Introduction

This course will teach C++ programmers how to develop applications by using Microsoft® Foundation Class (MFC) Library and the Microsoft Visual C++® 6 development environment.

At Course Completion

At the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Describe the Visual C++ 6 development environment.
• Describe the new MFC features introduced with Visual C++ 6.
• Debug MFC applications.
• Create robust applications that handle errors and exceptions.
• Enhance the user interface features of an application by adding dynamic menus, graphical status bars, rebars, and dialog bars.
• Implement view classes.
• Use Microsoft Windows® operating system controls, Internet Explorer controls, and ActiveX™ controls in MFC applications.
• Use ActiveX and component object model (COM) objects in MFC.
• Create ActiveX controls.
• Create applications that access both DBMS and non DBMS data sources by using OLE DB templates and ActiveX Data Objects (ADO).
• Create MFC applications that communicate across the Internet.

Microsoft Certified Professional Exams

This course will help the student prepare for the following Microsoft Certified Professional exam(s):

• Exam 70-016, Designing and Implementing Desktop Applications with Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0

Prerequisites

This course assumes that the student has experience and knowledge in the following areas:

• C++ programming skills
• Some programming experience with MFC Library
• Familiarity with document/view architecture and non-document/view architecture
• Windows architecture concepts including event-driven programming, processes, virtual memory models, threading, multitasking, and messaging
• Using the resource editors, tools, and debugger in the Microsoft Visual Studio™ development environment
• Familiarity with Microsoft Internet Explorer
• Creating, modifying, compiling, and running projects in Visual Studio
• Familiarity with object-oriented programming (OOP) terminology and concepts such as objects, properties, and methods

Course Outline

Day 1

Chapter 1: Introduction to Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0

Topics:

Overview of Visual C++ and MFC
Enhancements to Visual C++
Enhancements to MFC

Lab:

Creating an MFC application by using AppWizard

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the features of Visual C++ and MFC Library.
• List the major enhancements made to Visual C++ and MFC in Visual C++ 6.0.
• Create, build, and run an MFC application.

Chapter 2: Debugging and Error Handling

Topics:

Debugging
Handling errors and exceptions

Labs:

Using Edit and Continue
Implementing exception-handling

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Use the Visual Studio Debugger to identify and eliminate errors.
• Use the Edit and Continue feature to simplify debugging.
• Write functions with built-in error-handling code.
• Use the C++ exception-handling technique to handle runtime exceptions.
• Describe and use the various types of MFC exception classes.

Chapter 3: Enhancing User Interface Features

Topics:

Enhancing menus
Enhancing toolbars
Enhancing status bars
Enhancing dialog boxes
Using modeless dialog boxes
Using dialog bars
Using rebars

Labs:

Creating a dynamic menu
Customizing the common dialog class
Adding a modeless dialog box
Adding a dialog bar
Adding a rebar

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Create dynamic menus, cascading menus, and ownerdraw menus.
• Place dockable toolbars in an application.
• Include graphics and additional panes in status bars.
• Use and customize common dialog boxes.
• Extend dialog data validation (DDV).
• Create tabbed dialog boxes and property sheets.
• Invoke and display modeless dialog boxes.
• Create dialog bars and rebars.

Day 2

Chapter 4: Implementing View Classes

Topics:

Introduction to views
Adding multiple views
Adding scrolling views
Implementing splitter windows
Implementing form views
Implementing control views
Creating an Explorer-style application
Coordinating multiple interrelated views

Labs:

Adding a splitter bar to an application
Adding Open File dialogs and a rich edit view
Building a text viewer (optional)

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the purpose of documents, views, templates, and frames within the document/view architecture, and how they interact.
• Describe the various types of view classes in MFC.
• Implement applications that use views derived from the CView class.
• Create SDI and MDI applications with multiple views.
• Implement interrelated views in an application.

Chapter 5: Using Controls

Topics:

Windows common controls
Internet Explorer 4.0 common controls
ActiveX controls
Controls supplied by MFC

Labs:

Creating controls dynamically
Adding the Progress control
Using the Calendar control

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Add Windows common controls, Internet Explorer 4.0 common controls, ActiveX controls, and controls supplied by the MFC library to MFC applications.

Day 3

Chapter 6: Creating ActiveX Controls

Topics:

Overview of ActiveX controls
ActiveX control properties
ActiveX control methods
ActiveX control events
Implementing ActiveX control property pages
Creating an enumerated property
Data binding in an ActiveX control
Optimizing ActiveX controls
Debugging and handling errors in ActiveX applications

Lab:

Building an ActiveX control using an existing class

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the advantages of the ActiveX control technology.
• Describe the elements of an ActiveX control.
• Explain the features of the ControlWizard in creating an ActiveX control.
• Describe the primary tasks of an ActiveX control container.
• Explain the interaction between an ActiveX control container and an ActiveX control.
• Use ControlWizard to create skeletal code for your ActiveX control.
• Use ClassWizard to define properties, methods, and events for your ActiveX control.

Day 4

Chapter 7: Using OLE DB Templates for Data Access

Topics:

Overview of OLE DB
Introduction to OLE DB templates
Creating an OLE DB consumer application

Labs:

Create an OLE DB consumer applica-tion by using the CAccessor class
Create an OLE DB consumer application by using the CDynamicAccessor class

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• State the benefits of using the OLE DB technology for data access.
• Describe the role of OLE DB components in data access.
• Explain the architecture of provider and consumer template classes.
• Build consumer applications using OLE DB consumer templates.

Chapter 8: Creating ADO Database Applications

Topics:

Introduction to ADO
Using data controls
Using data bound dialog
Performing queries

Lab:

Using the data bound dialog

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the role of ADO in applications that require database access.
• Describe the ADO object model.
• Implement ADO in MFC applications using data controls.
• Implement ADO in MFC applications using the Data Bound Dialog.
• Perform queries and searches on databases and rowsets.

Day 5

Chapter 9: Building Internet Applications

Topics:

Basic Internet concepts
Using the Internet Explorer object
Using the Web Browser control
Using the WinInet classes
Using the WinSock classes

Labs:

Using the Web Browser control
Using the HTTP WinInet classes
Adding an HTML view

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the Internet framework.
• Describe the different types of Internet applications.
• Create MFC-based applications that invoke Internet Explorer.
• Use the Web Browser control in MFC applications.
• Create MFC applications that use the WinInet classes to communicate across the Internet.
• Create MFC applications that use the synchronous and asynchronous WinSock classes.

Chapter 10: Printing and Print Preview

Topics:

Adding default printer support
Enhancing printer support

Lab:

Adding Print and Print Preview to an application

Skills:

Students will be able to:

• Describe the printing process and the default printing capabilities provided by MFC for an AppWizard-generated application.
• Add default printer support to your application.
• Retrieve information relating to printers and print jobs at run time.
• Enhance default printer support to implement custom requirements.