Description:
Although the cover of the book says it's for beginning and intermediate programmers, Visual C++ 5 from the Ground Up is clearly a tutorial geared toward programmers who are at least experienced with C. This book does not present a comprehensive introduction to C++ or Visual C++. Instead, it focuses on three specific areas: database programming, Internet programming, and application packaging. The first part of the book is a very high level overview of the Visual C++ 5 product itself. Visual C++ 5 from the Ground Up briefly discusses the differences in the various versions of the product, describes some of the key interface elements of Developer Studio, and takes you through building a simple application. The text then moves into using Visual C++ for database applications. It discusses the differences between ODBC and DAO data access and quickly walks you through building an application with each. The guide then switches gears and dives into programming for the Web. It provides a reasonable overview of HTML and JavaScript, and then teaches you how to build a simple push-button ActiveX control and an ActiveX document application. The last section covers several different developer level topics, including security, help file creation, and installation program generation. C++ programmers who are interested in the covered topics will find Visual C++ 5 from the Ground Up to be a useful reference tool. It is not, however, a good place to start if you're just getting into Visual C++.
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