Learning VB in Excel: Is .Net 2003 an option?

[skinfreak]

I am finding a need to develop my VB primarily for Excel, but also to create addins to combine Excel datasources with Outlook for calendar entries etc...

I have been advised to try using Visual Basic, and went ahead and bought VB.Net 2003. I should have looked at Excel more closely though, as far as I can tell, the VB behind Excel is different from VB 2003. Is this correct?

Excel has .NET capabilities, so how is VB pitched within it? Is is VB 6 with some .NET bells and whistles? How does it compare to VB .NET 2003? And if I am learning VB from scratch, should I jump into the latest version now? My previous experience is not too hot (Fortran, basic C, and some PHP) Input and comments would be most welcome...

Thanks!

 

[Norie]

The Visual Basic you find behind Excel is actually Visual Basic for Applications.

I suppose it could be described as a slimmed down version of VB with added functionality relating to the Excel object model.

The same could be said for Word VBA, Access VBA etc.