Introduction

Welcome! Status, Slider, Tab, Rich Text

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Welcome to Visual Basic 107. In this course we will talk about a variety of Visual Basic controls, including the Status Bar, Progress Bar, AVI, Up Down, Slider, Date Time Picker, Month View, Tab Strip, and Rich Text controls. We will build a word processor together, learning how to save and load files, select and format text, and customize fonts and colors. I will also discuss course resources and provide guidance on how to follow along, with recommendations on class prerequisites and tips for best learning practices.

Navigation

Prev: 107
Next: Lesson 01

Keywords

, Status Bar Control, Progress Bar Control, AVI Control, Up Down Control, Slider Control, Date Time Picker Control, Month View Control, Tab Strip Control, Rich Text Control, word processor, Visual Basic 6, save and load files, bold text

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Intro

Transcript

Welcome to Visual Basic 107 brought to you by VBLearningZone.com. I am your instructor, Richard Rost.

In this class, we are going to learn about a lot of different controls: the Status Bar Control, the Progress Bar Control, the AVI Control, the Up Down Control, the Slider Control, the Date Time Picker Control, the Month View Control, the Tab Strip Control, and the Rich Text Control.

We will learn how to build our own word processor. I will show you how to save and load files, and how to do things like select text, figure out which text is selected, bold, italicize text, change the font, change the font color, and all that neat stuff.

This class follows VB106. I strongly recommend you take 101 through 106 before taking this course.

There is a special web page for this class located at VBLearningZone.com?GOVB107. On this page, you will find sample project files, the course outline, and the student discussion forum. If you have any questions about the material covered in today's class, post them here in the discussion forum.

If you are watching this class in the Amocrine Video Player or the Online Theater, you will see this page load up to the right of the videos. Participate in the discussion by posting your thoughts here.

In today's class, I will be using Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0. If you are using a different version of VB, such as VB.NET or VB2005, you will find that the interface is different. However, most of the Visual Basic programming code will work just fine.

I strongly recommend you sit back, relax, and watch each video through once without doing anything. Then, replay the video again, and follow along with the examples, building each project as I do. Do not try to apply what you are learning immediately to other projects that you might be working on. Instead, build the sample project in class with me.

Quiz

Q1. Which of the following controls will you learn about in this course?
A. Status Bar Control
B. Checkbox Control
C. Tree View Control
D. Switch Button Control

Q2. What kind of application will you build together in this class?
A. A calculator
B. A word processor
C. A database engine
D. A web browser

Q3. What are some of the text formatting options you will learn in this course?
A. Selecting text, bolding, italicizing, and changing font color
B. Encrypting text, compressing files, and sending emails
C. Saving images, cropping pictures, and applying filters
D. Running macros, compiling code, and debugging errors

Q4. What does the instructor recommend before taking this course?
A. Complete VB101 through VB106 first
B. Read all documentation from Microsoft first
C. Learn another programming language first
D. Purchase a premium membership first

Q5. Where can you find the sample project files and discussion forum for this class?
A. At VBLearningZone.com?GOVB107
B. In the Online Theater only
C. On YouTube only
D. No resources are available for this class

Q6. What special advice does the instructor give about watching the videos?
A. Watch each video once first before trying to follow along
B. Immediately pause and try all the examples as you watch
C. Skip to the end of the video and only review the summary
D. Only read the transcript, do not watch the videos

Q7. Which version of Visual Basic is used in this course?
A. Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0
B. Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications
C. Visual Basic Script
D. Microsoft Access VBA

Q8. Will all of the programming code work in other versions of VB, such as VB.NET or VB2005?
A. Most of the programming code will work just fine
B. None of it will work in other versions
C. Only the user interface will be compatible
D. Only database code is compatible

Q9. What controls will you NOT specifically learn about in this class based on the introduction?
A. Tree View and List View Controls
B. Status Bar and Progress Bar Controls
C. AVI Control and Up Down Control
D. Slider and Date Time Picker Controls

Answers: 1-A; 2-B; 3-A; 4-A; 5-A; 6-A; 7-A; 8-A; 9-A

DISCLAIMER: Quiz questions are AI generated. If you find any that are wrong, don't make sense, or aren't related to the video topic at hand, then please post a comment and let me know. Thanks.

Summary

Welcome to Visual Basic 107 from VBLearningZone.com. My name is Richard Rost, and I will be your instructor for this course.

In this class, you will get to know a wide variety of controls used in Visual Basic, such as the Status Bar, Progress Bar, AVI, Up Down, Slider, Date Time Picker, Month View, Tab Strip, and Rich Text controls. I will explain what each of these controls does, how to set them up, and how you can use them to create more dynamic and user-friendly applications.

One of the main projects for this course is building your own word processor. You will learn how to implement essential features like saving and loading files, selecting and determining which text is selected, as well as formatting options such as bold, italics, changing fonts, and altering text color. By the end, you should have a solid understanding of how to give your applications the kinds of text editing functions people expect.

It is important that you have already taken the earlier classes, VB101 through VB106, before starting with this material, as we build upon fundamental concepts covered in those courses.

There is a dedicated web page for this class at VBLearningZone.com?GOVB107 where you can find sample project files, a full outline of the course, and a student discussion forum. If anything from today's lesson is unclear, or if you have questions, you are encouraged to use the forum to communicate with other students and with me.

If you are using the Amocrine Video Player or the Online Theater to view these lessons, that webpage will load next to the videos. Be sure to participate in the online discussion; it is a great way to share your ideas and get help.

For all the demonstrations, I will be using Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0. If you are working with a later version, such as VB.NET or VB2005, you will notice some differences in the interface. However, most of the programming concepts and code examples will apply and should work in your environment.

My recommendation is to watch each lesson from start to finish before trying to build anything yourself. Then, go back and replay the video, following along with me step by step as we build the sample project together. Do not worry about trying to use new techniques in your own separate applications right away. Focus on mastering the material by building the example project with me first.

You can find a complete video tutorial with step-by-step instructions on everything discussed here on my website at the link below.

Live long and prosper, my friends.

Topic List

Status Bar Control usage and properties
Progress Bar Control usage and properties
AVI Control for displaying animations
Up Down Control for numeric input
Slider Control for user input
Date Time Picker Control setup and usage
Month View Control for calendars
Tab Strip Control for multi-page forms
Rich Text Control features and setup
Building a simple word processor
Saving and loading files in a word processor
Selecting and identifying selected text
Applying bold and italic formatting to text
Changing font type and size
Changing font color

Article

Welcome to this tutorial on working with various controls in Visual Basic. In this lesson, we will explore how to use several useful controls to enhance your applications. These include the Status Bar Control, Progress Bar Control, AVI Control, Up Down Control, Slider Control, Date Time Picker Control, Month View Control, Tab Strip Control, and the Rich Text Control. By the end of this tutorial, you will not only understand how to use these controls, but also how to build your own basic word processor with features like file saving, loading, text selection, text formatting, font adjustments, and changing font colors.

Let us start by understanding what each control does. The Status Bar Control displays helpful information to the user at the bottom of your forms, like status messages or hints about buttons. A Progress Bar Control can visually indicate how much of an operation is complete, such as during a file download or data import. The AVI Control is used to play simple animation files within your application, often used to indicate ongoing processes. The Up Down Control is a spinner that lets you increase or decrease numeric values easily, while the Slider Control allows users to select a value by sliding a thumb along a track, which is excellent for settings like volume or brightness. The Date Time Picker Control provides a friendly way for users to select dates and times, and the Month View Control lets users view and pick dates from a full month calendar. The Tab Strip Control helps you organize your form by splitting it into multiple pages or sections the user can switch between. Lastly, the Rich Text Control gives you the power to add rich text editing to your program, so your users can format text, use different fonts, colors, and styles.

Our main project will be a simple word processor using the Rich Text Control. To start, create a new project and add a RichTextBox control to your form. This control allows your users to type in and edit text with formatting. To save the contents to a file, you can use the following code:

RichTextBox1.SaveFile "C:\YourFile.rtf"

To load a file into the RichTextBox, you would use:

RichTextBox1.LoadFile "C:\YourFile.rtf"

Selecting text in the RichTextBox is easy. You can determine which text is selected by using the SelText property. For example, to get the currently selected text:

Dim selectedText As String
selectedText = RichTextBox1.SelText

If you want to change the selected text to bold, use the SelBold property:

RichTextBox1.SelBold = True

You can make it italic as well with:

RichTextBox1.SelItalic = True

To change the font for the selected text, use the SelFontName property. For example:

RichTextBox1.SelFontName = "Arial"

To change the font size:

RichTextBox1.SelFontSize = 14

If you want to change the font color, use the SelColor property and set it to a valid color constant or RGB value, like this:

RichTextBox1.SelColor = vbRed
RichTextBox1.SelColor = RGB(0, 128, 255)

With these properties, you can add buttons to your form that allow your users to format text just like a mini word processor. For example, add a "Bold" button and set its click event to RichTextBox1.SelBold = Not RichTextBox1.SelBold to toggle bold formatting on and off for the selected text.

When it comes to adding the other controls, the process is just as straightforward. If you want to provide users with the ability to pick a date, add the Date Time Picker control to your form. When a user selects a date, you can get the value with:

Dim pickedDate As Date
pickedDate = DateTimePicker1.Value

To show progress while loading or saving a file, use the Progress Bar. Set its Min and Max properties, and update its Value property as your operation proceeds.

If you add a Slider Control, you can get the current value with Slider1.Value, which you can use to adjust settings, such as zoom or font size.

To organize your form into sections, add a Tab Strip and create separate pages for different tasks, like editing, formatting, or file operations.

These controls can greatly enhance the usability and appearance of your Visual Basic applications. Take your time practicing with each one by adding them to your project, experimenting with their properties, and handling their events.

To get the most out of this tutorial, I recommend first reading through all the steps and understanding each concept. Then, try building the example projects on your own by following the instructions. Focus on recreating the sample word processor, and once you are comfortable, try applying what you have learned to your own ideas.

If you have any questions or run into issues, consider reaching out in forums or discussion groups centered on Visual Basic programming. To further your knowledge, continue experimenting with control properties and methods, and explore how you can combine them to create more powerful and engaging applications.