| A |
|
| Abstraction |
Is
the hiding of the internal details of an object from the user |
| Accept
button |
When
you press enter on the form, the default button will be 'clicked' even
though it doesn't have the focus, e.g. Save, Calculate, etc (see Zak, pg
193) |
| Accessibility |
Refers to
the scope of a collection - Dim | Private | Public
(see Zak, pg. 403) |
| Accumulator |
Is
used in loops to add values together, e.g. total sales amount, monthly
salaries - ask how much |
| Algorithm |
A set of step-by-step
instructions that accomplish a task and return a value, e.g. an If…Then…Else or
Case
statement |
| As |
Is
a data type clause
|
| ASP.NET |
Is
used to create Web pages and Web services
|
| Assembler |
Translates
assembly language code into machine code |
| Assembly
language |
Mnemonics
(abbreviations) are used to code in |
| Attributes |
They
describe the object -- what it looks like (aka Properties) |
| B |
Back
to Top |
| Base
class |
Is
the original (blueprint) class |
| Behaviours |
They
describe the actions that the object is capable of (aka Methods) |
| C |
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to Top |
| Cancel
button |
When
you press escape on the form, the default button will be 'clicked' even
though it doesn't have the focus, e.g. Reset, Clear, Exit (see Zak, pg
193) |
| Case
selection structure |
See pg. 296 -- useful
for multiple decisions |
| Class |
Is
a blueprint / template that is used to create objects from |
| Compiler |
Translates
high-level language code at once into machine language before the program
is run |
| Concatenation |
Connecting
or linking two strings to form one string using the ampersand ( & ) |
| Concatenation
operator |
Is
the ampersand ( & ) |
| Counter |
Is
used in loops to count how many there are of something, e.g. number of
employees, number of website hits - ask how many |
| D |
Back
to Top |
| Database |
Is
an organised collection of related data that you can easily retrieve and
use |
| Database
Management System |
Is
a program, like Microsoft Access, that enables you to create, organise and
manage your data stored in databases |
| Data
Type Clause |
As
- To specify the data type of the value, e.g. Dim strName As String, ByVal
intSales As Integer |
| Derived
class |
Is
the class that was created from the base class (copied) |
| Desk-checking |
a.k.a
Hand-tracing
means using test data to check an algorithm manually on paper for
correctness before coding it |
| E |
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to Top |
| Encapsulation |
Is
the process of combining an object's attributes and
behaviours |
| Enumeration
(Enum) |
Is
the name for a collection of related constants, e.g. each day of the week
is a constant, together they could be known as DaysOfWeek |
| expressionList |
Used in
Case selection structures, see also selectorExpression |
| Extended
selection structures |
a.k.a
Multiple-path
selection structures are If/ElseIf/Else and Case selection structures |
| F |
Back
to Top |
| Flat
File Database |
The
records in one file are unrelated to records in another file and
duplication often appear. Relational
Databases are much better. |
| Format |
Is
a function that is used to improve the appearance
of numbers that are displayed on the GUI, e.g
Format(PriceLabel.Text, "currency") (see Zak,
pg. 137) |
| Function |
A
pre-defined (built-in) VB procedure that returns a value, e.g. Val,
Format, InputBox |
| G |
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to Top |
| GUI |
Graphical
User Interface -- that which the user sees when using the program, like
buttons, scrollbars, icons, etc |
| H |
Back
to Top |
| Hand-tracing |
a.k.a
Desk-checking
means using test data to check an algorithm manually on paper for
correctness before coding it |
| High-Level
language |
English-like
code that require an interpreter or compiler |
| I |
Back
to Top |
| Infinity
intrinsic constant |
Infinity
is the result of trying to divide a number other than zero by zero, see
also intrinsic constants and NaN
(See Zak, pg. 381) |
| Inheritance |
Is
the process of creating one class from another class, including its
behaviours and attributes |
| Initializing |
To
assign a beginning value to control or value |
| Instantiation |
When
you drag an object onto the Form you are creating an instance (copy) from
the object's class (blueprint) |
| Internal
documentation |
Comments
that programmers type in their code to make the code easier to read; it
will usually appear in a green colour, following a single quotation mark ' |
| Interpreter |
Translates
high-level language code line-by-line into machine language while the
program is running |
| Intrinsic
constant |
Is
a named constant that is built into Visual Basic and has a vb
prefix, e.g. vbNewLine (see Zak, pg 191) |
| Is
comparison operator |
Compares memory
addresses; determines whether two object references refer to the same
object |
| J |
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to Top |
| K |
Back
to Top |
| L |
Back
to Top |
| Like
comparison operator |
Uses pattern matching
to determine whether one string is equal to another string |
| Line
continuation character |
The
underscore _ is used to break off a line of code and continue on the next
line; it tells VB to read the two lines as one line |
| Literal
constant |
Is
a normal variable whose value does not change during runtime; values are
assigned during design mode; includes numerical literal constants &
string literal constants |
| M |
Back
to Top |
| Machine
language |
Consists
of binary code |
| Methods |
They
describe the actions that the object is capable of
(aka Behaviours) |
| Mnemonics |
Assists
in memory recall, e.g. keywords in a speech, flash cards |
| Multiple-path
selection structures |
a.k.a
Extended
selection structures are If/ElseIf/Else and Case selection structures |
| N |
Back
to Top |
| NaN
intrinsic constant |
Means
Not a Number and is the result of trying to divide zero by zero.
Also see intrinsic constants and Infinity
(see Zak, p.g 381) |
| O |
Back
to Top |
| Object |
Anything
that can be seen, touched or used, e.g. buttons, forms, labels, etc. |
| Object
reference |
Is a memory address
within the PC's internal memory; it indicates where in memory the object
is stored |
| P |
Back
to Top |
| Polymorphism |
Allows
the same instruction to be carried out differently depending on the object, e.g. SET the time and SET the dinner table |
| Primary
decision |
See pg. 292 -- used in
selection structures, e.g. nested selection structures |
| Priming
read |
Is
used to prepare or set up a loop; same condition appears twice, once
before the loop (priming read) and once in the loop to ensure that the condition is evaluated whether before or during the loop |
| Procedure
Oriented language |
Instructions
are written top-down -- user has no control over the execution order of
the instructions |
| Properties |
They
describe the object - what it looks like (aka Attributes) |
| Q |
Back
to Top |
| R |
Back
to Top |
| Relational
Database |
Relates data from multiple tables
instead of requiring you to duplicate data in more than one location, as
opposed to a Flat File Database. |
| S |
Back
to Top |
| Secondary
decision |
See pg. 292 -- used in
selection structures, e.g. nested selection structures |
| selectorExpression |
Used in
Case selection structures, can contain variables, constants,
functions, operators &
properties |
| Static
variable |
Retains
its value until the program is ended (see Zak, pg 174 & 205-206) |
| T |
Back
to Top |
| Table |
Is
a collection of data about a specific topic, much like a file folder in a
filing cabinet |
| TypeOf…Is
comparison operator |
Determines what type an
object is, e.g. whether it's a textbox, button, etc. |
| U |
Back
to Top |
| Updating |
a.k.a
Incrementing - To add a number to the value stored in a counter |
| V |
Back
to Top |
| vbNewline
character |
It
works
like the enter key on a keyboard -- gives you a new line to display data (see Zak, pg.
190) |
| Val |
Is a function
that temporarily converts a string to a number (see Zak, pg.
136) |
| W |
Back
to Top |
| X |
Back
to Top |
| Y |
Back
to Top |
| Z |
Back
to Top |
