.

439 Picture Box Control

       Add DataField and DataSource to the Properties list.

444 PopupMenu Method

       In the Syntax line, add a comma immediately before the y.

455 PrinterDefault Property

       The "Applies To" line should read "Common dialog (Print dialog)."

536- SourceFieldName, SourceTableName Properties 537
       All references to SourceFieldName and SourceTableName in this topic
       should refer to "SourceField" and "SourceTable" instead.

538 SourceTableName Property

       There should be a full entry for the "SourceTableName" topic. See
       online Help for the text of this topic.

565 Text Box Control

       The second piece of art is incorrect. It should show a text box
       on a form but instead shows a menu title and menu items on a form.
       Also, add DataField and DataSource to the Properties list.

595 Validate Event

       In the third paragraph following the Constants table, change "edit
       buffer" to "copy buffer."

619 Trappable Errors

       In Appendix B, the odd header is wrong. It should read "Trappable
       Errors," not "Trappable Error Messages."

634 Trappable Error Messages

       In Table B.6 ("Data Access Trappable Error Messages"), Error #3137
       should be deleted.

Part 7: Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Custom Control Reference"

Page Section/Note xxii Visual Basic Executable (.EXE) Files

       The Visual Basic run-time file is listed incorrectly. The first
       bulleted item should read VBRUN300.DLL, not VBRUN200.DLL.

147 Graph Control

      In Example 1, the following line contains two "=" characters:

   Graph1.LabelText = "Data point" = Str$(i%)

      The line should read:

   Graph1.LabelText = "Data point" + Str$(i%)

148 Graph Control

       In Example 2, the following line contains two "=" characters:

       Graph1.LabelText = "Label" = Str$(i%)

       The line should read:

       Graph1.LabelText = "Label" + Str$(i%)

176 Key Status Control

       The table for the Value property incorrectly states that False is
       the default value. The default value is determined by the state
       of the keyboard.

180 MAPI Session Control

       There should be no footnotes, since the MAPI controls are
       only available in Visual Basic.

186 MAPI Messages Control

       There should be no footnotes, since the MAPI controls are
       only available in Visual Basic.

Part 8: Notes for Microsoft Visual Basic "Data Access Guide"

Page Section/Note 23 Creating New Table Definitions

       Delete the following line of code from the example:

   On Error Resume Next


Additional reference words: 3.00 docerr
KBCategory: kbreadme kbdocerr
KBSubcategory: RefsDoc


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Last reviewed: July 20, 1995
© 1998 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use.