Microsoft Introduces Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic; New Controls Allow Fast Access to Latest Features in Windows

March 16, 1992 — Microsoft Corp. today introduced the Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic, the company’s highly successful programming system for the Microsoft Windows operating system.

New programming tools and controls in the Professional Toolkit make it easier for programmers to access the newest technology in Windows — including multimedia, handwriting recognition, and object linking and embedding. Also included are a collection of custom controls that allow programmers to quickly plug advanced features and functionality into their programs such as graphing, spreadsheet-like grids, and graphical 3-D user-interface components.

Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic Extends Feature Set

”The Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic makes incredibly powerful functionality and the latest and greatest Windows operating system features accessible to programmers at all levels,” said Michael Risse, product manager, Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic, at Microsoft. ”The unique custom control mechanism in Visual Basic makes these features as accessible as the click of a mouse.”

Combining the Professional Toolkit with Visual Basic provides a single-source solution for a broad range of full-featured Windows-based applications. Professional programmers can use it to enhance existing applications created with Visual Basic as well as to create new ones. The new features include controls to enhance applications with the following technologies:

• Object linking and embedding technology (OLE). Microsoft’s OLE technology lets developers easily create applications that can combine spreadsheet, word processing, graphics and other OLE server functionality into an application that’s customized for specific business uses.
• Pen-based computing. Programmers can extend their current applications — or write entirely new ones — for Microsoft Windows for Pen Computing. The Professional Toolkit includes controls to create text boxes that can hold pen input as an ink data type or provide automatic access to the pen recognition engine.
• Multimedia. Developers now can easily write or enhance applications for Microsoft Multimedia Extensions version 1.0, including video, animation, CD-quality audio and other multimedia elements.
• Graphing. Pie and bar charts in 2-D or 3-D, in addition to nine other charting styles, can now be added to applications easily with a complete graphics package in the Professional Toolkit.
• Grids. Information can be presented in a table complete with resizeable rows, columns and scroll bars. This makes the display of tabular data a snap for programmers.
• Multiple Document Interfaces (MDI). The MDI control allows the developer working with Visual Basic to create applications with multiple child windows that are contained in a single parent form.

In addition, the Professional Toolkit gives programmers easy access to the following tools and features:

• More than 15 new controls, including 3-D interface components; animated buttons, gauges and spin buttons; and access to commonly used dialog boxes.
• The Windows Help Compiler, to create the custom, online Windows Help files that users of Windows now expect in their applications.
• The Windows API Online Reference, an accessible guide to Windows application programming interfaces (APIs) that makes it easier for programmers to maximize their use of Windows.
• A setup kit that helps developers create standard installation programs for their applications, plus sample applications, bitmaps and a business clip-art library.
• Coupon for a free copy of Rumba Tools for Visual Basic, from Wall Data Inc., which uses custom controls and 3270 emulation to automatically create Windows-based front-ends to mainframe applications.
• Custom Control Development Kit. Complete documentation and sample code for creating custom controls for Visual Basic with a compiler such as Microsoft C 6.0 or later, or Microsoft QuickC graphical development system for Windows.

Visual Basic Custom Controls Provide Highly Integrated Reusable Components

”The custom control mechanism in Visual Basic delivers on the concept of elegant, efficient code reusability,” said Tom Button, group product manager for the applications programmability group at Microsoft. ”While some development tools force programmers to grapple with hard-to-understand concepts and high training costs, Visual Basic provides reusable objects that are as intuitive as Visual Basic itself.” More than 60 third-party vendors are currently supporting Visual Basic programmers by supplying custom controls and other tools that take advantage of the extensibility in Visual Basic. ”We are thrilled to see the unprecedented growth and excitement in the third-party community for Visual Basic,” said Button.

Background on Visual Basic

First released in May 1991, the Visual Basic programming system has quickly become one of the most popular dedicated programming tools for Windows. Using an event-driven programming model designed specifically for fast programming for Windows, Visual Basic combines graphical interface design tools with the world’s most popular programming language.

The Visual Basic programming system is also one of the most cost-effective tools of its type, with run-time and royalty-free implementation that makes it less costly for developers to distribute finished applications to customers.

Designed for Broad-based Professional Use

The Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic is designed for MIS staff, corporate programmers, analysts, consultants, value-added resellers (VARs) and independent software vendors (ISVs) writing vertical market programs for business, professional or entertainment use.

”Visual Basic is very intuitive,” said Walther De Petris, senior technical consultant at Marathon Systems Inc. ”With the availability of the Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic, we can easily enhance the environment via the variety of custom controls provided.”

”The Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic provides me with a great set of custom controls,” said Ted Young, president of The Young Software Works. ”Now I can get an application up and running in record time, giving me time to make the application more powerful and easier to use.”

Microsoft teamed with six independent software developers — Crescent Software, Desaware, MicroHelp, OutRider Systems, Pinnacle Publishing and Sheridan Software Systems — to provide the new tools and controls in the Professional Toolkit. ”The ability of these developers — and more than 40 others — to quickly create add-ons for Visual Basic demonstrates the value of the extensibility built into Visual Basic and Windows,” said Risse.

Pricing and Availability

The Professional Toolkit for Visual Basic is available now for the suggested retail price of $299. Microsoft Visual Basic with Professional Toolkit is available for the suggested retail price of $495.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) develops, markets and supports a wide range of software for business and professional use, including operating systems, network products, languages and applications as well as books, hardware and CD-ROM products for the microcomputer marketplace.

NOTE: Microsoft and QuickC are registered trademarks and Visual Basic and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corp. Rumba is a registered trademark of Wall Data Inc. All listed prices are U.S. suggested retail prices.

CONTACT:
Microsoft Corp., Redmond
Liz Sidnam or Marty Taucher, 206/882-8080
General Sales and Product Information, 800/426-9400
or
Waggener Edstrom
Linda Tjelle, 206/637-9097
Wendy Galloway, 503/245-0905