No Starch Press releases--VB Express 2005: Now Playing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: Patricia Witkin
patricia@xxxxxxxxxxxx
415.863.9900 x303

NEW TITLE USES FLASH MOVIES TO TEACH VB EXPRESS 2005

Covers programming basics before diving into details, companion CD
includes "movies" that help explain concepts

December 7, 2005, San Francisco--You don't need a college degree in
computer science, an aptitude for mathematics, or special schooling to be a
programmer; all you need is a computer and the curiosity to learn. Since
Visual Basic 2005 Express is designed to make Windows programming easy for
everyone--from hobbyists to professional software developers--it's a
perfect starting point for beginners. "VB Express 2005: Now Playing"
(No Starch Press, $29.95 US) takes that easy approach and runs with it,
providing a short primer on the general principles behind computer
programming before moving on to explain how to use the Visual Basic
Express user interface and then how to write programs using the Visual
Basic language.

In "VB Express 2005: Now Playing," best-selling Visual Basic author Wallace
Wang covers all the bases, including various programming shortcuts for
specific functions and an overview of the built-in Help system that comes
with VB Express, so that, by the time readers finish the book, they'll be
comfortable enough to progress on their own. At the same time, the book
doesn't "dumb down" the important information would-be programmers want to
learn. "VB Express 2005: Now Playing" also features a companion CD full of
short source code examples that readers can run and modify on their own,
as well as movies that demonstrate how to accomplish specific tasks -
hence, "Now Playing."

As one of the best-selling VB authors, Wally was the obvious choice to
write this book," said Bill Pollock, founder of No Starch Press. "Very few
authors are as adept at explaining technical topics so clearly."

"VB Express 2005: Now Playing" is organized into five logical sections so
readers can quickly find the information they need:

-Part I teaches how to understand, use and customize the VB Express user
interface, including menus and commands, so that readers will be
comfortable navigating it

-Part II explains how to design a user interface with VB Express

-Part III introduces specific user interface controls, such as buttons,
check boxes and pull-down menus, and how to use BASIC code to make the
interface work

-Part IV focuses on writing BASIC code that will make a program useful

-Part V includes additional information to make readers' programs more
interesting and functional, from connecting to database files to
displaying pictures and playing sound.

This latest release of the Visual Basic product appeals to a new
generation of aspiring programmers while staying true to its original
roots as a tool for making Windows programming simple, fast and, most
important, fun. "Visual Basic 2005 Express: Now Playing" provides readers
with the foundation in programming they'll need to learn and use the
product to the fullest.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Wallace Wang is the best-selling author of Visual Basic
6 For Dummies (Wiley), the Steal This Computer Book series, Steal This
File Sharing Book, and The Book of Nero 6 (all No Starch Press). He is
also a successful standup comic who has appeared on A&E's "Evening at the
Improv" and appears regularly at the Riviera Comedy Club in Las Vegas.

Visual Basic 2005 Express: Now Playing
by Wallace Wang
January 2006, 496 pp. w/ CD, $29.95
1-59327-059-3

Available at fine bookstores everywhere, from
www.oreilly.com/nostarch, or directly from No Starch Press
(www.nostarch.com, orders@xxxxxxxxxxxx, 800.420.7240).

ABOUT NO STARCH PRESS: Founded in 1994, No Starch Press is one of the few
remaining independent computer book publishers. We publish the finest in
geek entertainment-unique books on technology, with a focus on Open
Source, security, hacking, programming, and alternative operating systems.
Our titles have personality, our authors are passionate, and our books
tackle topics that people care about. See www.nostarch.com for more. (And
by the way, most No Starch Press books use RepKover, a lay-flat binding
that won't snap shut.)

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