Rating:  - Great Book For Both Beginners AND Intermediates
I am somewhat of a beginner so I couldn't tell you if this book is suitable for the ultra-experienced VB programmer. I CAN say that in the way that this book is structured, any experienced VB programmer will get valuable information out of this book. One example of this is that in the beginning of every chapter, regardless of the subject, The author gives details on how this particular topic is different in VB.NET versus VB6. This will give the experienced programmer valuable information as to what has changed so that he doesn't chase his tail looking for a reason why his code will not work (for example, ALL variables in VB.NET must be dimensioned, unless you specify by writing a statement telling VS that you are not going to Dim).
For the beginner, (that would be me) I found this book to be very valuable. The book flowed properly in the way of topics and exercises (and there were PLENTY of exercises). ALL OF THE CODE EXAMPLES WORKED!! I for one was amazed! Along with that, I didn't see any glaring grammatical errors nor did I find any technical errors either, (You won't find errata for this book yet). It is refreshing to finally read a technology related book that was properly proof-read.
VB.NET Step by Step by no means moves slowly. The chapters are very much to the point with little to no "fluff". Hence, all chapters are short, sweet, and to the point with a great topic review at the end of each chapter. This is great for the "non book reader" who gets bored easily, (eg. those who fall asleep when trying to read Wrox books). Because of the short chapters, many topics are covered and a lot of ground is gained in a short period of time.
In conclusion, I walked away from this book with much more knowledge than I had previously with both VB.NET and Visual Studio 7. I would highly recommend this book to beginner and intermediate programmers. VB.NET Step By Step will get in depth, but not so in dept that the beginner to average programmer will become lost.
Rating:  - The Basics - you have to crawl before you run
Some have criticized Halvorson's book as being too basic, or not basic enough. The truth is that this book is really for either a) the new person who knows some programming and wants to get his or her feet wet in VB.Net, or b) someone who knows VB6 and wants to skim and see changes. It hits the highlights to get you off the ground. The value in it comes more from the programs provided that you can dissect than the instructions that come with the steps. The author takes the time to point out how .Net differs from version 6, including the changes, and removals between the versions. If you are a VB programmer already, this book is below you, except as I mentioned for skimming for changes quickly. But if you are looking to get a simple handle on the changes, or the new .net development platform at all, this gets your foot in the door. It gave me enough to start with and now I can springboard off of that into more detailed books. I'm not going to be writing huge applications right now, but I'm a step along the way. The book delivers on what it sets out to do.
Rating: - Read before making a comment
Step by steps means step by step..
Of course this is for beginners nothing in the cover page says for advance user or for professionals. Every programmer thinks before doing, I really dont know about these guys below making all the comment. I dont know if im the only one in the group that actually understand what step by step means. Or am I blind, cause i dont see anything that says for experience or for professionals.
So to sum it all off, this is for begginers, and its a good book. If im wrong return it, if im right keep it.
Rating: - Perfect for Beginners
Programmers with experience usually hate these types of books but they always tend to forget what it was like when they were just starting out. So call it ".Net for complete programming no-nothings" if you like. It's the perfect book to introduce fledgling programmers with no experience whatsover in programming. It takes you through all the steps VERY SLOWLY and that's exactly what a beginner needs. It concentrates on concepts and the theory behind it allowing one to develop good programming instincts. If you have any experience programming, skip this otherwise it's the best teaching book on programming I've ever come across.
Rating: - Beginners Only
If you are an experienced developer, particularly with VB, this is NOT the book to buy. I recommend Cornell and Morrison's Programming VB.Net: A Guide for Experienced Developers. However, if you are new to programming, I highly recommend this book. It presents basic subject matter in a clear and readable style. Additionally, the author steps the reader "step-by-step" through how to perform basic programming tasks in the VB .Net environment. I have taught hundreds of students how to develop in Visual Basic, and although this is not the BEST book out there, my students have really enjoyed and benefited greatly from this material.
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