Lesson 2

Customizing the Form

In this lesson, you will learn how to customize the default form in Visual Basic 2015. You will explore the Properties Window and learn how to modify the form both at design-time and run-time.

← Lesson 1 Next →

Key Idea:

Every VB.NET application starts with a form. Customizing the form is the first step toward building a usable graphical user interface (GUI).

Lesson Overview

TopicForm Design

FocusProperties

SkillGUI Basics

2.1 Overview

Building the GUI

The first step in developing a Visual Basic application is to build the graphical user interface (GUI). When you start VB2015, you are presented with a default form.

To create a usable application, you must add controls such as buttons, labels, and textboxes. These controls respond to user actions like clicking and typing.

VB2015 is an event-driven language
Controls respond to user actions
Forms act as the main interface

Figure 2.1: VB2015 IDE

2.2 Properties Window

Customizing Form Properties

The Properties Window allows you to change the appearance and behavior of a form. You can modify properties such as name, text, color, and size.

Name → internal reference
Text → title bar
BackColor → background color
Font → appearance

Figure 2.2: Properties Window

Example Properties

Property	Value
Name	MyForm
Text	My First VB2015 Project
BackColor	Cyan
MaximizeBox	False

Color Selection

You can choose colors using RGB values or the built-in palette.

Custom Palette

2.3 Run-Time Customization

Using Code to Modify Properties

You can also change form properties using code at runtime.

Me.BackColor = Color.Cyan

Private Sub Form1_Load(...) Handles MyBase.Load
    Me.Text = "My First VB2015 Project"
    Me.BackColor = Color.Cyan
    Me.MaximizeBox = False
End Sub

Figure 2.6: Final Output

Lesson Summary

Forms are the foundation of VB.NET applications
Properties control appearance and behavior
You can modify properties at design-time and run-time