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For any Visual Basic .NET developer, there is one book, or series of books, that should be on your bookshelf, and that is the books by Francesco Balena! I've been reading Balena's books on the VB.NET Core Reference by Microsoft Press since his first, 2002 edition. They are not thin books, they are thick heavy comprehensive books that will educate you like no other, in my opinion! They are truly great books, sometimes a bit too in depth, but you can always come back to sections you may not understand right off the bat.
I recently read Balena's VB 2005 edition and it was a very informative book, but not an end-to-end reference as his prior editions. The VB 2005 edition covers more of the "what's new" topics, i.e. new features in VB 2005, but in depth of those topics. Therefore, if you do not own the VB 2003 Core Reference, shown above, I recommend purchasing both. Read the VB 2005 edition first, then go back to the 2003 edition and read the sections such as ADO.NET which are not covered in depth in the 2005 edition.
This truly is the "Core Reference" for all VB.NET developers. If you finish this book, you should be awarded just like someone eating an 18+ ounce steak! It's a monster of a book, all of it worthwhile, but it will take you some time to get through!
I recently read Balena's VB 2005 edition and it was a very informative book, but not an end-to-end reference as his prior editions. The VB 2005 edition covers more of the "what's new" topics, i.e. new features in VB 2005, but in depth of those topics. Therefore, if you do not own the VB 2003 Core Reference, shown above, I recommend purchasing both. Read the VB 2005 edition first, then go back to the 2003 edition and read the sections such as ADO.NET which are not covered in depth in the 2005 edition.
This truly is the "Core Reference" for all VB.NET developers. If you finish this book, you should be awarded just like someone eating an 18+ ounce steak! It's a monster of a book, all of it worthwhile, but it will take you some time to get through!
