VB Forum / General 2 / December 2003

"...And the next sign of the Apocalypse will be..."
*****

Depends on your reasons for learning. If you're taking a class, the
instructor will tell you what version you'll be using. If you're doing
it for work (lucky bastard) then it's probably up to someone else. If
you're doing it for yourself (or the decision is otherwise yours), I'd
say VB6. (And if you go with VB.NET, you'll have to ask your questions
in a .NET-specific newsgroup.)

Visual Basic 6 is the last version of "classic" VB from Microsoft.
Mainstream support for the product expires on 31 March 2005 and  it is
not now possible to buy the product from a retailer and a hassle to
get it from Microsoft. Furthermore, the release of .NET framework
indicates that Microsoft has accepted the protected Virtual Machine
and object oriented language model exemplified by Sun's Java language
and environment.

In other words, if you want to continue programming, eventually you
will have to learn a .NET language or Java. Skip classic VB and do it
now. However,  if the "educational purposes" are part of some other
course and you do not intend to continue programming then VB6 may be
preferable because it is easier to learn.

As previously mentioned, if the reason is school or work, then the version
will be determined for you by those.  If its something you're doing on your
own, then it will depend on what your aspirations are.  Personally, I didn't
upgrade to VBdotNET, so the little I know about VBdotNET was derived from
research and such at the time it was spanking new, when I was desciding
whether or not to upgrade.  VBdotNET is different enough from classic VB
that many consider it a different language.  But the thing that probably
swayed me the most from upgrading to net was the JIT compiling (net doesn't
compile to native object code).  It is my impression that VBdotNET is meant
to be primarily an "enterprise solution" and not necessarily a tool for
creating consumer oriented apps.  So if you aspire for employment in a
corporate environment (banking, insurance, etc.) programming for their
internal data and network systems, then my recommendation might lean toward
VBdotNET (although there are still plenty of corporate legacy apps and
systems in classic VB).  If your goal is to eventually create apps to
distribute to others, then I wouldn't recommend net.  I don't even think I'd
recommend classic VB for developing consumer apps to someone just starting
out at this point in time (only way to get it now is via eBay or by
purchasing dotnet and downgrading thru MS), I'd lean towards a non-MS
language.