p.s. the current framework is 3.5, so I would go with that framework. It's built off the same framework/CLR as 2.0, but has added functionality.
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At work we have 2 applications. Firstly there was a C#, .NET 2.0 Winform with Java Server side strategic application. Later another tactical application was developed with Excel VBA GUI and Java Server side. Now management want to merge the two. From a server perspective it will require some work, but as they are both in Java, it is relatively easy and obvious what needs to be done.
Users love the slickness of the C# GUI and have asked to stick with that over Excel. Therefore we are looking for an easy way of taking our logic in Excel / VBA and importing / porting it to C#. Also the reason Excel was origionally used was, the functionality involved lent itself to an Excel Grid quite nicely. Therefore Excel Grid functionality is also desirable in the new C# GUI - more than a standard grid - a grid that supports formula, similar to Excel
I was wondering if anyone has any advice or knowledge of any tool free, or otherwise, that would make the job easier.
Thanks in advance
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Free tools? nope. A good paid tool or component actually is Spreadsheet gear which does exactly what you want. In any event you can't simply port over VBA code to C# code. This will require reprogramming. A component that you would be utilizing is the DataGrid control(most likely). You will be doing it from scratch as well.
If you want to make things easier, you can make a VB6 dll and use com interop in C# to call the VB6 methods, however that's only if you have separated the business logic with the presentation logic in VBA.
-->code in vb.net...there may be a VBA to VB converter...and for sure there's a VB to C# converter
Omego, I assumed that I only had to specify vb.net once since my statement was a corollary, explaining why the author may want to start in vb.net. And I think it may be a good idea still to start off in a language that he's familiar with and then convert it over. I'm sure there are lots of language converters...parsers/etc.
The user specified free tools, so most converters are free...
I agree with him using VB.NET, however I am not sure he is allowed to make that call. In any event you can't easily port VBA to VB.NET. 1st he would need a VB6 project, then he would need a solid business layer in his VBA(since it's VBA I doubt it) so the data could still be called. It's just too much to convert.
Hi,
Thanks for the feed back. Tools like Spreadsheet gear seem like something that could be very useful and cut out a lot of work and hassle. Spreadsheet gear allows use of cell formula which would be a dream (simply plug it in!)
To avoid any confusion both existing apps are java server-side. The new app would also be java server-side, which should ease integration.
The VBA is for presentation, but like anything, there is some business logic nestled in there too, for ease of implementation (at the time)
Sounds like VBA -> VB.NET -> C# is a non-runner. So is writing the VBA presentation in C# from scratch (using a tool like Spreadsheet gear) the easiest and most viable option?
Any other advice?
you don't have to use spreadsheet gear. It depends on how much time you have to devote. You can do everything manually with a datagrid control or a custom one you make yourself, it's more work and time though. In any event which way you go is up to you. You may want to do a financial calculation to see if it's better to spend time doing it with the stock .NET framework or spending $999 per developer on spreadsheetgear. Also you would have to do VBA -> VB6 DLL project -> VB.NET -> C#, so you missed a step ;).
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by: silemonePosted on 2009-10-27 at 09:33:45ID: 25674430
well I would offer if you don't already, get the free Visual Studios version so that you can do things graphically...also, maybe you can first churn out your code in vb.net...there may be a VBA to VB converter...and for sure there's a VB to C# converter (I use it all the time)...also since you wrote VBA, you may be more comfortable using VB.
I'm a bit confused with you're using Java and they are both in Java...so I can't say anything on that since til that's cleared up...however, C# is modeled after java, so if there's any changing Java code to a C# version, it should be simple enough...