Hi Tom,
Before I respond to your note, I want to ensure that our discussion is on
the proper footing. I respect your comments and your obvious Excel talents.
Clearly, your Excel skills are much better than mine, and I very much
appreciate the help you have given me and others. The reason for stating
these comments is that I do not want our discussion here to spiral
downwards. Instead, I would prefer to respond to your comments in a
professional and personal manner. And truth be told, I don't think we
differ that much.
Also, another comment before I respond directly. I am not a VBA programmer.
I was once very skilled in XLM and did some VBA programming using the
Tompkins' methodology back in 1995-1996 timeframe. I was okay at VBA, for I
could do what I needed to get done. But I was no wizard at VBA, and am
still not a wizard. In March to June of this past year, I had need to do
more VBA programming. I needed to relearn what I had forgotten as well as
strengthen my skills. Stephen Bullen, one of the authors of the Wrox text,
suggested the Wrox book as a great book to start. I read it along with
Walkenbach's book--read John W's book first. Both are excellent. So now
you know that I too am much like many of the so called newbies wanting to
learn about VBA.
Okay, that being said, allow me to respond more directly.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I always find having more than one source
valuable. Granted John W.'s book is very good. But if you are a new
programmer, sometimes reading a second text helps to reinforce a point or
help to explain a point you never understood the first time. If you are
very skilled in VBA, then reading any VBA book is easy and it all makes
sense the very first time. But for those of us learning something new, it
is helpful to have more than source.
I did read John W's book first. But I must admit I found some topics more
clearly explained in Wrox book. Also the Wrox book presents the topics in
different order, which again is helpful. Some people found the John W's
presentation confusing because he tended to mix his topics. I was okay with
that. But a lot of people are not. I found the Wrox book to be more linear
in its presentation. Some people might like that. Me, I just like lots of
examples.
Here, let's look at some of the Amazon reviews for John W.'s book:
A reader from El Paso, TX United States
"I found this book very useful. However, I found it frustrating that some
things didn't work exactly as explained or required perhaps some significant
extra code to really work well. I am by far and away not an expert, but also
not a novice; I've been programming in BASIC, VB, FORTRAN, UNIX SHELL, etc.
for 30 years, but only as a tool for my job. I would recommend this book,
but not for beginners who probably wouldn't deduce their way to solve
things. "
Charles L. Thierheimer Jr from Corvallis, OR United States
"I have found this book very useful. It is not for raw beginners, you should
have at least dabbled in Visual Basic. The author gently encourages the
reader to develop habits of documentation, formatting code with indents
etc."
Zitouni from Paris, France
"This book has no real structure, making its use and finding information a
true headache. The summary is a clear proof: part 1) some essential
background, 2)excel application development, 3) VBA, 4) userforms, 5)
advanced techniques, 6) developing applications, 7) others. Since part 2 is
devoted to devlopping, why this subject should again comes in part 6?
Besides, isn't the whole book dedicated to developing? Finding what you
want, even in the detailed contents, is harsh and shows that there's no
plan, but rather disseaminated pieces of information, just like the VBA
help."
"Instead of clearly dividing by general topic (variables, objects,
methods...), the author has a special order where everything seems mixed and
spread in the book. Here something about methods, then some chapters later,
another thing about methods etc."
The point in showing these reviews is NOT to disparage John W's book. It's
a great book--no question. But not everyone is able to pick up John W's
book and run with it immediately. Would the Wrox text be any better for
these individuals? I do not know. But I do know that having both books was
a tremendous benefit to me. And again, I am not an experienced programmer
of any sort. So I empathize with those wanting to learn VBA. While I agree
with you that John W's book is a good strong first choice, I also recommend
a second text. From your prior post, it appears that we agree that the Wrox
text is a good book. I think both books are highly recommended.
Not meaning to put words in your mouth, I think you would say, "Read John
W's book first, and then if interested read Wrox." I am indifferent as to
which is read first or second.
So wrapping up this rather long winded response, I think we are close in our
opinions. I don't think we differ signficantly. While I agree John W's
wrote an excellent text, I think newbies might want another book to guide
them along. I know I found having more than one reference extremely
helpful.
And again I want to stress, I do not want our discussion to devolve into
animus. I have tremendous respect for your talents and opinions and would
like to be able to ask your assistance when required.
I hope that clarifies my position. If I respond (not sure it is worth this
much bother), I would continue to recommend both books. I might mention
that a lot of people prefer to start with John W's book, but I think both
books are excellent and deserve to be read. Both books are worth the price
paid and the reader will learn from each book.
Best regards,
Kevin
