It seems as if the months are getting closer and closer together. No sooner do we get last month’s newsletter in the mail than it is time for the next. And many times, it is one week before the newsletter needs to be printed so as to get it to you on time, and I have only an article or two. In fact, there have been times when there was no article one week before printing time. But with a bit of prodding , the articles flow in. I certainly appreciate the help of all those who contribute much time and creative energy to writing articles for the newsletter. Likewise for those who very faithfully help me assemble it.

As is the case each month, it is up to me to fill whatever left over space there is. This month there is blessedly little to fill.

The past several months I have been pretty deep into Visual Basic, using it to manipulate the information in databases for the most part. It might surprise you, but one of the prime uses of VB is in dealing with databases. I use it to work with an Access database, but I rarely actually use Microsoft Access other than to build the database in the beginning.

Visual Basic 6.0 introduced a new database tool, the Data Report, similar to the Microsoft Access report. On the surface it seems to lack a lot of the power of an Access report, but that is on the surface. I have found that by properly constructing an SQL (Structured Query Language) query on which to base the VB data report, I can display just about anything I want. It is not as easy as using the Access report, but once done, being an integral part of the VB program, it allows me to do things in VB that were not previously possible.

Another topic of interest this past month was the creation of what is called an ActiveX Document EXE for placement on a web page. This is basically a program that downloads to your computer then runs inside your browser. It provides for much more power than does the use of Active Server Pages (ASP) in conjunction with Visual Basic Script. Recall the ASP web pages I mentioned in the past like the Grocery List Compiler, Mortgage Loan Calculator and others at my web site http://www.lamartin.com.

As usual, though, to get this power we must give up something. To be able to run ActiveX Document EXE’s in your browser, you need to be using a fairly new version of Internet Explorer with its security settings on low. Netscape declines to support the technology.

I had visited this technology some time back, but couldn’t get it to work. Microsoft’s information on the topic is not very clear. Also, when you run the program for the first time, the VB runtime files will be downloaded from the Microsoft site to your computer along with whatever extra files the program may need. This can take some time if you have a slow Internet connection, and I wondered if anyone would really be interested enough to wait for the download.

Well, I gave it another try, and the result is at http://www.lamartin.com/vb/activex_test/index.htm. It is a program that I wrote for my daughter many years ago to teach her to tell time with an analog clock. I have now turned it into an ActiveX Document EXE. If you have a fast connection, the download should only take a few seconds; if not, it could take several minutes.

Since Microsoft Internet Explorer and a low security setting are required, it is apparent why this technology is at present better suited for Intranets than the Internet, but I am intrigued by it and will try other examples as time permits.u