Intermec 6620 Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows, Microsoft Visual C++ or Borland C++ for Windows

SECTION 1 Introduction

Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows

Microsoft Visual Basic (VB) for Windows, is an easy-to-use tool that lends itself to quick creation of prototype screens for customer demonstrations and reviews. It includes screen drawing plus an easy method for inserting code to control the application. A few warnings, however, are in order.

If frequently used forms are not preloaded, the screen draw- ing may be slow. Also, the data-aware controls are very nice, but supporting a database with these controls con- sumes a lot of memory. VB can handle a large number of databases, including dBase, Access, Paradox, and Foxpro. It can also handle ASCII and text files.

When you encounter a Visual Basic program, you should be aware of some common requirements.

"Files with the VBX and OCX extensions are Visual Basic custom controls. These files support common features (such as command buttons, list boxes, pen edit boxes, data-aware controls, etc.) that are fre- quently seen in Windows applications. They are typi- cally distributed with the application requiring them.

"Programs written in Visual Basic V4.0 can be com- piled for 16-bit or 32-bit mode, depending on installa- tion. Visual Basic 5.0 is 32-bit mode only.

Microsoft Visual C++ or Borland C++ for

Windows

Microsoft Visual C++ or Borland C++ for Windows are tools for experienced C Windows programmers. The foundation class libraries or the object windows library can be used; just make sure to watch for space limitations because they are statically linked. Windows programs, in general, grow to a large size quickly and can require a lot of extra DLLs, OCXs, or VBXs.

6620 Hand-Held Computer Technical Reference 1-17