Rating: 
Summary: I wouldn't recommend any other author
Review: John Smiley is one of the best writers of programming books I have had the pleasure of reading. Before reading his books, I was having a difficult time keeping my interest in the study material. Most books out there are written in the same manner as stereo instructions. Blah, Blah, Blah. John Smiley puts you right in the middle of a classroom, where you have a sense of virtually sharing your questions and suggestions with other students. He keeps you interested all the way through the whole book. I've learned more from John Smiley in the 15 chapters of this book than I have with all 7 of the other VB programming books I have purchased and tried to muddle through. Because this book was so well written and interesting, I have purchased all of his other publications, and eagerly await their arrival so I can continue my programming education. I only wish I lived close to his area so I could attend one of his "real life" classes.
Rating:
Summary: Yep. It was good!
Review: Good book. Yep. Buy it.The best part was about Visual Basic. Exciting as hell. Just like the TV commercial where the Yoga students imagine that they are using E-trade, this book is "Sooooo relaxing"!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: John Smiley is an excellent instructor and it shows in all of his books. He has made learning VB both fun and easy. All of his books are an excellent way to learn VB -- he takes you from the ground up in an easy-to-read manner...Keep up the good work, John!
Rating:
Summary: This book made it possible to start my career in programming
Review: Before I read this book I had read 2 other VB books and frankly I didn't get it. I was on the verge of giving up altogether when I stumbled across a review of this book at the VBexplorer web site. When I read this book everything fell into place. John has a way of explaining things that allow you to understand it the first time around. What makes this book different from the others that I've read is that it sticks to the basics and allows you to build a SOLID foundation. So many books out there try to make you a professional, seasoned programmer by reading one book and that's simply not possible. Another thing that I enjoyed about this book was that it wasn't filled with a million and one different examples of core concepts with a "Tying it all together" chapter at the end. You spent the entire book creating a working program from start to finish. This is SO important when it comes to learning VB because you need to see from the beginning how everything fits together. Once you've finished this book, you will TRULY be ready to go on to more advanced topics and understand what you're learning. For anyone trying to learn VB, this book is a must have. I can't stress enough how valuable this book and the others in the series are. Thanks John for writing such a wonderful series and thanks again for making it possible to realize my dream of becomming a VB programmer!
Rating:
Summary: This book is great!
Review: I had to teach myself VB and VBA from scratch (I have never done any type of programming) for a project and thanks to this book, I was able to complete my project in less than half the time I expected. Although the style is a bit corny, it made for easy reading, and I never got bored. The absolutely hands down best feature of this book is the analysis of each line of code after each exercise and example throughout the book. The explanations are clear and concise and many software training programs could take a hint from John Smiley and incoroprate his technique into their courses.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: I cracked open this book as a bona fide absolute beginner at programming; I finished it as an enthusiastic continuing student. The author's imaginary classroom provides an engaging context for his carefully sequenced, easily assimilated lessons. Encouraging in tone, benevolent in spirit, honest about its scope and crystal clear in its didactics, Learn To Program With Visual Basic taught me a lot. May it live long and find many readers!
Rating:
Summary: If you really want to learn VB then start with this book!
Review: I have tried 3 or 4 other VB textbooks, but none of them presented the material in such an accessible manner. Even certain aspects of VB programming that I did not look forward to learning (having heard that they were extremely difficult to understand) seemed clear and logical in this book. I have now read all of Smiley's books, and would recommend them all without reservation to anyone who wishes to learn VB programming painlessly.
Rating: 
Summary: Minority opinion
Review: I found the use of the ficticious classroom to be very distracting, plus, I thought the book started too slow. On the other hand, I don't have a better book to recommend. A five star rating seems a little lofty.
Rating:
Summary: LEARN TO PROGRAM WITH VISUAL BASIC 6
Review: OUTSTANDING IN EVERY WAY,JOHN ADDRESSES ALL AREAS.THATS ALL YOU NEED
Rating:
Summary: If You Are A Beginner - Read This Book!
Review: I have read books on Visual Basic from Que, Microsoft, Sams Publishing and ...For Dummies. Learn To Program with Visual Basic blows them all away! If you are a beginning programmer looking for a place to start, then this book is definitely it. John Smiley will take you from knowing nothing about VB to having a solid grasp of the fundamentals which you can then build upon by reading his successive books. Have you ever picked up a programming book, started to read it and had no idea what the author was talking about? Most other books assume that you have more knowledge than you actually do. This one is different. John Smiley writes in a language that anyone can understand and topics are explained in great detail. If you buy this book you will learn Visual Basic...period. You won't be disappointed.
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