A Complete, Practical Guide to Modern Visual Basic on .NET

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Learn Visual Basic the way it is used in real business software, from your first program to a tested desktop app, database, and web API.

A huge amount of business software is written in Visual Basic: inventory tools, order-entry screens, reports, and back-office applications that companies depend on every day. Modern Visual Basic runs on modern .NET, with the same runtime, libraries, and tools as every other .NET language. But most VB material is either outdated or assumes you already know .NET.

This book starts from zero and builds one real application step by step. Each new idea appears at the moment it solves a problem you actually have. Along the way it gives you an honest picture of where VB shines today, and when to bring in C#.

What's inside

• How .NET works, installing the .NET 10 SDK and Visual Studio, VB projects, solutions, NuGet, and debugging
• VB fundamentals: types, Decimal for money, Option Strict, operators, strings, formatting, Select Case, loops, and procedures
• Classes, properties, constructors, inheritance, interfaces, structures, enumerations, Nothing, and nullable value types
• Modules, namespaces, extension methods, generics, collections, delegates, lambdas, and events with WithEvents and Handles
• LINQ with VB's rich query syntax (Aggregate, Group By ... Into, Take While), XML literals, LINQ to XML, and System.Text.Json
• Exceptions, files, CSV import with TextFieldParser, dates, time zones, and TimeProvider
• Async and await (including VB's limits and how to work around them), cancellation, and unit testing with xUnit and MSTest
• Dependency injection, configuration, and logging with the Generic Host; class libraries, NuGet packages, and mixing VB and C# projects
• Windows Forms: data binding with BindingSource and DataGridView, validation with ErrorProvider, and responsive async UIs
• Data access with ADO.NET, SQLite, Dapper, and Entity Framework Core, including working EF Core migrations for VB solutions
• An ASP.NET Core Web API with controllers written in VB, called from the desktop app with HttpClient
• Modernizing VB6 and .NET Framework code, dotnet publish (single-file, self-contained, ReadyToRun), MSIX, ClickOnce, diagnostics, security, and CI with GitHub Actions

One running example, start to finish. You build the software for Ashgrove Hardware, a fictional family-owned chain of three hardware stores with contractor trade accounts. It grows from a console inventory tool into a Windows Forms back-office application with a real database and a Web API, and then it ships.

Current and honest. The examples target .NET 10 (LTS) and Visual Basic 16.9, and most of the code also runs on .NET 8 and 9. The important listings were compiled and run on the .NET 10 SDK. VB-specific limits are called out plainly, such as no Await inside Catch, no trimming or Native AOT for Windows Forms, and EF Core migrations generating C#, along with tested workarounds. There are no invented benchmarks. Every chapter includes runnable code, Tips, Notes, Warnings, exercises, and Key Takeaways.

Format: PDF, 537 pages (A4), linked table of contents and bookmarks. English. First Edition, 2026. Published by thenexbooks. This book is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.

Table of Contents

Part I — Getting Started

• Ch 1 · Why VB.NET Today? The Language, the Platform, and Your Setup
• Ch 2 · Your First Programs: Modules, Sub Main, Projects, and the dotnet CLI
• Ch 3 · Data Types, Variables, Operators, and Option Strict
• Ch 4 · Strings, Formatting, and Console Input and Output
• Ch 5 · Control Flow, Procedures, and Functions

Part II — Object-Oriented Visual Basic

• Ch 6 · Classes, Properties, and Constructors
• Ch 7 · Inheritance, Interfaces, and Polymorphism
• Ch 8 · Structures, Enumerations, Nothing, and Nullable Value Types
• Ch 9 · Modules, Namespaces, Shared Members, and Extension Methods
• Ch 10 · Generics and Collections

Part III — Core Language and Libraries

• Ch 11 · Delegates, Lambdas, and Events
• Ch 12 · LINQ with Visual Basic Query Syntax
• Ch 13 · XML Literals, LINQ to XML, and JSON
• Ch 14 · Exceptions, Error Handling, and Debugging
• Ch 15 · Files, Streams, CSV, and Dates and Times

Part IV — Professional VB.NET

• Ch 16 · Async and Await, Tasks, and Cancellation
• Ch 17 · Unit Testing with xUnit and MSTest
• Ch 18 · Dependency Injection, Configuration, and Logging with the Generic Host
• Ch 19 · Solutions, Class Libraries, NuGet, and Working Alongside C#

Part V — Desktop, Data, and Web

• Ch 20 · Windows Forms Fundamentals
• Ch 21 · Building a Real Windows Forms App: Data Binding, Validation, and Layout
• Ch 22 · Data Access with ADO.NET, SQLite, and Dapper
• Ch 23 · Entity Framework Core with Visual Basic
• Ch 24 · Building and Calling a Web API with ASP.NET Core

Part VI — Production

• Ch 25 · Modernizing Legacy Code: From VB6 and .NET Framework to Modern .NET
• Ch 26 · Packaging and Deployment: dotnet publish, Single-File, MSIX, and ClickOnce
• Ch 27 · Diagnostics, Performance, Security, and CI for VB.NET Applications
• Ch 28 · Case Study: Ashgrove Hardware from Console Tool to Production

Appendices
A · VB.NET Cheat Sheet
B · Templates and Reference
C · Production Checklist
D · Glossary

Book details