Visual Basic Extension
Encyclopedia
In computer programming
, a Visual Basic Extension (commonly abbreviated VBX) or custom control, was the component model used in Microsoft
Visual Basic
versions 1.0 to 3.0. It is still supported in the 16-bit version of version 4.0, but was made obsolete by OCXs. VBX has also been supported in some versions of Borland Delphi
.
The VBX specification was created so that developers could extend Visual Basic
. Since at the time Visual Basic was an interpreted language
with limited speed, VBXs, which were most often written in C or C++, provided the ability to create very powerful and efficient user interface sub-components which could be assembled into applications using Visual Basic as the glue.
Visual Basic 4.0 added support for the newer OLE Controls or OCXs (which became ActiveX controls), implicitly deprecating VBX controls. OCXs are based on the Component Object Model
.
Each version of Visual Basic has come with many controls. By incorporating VBX controls into Visual Basic, Microsoft spawned the first commercially viable market for reusable software components. Third parties have created a large market of custom controls for resale.
VBX components were called "custom controls" because the Microsoft development team envisioned them as visual "control" components like a toggle switch or button. Enterprising third party software component developers saw opportunities to use the VBX specification for non-visual components, such as components for creating ZIP files
, manipulating low-level system settings and communicating with TCP/IP.
Computer programming
Computer programming is the process of designing, writing, testing, debugging, and maintaining the source code of computer programs. This source code is written in one or more programming languages. The purpose of programming is to create a program that performs specific operations or exhibits a...
, a Visual Basic Extension (commonly abbreviated VBX) or custom control, was the component model used in Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
Visual Basic
Visual Basic
Visual Basic is the third-generation event-driven programming language and integrated development environment from Microsoft for its COM programming model...
versions 1.0 to 3.0. It is still supported in the 16-bit version of version 4.0, but was made obsolete by OCXs. VBX has also been supported in some versions of Borland Delphi
Borland Delphi
Embarcadero Delphi is an integrated development environment for console, desktop graphical, web, and mobile applications.Delphi's compilers use its own Object Pascal dialect of Pascal and generate native code for 32- and 64-bit Windows operating systems, as well as 32-bit Mac OS X and iOS...
.
The VBX specification was created so that developers could extend Visual Basic
Visual Basic
Visual Basic is the third-generation event-driven programming language and integrated development environment from Microsoft for its COM programming model...
. Since at the time Visual Basic was an interpreted language
Interpreted language
Interpreted language is a programming language in which programs are 'indirectly' executed by an interpreter program. This can be contrasted with a compiled language which is converted into machine code and then 'directly' executed by the host CPU...
with limited speed, VBXs, which were most often written in C or C++, provided the ability to create very powerful and efficient user interface sub-components which could be assembled into applications using Visual Basic as the glue.
Visual Basic 4.0 added support for the newer OLE Controls or OCXs (which became ActiveX controls), implicitly deprecating VBX controls. OCXs are based on the Component Object Model
Component Object Model
Component Object Model is a binary-interface standard for software componentry introduced by Microsoft in 1993. It is used to enable interprocess communication and dynamic object creation in a large range of programming languages...
.
Each version of Visual Basic has come with many controls. By incorporating VBX controls into Visual Basic, Microsoft spawned the first commercially viable market for reusable software components. Third parties have created a large market of custom controls for resale.
VBX components were called "custom controls" because the Microsoft development team envisioned them as visual "control" components like a toggle switch or button. Enterprising third party software component developers saw opportunities to use the VBX specification for non-visual components, such as components for creating ZIP files
ZIP (file format)
Zip is a file format used for data compression and archiving. A zip file contains one or more files that have been compressed, to reduce file size, or stored as is...
, manipulating low-level system settings and communicating with TCP/IP.