Code Editing and Syntax / Visual Basic Class Library / Microsoft (Tools & Add-ins, Controls & Components)

Microsoft Visual Basic (MS VB) allows Visual Basic programmers to create Windows applications for their end users fast. Visual Basic developers can extend the standard functionality available inside the Visual Basic IDE with a variety of VB add-ins and VB tools. The extensibility of Visual Basic software is one of the main reasons it has proved to be so popular with developers, as Visual Basic software engineers can find VB downloads from other companies or other VB developers to act as a VB extension to their Visual Basic IDE.

The versatility of Visual Basic also extends to various forms of Visual Basic compatible software components, .NET Classes, or VB Class Libraries (VB Libraries). VB controls can be used to create feature rich Visual Basic user interfaces on forms and Web pages for Visual Basic apps. These Visual Basic UI controls are augmented by non-visual Visual Basic components or libraries that can help a developer add many hidden features to Visual Basic applications running in the background. These non-visual components are commonly available as a VB Library, Visual Basic Class Library or VB Class Library, as a Visual Basic .NET Class or as a Visual Basic component.

An example of a visual VB control provided as a VB Class Library is Xtreme Report Control, providing you with Outlook style datagrid and data reporting functionality in your latest Visual Basic project. A non-visual VB Library example is a Visual Basic Class Library called SpyWorks that allows you to gain access to many of the Windows API calls and functions that would normally only be available to a Visual C++ programmer.

The VB software products listed in this VB Class Library product gallery will allow you to save a lot of time and effort in creating your new Visual Basic app. Many of the VB Libraries listed here have free Visual Basic trials available as a VB download from our Visual Basic Class Library marketplace.

We also have other Visual Basic product galleries for: Visual Basic 2010, Visual Basic 2008, Visual Basic 2005, Visual Basic .NET and Visual Basic compatible products.

The Microsoft software platform provides Microsoft developers with an array of Microsoft tools to create solutions for their customers and end users. The Microsoft applications that programmers develop can be created using the MS Visual Studio range of Microsoft development tools, including: MS Visual Basic; MS Visual C# (C-sharp); MS Visual C++ (C Plus Plus), as well as older MS dev languages and MS IDEs, such as MS Visual FoxPro. MS Visual Studio, the Microsoft .NET Framework and the more mature Microsoft COM platform can be extended to provide additional functionality to help MS developers create solutions faster. For example, there is a Microsoft add-in model that allows a Microsoft tool to be extended by other third-party companies, as long as they comply with the Microsoft addin model. As a result you can get a Microsoft extension for Visual Studio to refactor your Visual Basic code to make it easier to read or maintain and to speed up your coding by helping with code layout.  Many Visual Studio add-ins are available, including add ins to do C# code generation for you, giving you a faster way to create an application from scratch.

Microsoft Visual Studio software can also be extended beyond the Microsoft controls and Microsoft components that are supplied within the Visual Studio Integrated Development Environment (VS IDE) to give additional functionality. You can get Microsoft .NET components from companies that specialize in writing Internet communications components or eCommerce components that can be programmed like any other Microsoft component and save you a vast amount of time and money in programming your next Microsoft project. Or you can get an advanced Microsoft control for charting that enables you to draw many more styles of charts and graphs than are available inside the standard Microsoft controls in Visual Studio. These Microsoft components are available in many different forms as: Microsoft DLLs or as a Microsoft library, or as a Microsoft ActiveX or COM component supporting the COM object model or for the .NET Framework as Microsoft WinForms controls or ASP.NET controls, or as Microsoft WPF controls for Windows Presentation Foundation applications or as Silverlight controls for Microsoft Silverlight developers to use.

In this Microsoft marketplace you will find lots of different MS UI controls, as well as non-visual components, Microsoft utilities and Microsoft plug-ins to help you program in Microsoft Visual Basic, Visual C++ & Visual C#. You will also find Microsoft visual tools written by ISVs that can be used by MS Access developers or by MS Office programmers as Office components to be embedded inside their MS VBA or VSTO apps. There are also SharePoint tools and SharePoint Web Parts for MOSS bases apps being created by SharePoint developers. Plus for SQL Server you will find Microsoft utility products that allow you to access or bind to your data sources, compare data, manage your data, backup your data efficiently and much more. There are over 1,800 commercial products compatible with Microsoft software shown here in this Microsoft product gallery and many come with free downloads or free software trials for you to use listed in our Microsoft downloads product pages.