Confirmation Please, VB.net > VB

[mbay]

In regards to backtesting, strategy, and learning programming.

Is VB.net better to learn than VB?

Should I just focus only on VB.net and not VB?

 

[spreadn00b]

It depends. Most likely, yes.

 

[mbay]

Doh, I edited the main post before I read your comment, but thank you.

 

[satchel]

if you are starting, start with VB6, keep it simple...this is not rocket science

try searching for VB6 or VB.NET

(only a matter of time before the python freaks start posting , ignore them)

EDIT: I use VB6 and happy

 

[spreadn00b]

With regard to backtesting and such, I would use VB.NET over VB, the tools are a lot better and and VB is not being updated any longer. You can do most everything you want in VB though. This thread will probably start a language flame war, so get good information while you can.

Quote from mbay:

Doh, I edited the main post before I read your comment, but thank you.

 

[Bernoulli]

You started another thread last week entitled "Am I wasting time learning Visual Basic?" Why don't you go back and read that one?

Languages are tools, with strengths and weaknesses for different tasks, so if you're going to pick one, pick one that addresses the problem you are trying to solve. If your problem includes backtesting, guess what, it doesn't matter because they roughly do the same thing for your purpose, which is to say, either serves to reinvent the backtesting wheel.

Perhaps you could start a thread entitled "Am I Wasting My Time Asking the Same Question Over and Over."

 

[mbay]

Quote from Bernoulli:

You started another thread last week entitled "Am I wasting time learning Visual Basic?" Why don't you go back and read that one?

Languages are tools, with strengths and weaknesses for different tasks, so if you're going to pick one, pick one that addresses the problem you are trying to solve. If your problem includes backtesting, guess what, it doesn't matter because they roughly do the same thing for your purpose, which is to say, either serves to reinvent the backtesting wheel.

Perhaps you could start a thread entitled "Am I Wasting My Time Asking the Same Question Over and Over."

Bernoulli, you are referring to http://elitetrader.com/vb/showthrea... other people pointed out the same thing too.

 

[mbay]

Quote from spreadn00b:

With regard to backtesting and such, I would use VB.NET over VB, the tools are a lot better and and VB is not being updated any longer. You can do most everything you want in VB though. This thread will probably start a language flame war, so get good information while you can.

I did read about Microsoft abandoning VB but not VB.net and how IBM plans to pick up VB where Microsoft is abandoning it.

 

[Tums]

Quote from Bernoulli:

You started another thread last week entitled "Am I wasting time learning Visual Basic?" Why don't you go back and read that one?

Languages are tools, with strengths and weaknesses for different tasks, so if you're going to pick one, pick one that addresses the problem you are trying to solve. If your problem includes backtesting, guess what, it doesn't matter because they roughly do the same thing for your purpose, which is to say, either serves to reinvent the backtesting wheel.

Perhaps you could start a thread entitled "Am I Wasting My Time Asking the Same Question Over and Over."

don't worry, this is a basket case. Give him one year, he will come back to learn EL.

p.s. not that EL is superior than others, it is merely easier for the non-programming professionals.

 

[mbay]

Quote from Valdis:

You better lean C# - it's more simple and becoming a standard in financial programming, see www.smartquant.com for example

To be honest, I was going to quickly just pick up VB.net and transition to C#.

I have been contemplating about C#, mainly because of the limitations of VB, but I have to be honest, for some reason I would rather learn an opensource platform like Python, PHP, or Ruby.

I know the .net platform by Microsoft is widely used by several third party programs and it has the most extensive libraries for finance from what I have read.

I was contemplating Ruby, especially since it seems like uncharted area for Quants, but I have a feeling there is a reason why it is uncharted.

This leads me to PHP or Python, and I think the popular answer would be Python between the two, I think.