In the previous chapter where we introduced ADO.NET (and, therefore, studied databases a lot), I extended the book by considering one of several other objects that are part of ADO.NET in addition to OleDbDataAdapter and the helpful wizards available.
In this chapter of Visual Basic .NET Step by Step, the book goes even deeper into database programming and introduces the DataGrid component - a primary way to access databases in VB.NET. But, as in the previous chapter, only the very tip of what is actually available is explained. There are three ways that the material in the text will be extended.
First... There is a lot of detail that is hidden when you only use the wizards to generate the functions as explained in the book. In order to better understand what's actually happening, we're going to start where the chapter ends and show you some of that detail.
Second... There are a few hidden features in the sample database (Students.mdb) provided by the book! We'll also examine some of those.
Third... Although DataGrid is the only MICROSOFT grid component in VB.NET (as mentioned in the Upgrade Notes on page 514), there are a lot of third party grid components that add features not available from Microsoft. We're going to take a look at a few of those!
