1. The Visual Basic .NET Language

   1. Chapter 1 Visual Basic .NET andthe .NET Framework

      1. Visual Basic and .NET
      2. The .NET Platform
      3. The .NET Framework
      4. Compilation and the MSIL
      5. The VB.NET Language

   2. Chapter 2 Getting Started: "Hello World"

      1. Examining Your First Program
      2. Writing and Building Your Programs
      3. Using the VS.NET Debugger

   3. Chapter 3 Language Fundamentals

      1. VB.NET Versus VB6
      2. VB.NET Types
      3. Identifiers
      4. Variables and Constants
      5. Whitespace
      6. Statements
      7. Branching
      8. Iteration (Looping) Statements
      9. Operators
      10. Logical Operators Within Conditionals

   4. Chapter 4 Object-Oriented Programming

      1. Creating Models
      2. Classes and Objects
      3. Class Relationships
      4. The Three Pillars of Object-Oriented Programming
      5. Object-Oriented Analysis and Design

   5. Chapter 5 Classes and Objects

      1. Defining Classes
      2. Method Arguments
      3. Constructors
      4. Initializers
      5. Copy Constructors
      6. The Me Keyword
      7. Using Shared Members
      8. Destroying Objects
      9. Overloading Methods and Constructors
      10. Encapsulating Data with Properties
      11. Passing Parameters by Value and by Reference

   6. Chapter 6 Inheritance and Polymorphism

      1. Specialization and Generalization
      2. Inheritance
      3. Polymorphism
      4. Abstract Methods and Classes
      5. NotInheritable Classes
      6. The Root of All Classes: Object
      7. Boxing and Unboxing Types
      8. Nested Classes

   7. Chapter 7 Structures

      1. Defining a Structure
      2. Calling the Default Constructor
      3. Creating Structures Without New

   8. Chapter 8 Interfaces

      1. Defining an Interface
      2. Implementing an Interface
      3. Implementing More Than One Interface
      4. Casting to an Interface
      5. Extending Interfaces
      6. Combining Interfaces
      7. Overriding Interface Implementations

   9. Chapter 9 Arrays, Indexers, and Collections

      1. Arrays
      2. Multidimensional Arrays
      3. System.Array
      4. Indexers and the Default Property
      5. The Collection Interfaces: IEnumerable
      6. .NET Collection Types: Beyond Array
      7. Copying from a Collection Type to an Array

   10. Chapter 10 Strings

       1. Creating Strings
       2. Manipulating Strings
       3. Regular Expressions
       4. The Regex Class

   11. Chapter 11 Exceptions

       1. Throwing and Catching Exceptions
       2. Rethrowing Exceptions

   12. Chapter 12 Delegates and Events

       1. Delegates
       2. Multicasting
       3. Delegates and Callback Mechanisms
       4. Events

2. Programming with VB.NET

   1. Chapter 13 Building Windows Applications

      1. Creating a Simple Windows Form
      2. Creating a Windows Forms Application
      3. Deploying an Application

   2. Chapter 14 Accessing Datawith ADO.NET

      1. Relational Databases and SQL
      2. The ADO.NET Object Model
      3. Getting Started with ADO.NET
      4. Using ADO Managed Providers
      5. Working with Data-Bound Controls
      6. Changing Database Records
      7. ADO.NET and XML

   3. Chapter 15 Building Web Applicationswith Web Forms

      1. Understanding Web Forms
      2. Creating a Web Form
      3. Adding Controls
      4. Data Binding
      5. Responding to Postback Events

   4. Chapter 16 Programming Web Services

      1. SOAP, WSDL, and Discovery
      2. Building a Web Service
      3. Creating the Proxy

3. VB.NET and the .NET CLR

   1. Chapter 17 Assemblies and Versioning

      1. PE Files
      2. Metadata
      3. Security Boundary
      4. Versioning
      5. Manifests
      6. Multi-Module Assemblies
      7. Private Assemblies
      8. Shared Assemblies

   2. Chapter 18 Attributes and Reflection

      1. Attributes
      2. Reflection

   3. Chapter 19 Marshaling and Remoting

      1. Application Domains
      2. Context
      3. Remoting

   4. Chapter 20 Threads and Synchronization

      1. Threads
      2. Synchronization
      3. Race Conditions and Deadlocks

1. Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The animal on the cover of Programming Visual Basic .NET, Second Edition, is a catfish. Catfish can be found all over the world, most often in freshwater environments. Catfish are identified by their whiskers, called "barbels," as well by as their scaleless skin; fleshy, rayless posterior fins; and sharp, defensive spines in the dorsal and shoulder fins. Catfish have complex bones and sensitive hearing. They are omnivorous feeders and skilled scavengers. A marine catfish can taste with any part of its body.

Though most madtom species of catfish are no more than 5 inches in length, some Danube catfish (called wels or sheatfish) reach lengths of up to 13 feet and weigh as much as 400 pounds. Wels catfish (found mostly in the United Kingdom) are dark, flat, and black in color, with white bellies. They breed in the springtime in shallow areas near rivers and lakes. The females leave their eggs on plants for the males to guard. Two to three weeks later, the eggs hatch into tadpole-like fish, which grow quickly in size. The largest recorded wels catfish was 16 feet long and weighed 675 pounds. Jane Ellin was the production editor and proofreader for Programming Visual Basic .NET, Second Edition. Rachel Wheeler and Emily Quill provided quality control. Sue Willing provided production support. Brenda Miller wrote the index.

Pam Spremulli designed the cover of this book, based on a series design by Edie Freedman. The cover image is a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. Emma Colby produced the cover layout with QuarkXPress 4.1 using Adobe's ITC Garamond font.

Bret Kerr designed the interior layout, based on a series design by David Futato. Joe Wizda converted the files from Microsoft Word to FrameMaker 5.5.6, using tools created by Mike Sierra. The text font is Linotype Birka; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is LucasFont's TheSans Mono Condensed. The illustrations that appear in the book were produced by Robert Romano and Jessamyn Read using Macromedia FreeHand 9 and Adobe Photoshop 6. The tip and warning icons were drawn by Christopher Bing.