"Taking advantage of Windows system services"--Cover.

Includes index.

Declaring API Functions in Visual Basic -- What Is the Win32 API? -- The Obstacles to Win32 API Programming Under Visual Basic -- Proceed with Circumspection -- Character Codes -- Parameters and Arguments -- Dynamic Link Libraries -- Some C++ Syntax -- Pointers -- API Declarations -- The VB Declare Statement -- The VC-to-VB Translation Game Plan -- Passing Parameters to an External Function -- CopyMemory--A VB Hacker's Dream -- Dealing with API Errors -- Data Types -- What Is a Data Type? -- Fundamental and Derived Data Types -- Visual Basic Data Types -- Basic VC++ Data Types -- Translating Derived Data Types -- Win32 Typedefs -- Structures and User-Defined Types -- Flags -- Symbolic Constants -- Signed and Unsigned Data Types -- Signed and Unsigned Representations -- Why Two Different Representations? -- Unsigned Representation -- Signed Representation -- Translating Between Signed and Unsigned Representations -- Converting Between Word Lengths -- Strings -- The BSTR -- C-Style LPSTR and LPWSTR Strings -- String Terminology -- Tools for Exploring Strings -- String Conversion by VB -- Passing Strings to the Win32 API -- Strings and Byte Arrays -- Getting the Address of a Variable of User-Defined Type -- System Information Functions -- The Computer's Name -- Special Windows Paths -- The Operating System Version -- System Metrics -- System Parameters -- System Colors -- Exception Handling -- Thwarting the General Protection Fault -- Replacing the Default Exception Handler -- The Replacement Exception Handler -- The Windows Operating System -- Windows Architecture -- Processes and Threads -- Windows Architecture -- Differences Between Windows 9x and Windows NT -- Objects and Their Handles -- Handles -- Example: File Mapping -- Processes -- Process Handles and IDs -- Module Handles -- Identifying a Process -- Process Pseudohandles -- Enumerating Processes -- Is This Application Already Running? -- Threads -- Thread Handles and Thread IDs -- Thread Priority -- Thread Synchronization -- Waiting Can Be Tricky -- Windows Memory Architecture -- Types of Memory -- The Address Space of a Process -- Example: Using GetSystemInfo -- Allocating Virtual Memory -- Example: Using GlobalMemoryStatus -- Virtual Memory Management -- Heaps of Memory -- Example: Mapping Virtual Memory -- Portable Executable Files -- Module Relocation -- The PE File Format -- Example: Getting PE File Information -- Windows (USER32.DLL Programming) -- Windows: The Basics -- Terminology -- Window Styles -- Owned Windows -- Z Order -- Enumerating Windows -- Size and Position Functions -- Windows Messages -- The Message Queues of a Thread -- The Windows Messaging System -- Posting and Sending Messages -- Example: Sending Messages to a Listbox -- Interprocess Marshalling -- Copying Data Between Processes -- The Local Input State -- Window Classes and the Window Creation Process -- Window Classes -- Predefined Window Classes -- The Window Procedure of a Window Class -- Creating a Window -- Window Styles -- Windows and VB Controls -- Example: Spying on Windows -- Windows Subclassing -- Subclassing a Window or Window Class -- Example: Subclassing the VB Checkbox Class -- Windows Hooks -- Global and Thread-Specific Hooks -- Setting the Hook -- Hook Procedures -- Hook Types -- Hook Chains -- Example: A Local Hook -- Example: A Global Hook -- DLL Injection and Foreign Process Access -- Accessing a Foreign Process: The Hooked Thread Graph -- Allocating Foreign Memory -- Example: Foreign Control Extraction -- Example: Fixing the VB6 Help System -- The Windows GDI (GDI32.DLL Programming) -- Bitmaps -- Rectangles -- Bitmaps -- Bitmap Functions -- Using Bitmaps in Menus -- Device Contexts I: Overview -- How Windows Handles Window Painting -- Device Contexts -- Device Contexts II: Types of Device Contexts -- Information Device Contexts -- Memory Device Contexts -- Printer Device Contexts -- Display Device Contexts -- Coordinate Systems -- Device Contexts III: Coordinate Systems -- GDI Coordinate Systems -- Virtual Space -- Device Space -- Page Space -- Virtual Space to Physical Space -- Setting Up Logical Coordinates in Physical Space -- Mapping Modes -- World Space -- Fonts -- Font Families -- Font Technologies -- Character Sets -- Logical and Physical Fonts -- Enumerating Fonts.

This book provides the missing documentation for VB programmers who want to harness the power of accessing the Win32 API within VB, and shows how to create powerful and unique applications without needing a background in Visual C++ or Win32 API programming. Other features a CD-ROM containing several of the applications discussed in the book, and can be used or modified to suit particular needs and used as learning tools.

System requirements for computer disk: Windows 95 or higher or Windows NT; Microsoft Visual Basic.