Introduction to Visual Studio

Question 1: Introduction to Microsoft Visual Studio

Answer

Visual Studio 2005 is a complete set of development tools for building high performance Desktop applications, XML Web Services, mobile applications and ASP web applications.

Visual Studio 2005 provides multiple advantages in the development process. The primary advantages are:

1. Improved developer productivity.
2. Used .NET Framework 2.0.
3. Provide ready made tools for built applications.
4. Provides an Object-Oriented environment.
5. Standardized by ECMA. [Editor's note: Visual Studio is not standardized by ECMA.]

Visual Studio 2005 has four editions. These are:



1. Team System Edition

This edition is designed for a professional development organization. It is useful for customers ranging from an architect to the operations manager who needs to manage the Software Development Life Cycle (SDL) and collaborate more effectively.

2. Professional Edition

This edition is designed for professional developers. It is useful for the developer working all by himself or for developers working in a small team.

3. Standard Edition

This edition is designed for a part-time or occasional developer. It preserves the simplicity of the Express products and support for all languages and product types.

4. Express Edition

This edition is designed for students, enthusiasts and hobbyists. It is used for building applications for personal enjoyment and use.

Visual Studio 2005 provides some ready-made tools for building .NET applications, such as:

1. Forms designer 2. Server Explorer 3. Property Window 4. Tool-Box 5. Solution Explorer 6. Compiler 7. Debuggers 8. Output Window

The .NET Framework is multi-lingual, in other words it supports many types of languages. It supports more than 25 languages. Some of the languages are:

1. VC++
2. VB
3. C#
4. Jscript
5. XML
6. COBOL
7. Eiffel
8. Smalltalk
9. Python
10. Perl
11. VB Script and so on.

The .NET framework provides a multi-platform environment. It in other words we need to create:

1. Web-Based
2. Windows-based
3. Console-Based
4. Web-Services
5. Pocket PC
6. Gamming
7. Mobile Applications can be created on .NET platforms.

Question 2: Project Basic

Answer

Definition: A project, by definition, is a temporary activity with a starting date, specific goals and conditions, defined responsibilities, a budget, a planning, a fixed end date and multiple parties involved. You know what you need to do, do it once, and that's the end of it.

That's a project.

However, being hip has its disadvantages.  Start a project, but only for the right reasons. Not for the heck if it.

For a project definition, look for the following aspects:

• Starting date
• Specific goals and conditions
• Defined responsibilities
• A budget (Growth)
• A planning
• A fixed end date
• Parties involved
• Documentation

A project is one of the specific activities for specific goals.

How to create a project, the following are the basic steps of a project:

• Analysis
• Documentation
• Designing
• Coding
• Testing

In other words, we can say that a project is a basic practice for a person.

When we create a type of application for perfect goals, reasons, and specific use it is called as project.

A project is created step-by-step.

A project is one of the specific tasks and created for special use.

A Software Project Developer uses a Cost Constructive Model "COCOMO" for time period and cost of project.

Question 3: Specify in depth the types of projects in the Visual Studio IDE

Answer

Visual Studio 2005 provides some ready-made tools for building .NET applications, such as:

1. Forms designer
2. Server Explorer
3. Property Window
4. Tool-Box
5. Solution Explorer
6. Compiler
7. Debuggers
8. Output Window

The .NET Framework is multi-lingual, in other words it supports many types of languages. It supports more than 25 languages. Some of the languages are:

1. C++
2. VB
3. C#
4. Jscript
5. XML
6. COBOL
7. Eiffel
8. Smalltalk
9. Python
10. Perl
11. VB Script and so on.

The .NET framework provides a multi-platform environment, in other words we need to create:

1. Web-Based
2. Windows-based
3. Console-Based
4. Web-Services
5. Pocket PC
6. Gamming
7. Mobile Applications are created on the .NET platform.

But on Visual Studio 2005 C#.NET we can create mainly three types of applications as in the following:

Console Application

A Console Application is a simple input/output application.

Console Application input is is provided by a command line, the console window, files and other sources.

Console Application output is displayed in the console window and written to files and other destinations.

For Example

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;

namespace ConsoleApplication5
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {

            Console.WriteLine("Welcome To C# programming");
            Console.WriteLine("C# is case sensitive language");
            Console.WriteLine("C# is fully object-orinted language");
            Console.ReadLine();
        }
    }
}

2. Windows-based (Desktop) Application

 

A Windows-based application is also called a Desktop Application.

A Windows-based application is created using Windows Forms or WPF and the IDE in Visual Studio .NET 2005.

For Example

1. Form Design
   
   
    
2. Code
   
   Button
    

   privatevoid button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
   {
   int a, b, c;
   a = Convert.ToInt32(txtone.Text);
   b = Convert.ToInt32(txttwo.Text);
   c = a + b;
   txtthree.Text = Convert.ToString(c);
   }

3. Class Library
   
   A Class Library is a DLL file.
   A Class Library cannot be directly run and display output but it used by other applications.
   Another application can reference a Class Library and display specific output on the screen.

Question 4:  Ready made control provide by Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2005

Answer

1. Solution Explorer
   
   A solution is a collection of projects and other files that make up an application. The Solution Explorer provides an organization view of these applications. It also provides ready access to the commands that are used for the projects. The Solution Explorer shows the structure of applications or projects in a tree view.
   
   
    
2. Property Window
   
   
   • The properties window allows the user to set the properties on controls, as well as the form, without affecting or making changes in the code.
   • Many types of functions are defined in a property window, for example change the title of a form, change the name of a button and change the color and shape of a button.
   • In other words, we say that with a property window it is possible to change the properties of controls such as labels or buttons. This can be done by clicking on the control and changing the respective properties from the properties window.
     
     
     
    
3. Toolbox
   
   The toolbox window displays the controls and components that can be added to the design mode of the form. However, the contents of the toolbox window changes depending on the type of form the user is creating or editing. For example, if the user is adding tools onto a web form, the Toolbox displays the server controls, HTML controls and other components that the web form may require.
   
   The toolbox contains many types of tools the user can use directly by dragging and dropping tools onto their Windows Forms form.
   
   
    
4. Server Explorer
   
   The Server Explorer is the server management console used for opening data connections, logging on to servers and exploring databases and system services. Using the Server Explorer, the user can perform the following activities:
   
   
   • View and retrieve information from all of the databases that the user is connected to.
   • List database tables, views, Stored Procedures and functions.
   • Expand individual tables to list their columns and triggers.
   • Open data connections to SQL and other databases.
   • View information about available web services.
     
     
      
5. Output window
   
   • The Output window displays several types of information.
   • The Output window has separate tabs of Output for each tool, such as Build, Debug, Log, and Find in Files. To display the Output from a given tool, select that tab at the base of the Output window.
   • The Output window is placed below the Code Editor. It displays the status messages for the various functionalities in the IDE. As shown in the following figure:
     
     
      
6. Error List
   
   The error list window does the following:
   
   
   • Displays the errors, warnings, and messages produced when the code is edited and compiled.
   • Find development errors, analysis errors, and errors detected.
   • The error list displays error.
     
     
      
7. Menu Bar
   
   The Menu Bar contains some ready-made tools and they are always displayed in .Net Visual Studio 2005. It contain:: new doc., cut, copy, past, style and formatting, insert table, column, drawing and so on.
   
   
    
8. Form designer
   
   The Forms Designer is one of the parts of Microsoft Visual Studio .Net. The Forms Designer is used to create our web site and Windows Forms page layout and page design. We need to create a different type of design for our web site and Windows Forms.
   
   
    
9. Object Browser
   
   The Object Browser allows you to select and examine the symbols available for use in projects. You can open the Object Browser from the View menu, or by clicking the Object Browser button on the main toolbar.
   
   There are three panes: an Objects pane on the left, a Members pane on the upper right, and a Description pane on the lower right. If you resize the Object Browser into a single column then the Objects pane moves to the top, the Members pane to the middle, and the Description pane to the bottom.
   
   In the Objects pane, icons identify hierarchical structures such as the .NET Framework and COM components, namespaces, type libraries, interfaces, enums, and classes. You can expand these structures to reveal ordered lists of their members. Properties, methods, events, variables, constants, and other contained items are listed in the Members pane. Details on the item selected in the Objects or Members pane appear in the Description pane.
   
   
    
10. Toolbar
    
    The Windows Forms Toolbar control is used on forms as a control bar that displays a row of drop-down menus and bitmapped buttons that activate commands. Thus, clicking a Toolbar button can be an equivalent to choosing a menu command. The buttons can be configured to appear and behave as pushbuttons, drop-down menus, or separators. Typically, a Toolbar contains buttons and menus that correspond to items in an application's menu structure, providing quick access to an application's most frequently used functions and commands.

Question 5: Explain and define Tabs in Visual Studio .NET 2005

Answer

1. Editor Tabs

The Code and Text Editor is the word processor of the Integrated Development Environment (IDE). When it is used to edit text, it is referred to as the Text Editor. When used to edit source code in a Visual Studio development language, its most common use, it is referred to as the Code Editor.



A list of all documents opened for editing in instances of the Code Editor is available in the Windows menu. The HTML Designer, CSS Editor, and XML Editor features of the IDE also employ this editor.

The Code Editor for the language in which you are developing offers such rich features as:

• Access to object properties, methods, and events at design time.
• IntelliSense statement completion.
• Collapsible code sections.
• A Code Definition Window that displays the source code for an object or element.
• A Code Snippet Inserter that let's you add ready-made blocks of model code.
• Options to define indents, tabs, and drag-and-drop behavior.

2. Docking Tab

The Microsoft Foundation Class Library supports dockable toolbars. A dockable toolbar can be attached, or docked, to any side of its parent window, or it can be detached, or floated, in its own mini-frame window. This article explains how to use dockable toolbars in your applications.

3. Format Tab

This tab is used for specifies Format options for the text box and the type of input mask.

• Data Type
   
  Specifies a Character, Date, Logical, or Numeric data type for your text box. If you choose a value in the Value tab then ensure it is the same data type as the value specified here.
   
• Enable at Run Time
  
  Specifies that the text box be enabled when the form is run. This option is available for all data types and is checked by default. This option corresponds to the Enabled property.
   
• Alphabetic Characters Only
  
  Specifies that only alphabetic characters be allowed in the text box (no numbers or symbols). This option is available for character data type only. This option corresponds to the "A" setting of the Format property.
   
• Make Read-Only
  
  Prevents the user from changing the text in the text box. This option corresponds to the ReadOnly property and is available for all data types.
   
• Select on Entry
  
  Specifies that the text in the text box be selected when the text box has the focus. This option is available for the Character data type only. This option corresponds to the "K" setting of the Format property.
   
• Hide Selection
  
  Specifies whether or not selected text in the text box remains visibly selected when the text box doesn't have the focus. This option corresponds to the Hide Selection property and is available for all data types.
   
• Display Leading Zeros
  
  Specifies that zeros to the left of the decimal point be displayed. This is available for the Numeric data type only. This option corresponds to the "L" setting of the Format property.