Learn how to build client applications that use SOAP based web services.

Explore the details of how a Shell Explorer Context Menu works and learn the role played by the registry database.

Discover how to write a component that can be used in a COM+ enviroment.

Leveraging Windows Error Reporting (WER) to use Microsoft's existing infrastructure for providing end users with patches and workarounds, a critical aspect of the application life-cycle management.

How to display the Input Language indicator (as seen on the Language Bar) in a dialog (such as seen in the Windows Logon or Change Password dialogs).

Learn how to use STA COM objects asynchronously without blocking your main thread.

Explore a C++ replacement of the official ASIO SDK that supports multiple ASIO devices put to the test in a tiny WinAMP output DLL.

Despite the best documentation, stepping into the actual source code of third-party libraries can be the fastest way to diagnose a difficult bug or determine the state that a component needs to be in before a certain operation can be completed. With a little set-up magic, developers can step into libraries quickly and easily.

Discover a simplified and unified way to access most frequently used information about Process, System, and Environment.

Learn how to customize the internet explorer context menu to add Codeguru Favorites items.

Effective use of the Visual C++ debugger is one of the easiest ways to increase developer productivity. Program database (PDB) files are one of the key elements in effectively debugging an application, and it is easy to set up Visual Studio to use debug symbols for binary files produced by other developers, including those at Microsoft.

Hot on the heels of the significant MFC updates that were delivered with the release of Visual Studio 2008, the Visual C++ 2008 Feature Pack significantly boosts the ability of MFC to deliver modern-looking user interfaces that will be familiar to Windows and Office users. Look at these new controls and see how MFC developers can significantly improve their application's look and feel.

Learn to use a scriptable ActiveX web control that uses ATL.

Drill deeper into Mobile Development in C++ and go through the development and debugging of a Windows Mobile 6 application with a focus on MFC.

Discover a class to start Microsoft Word and access Word functions from a C++ application by using OLE and IDispatch interfaces. Two classes are provided: the Word automation class CWordAutomation and the wrapper class CEzWordAutomation.

Nicholas Zakas explores the powerful DOM Range tool and how a range can be used to select a section of a web document regardless of node boundaries.

If you thought the end of Visual FoxPro had already happened, then you are wrong. Its end is now.

If you have been using Vista, you would have noticed that MessageBoxes are passé. These have been replaced by the new Task Dialogs. Task dialogs are intended to make the experience more interactive and goal-oriented. Take a tour of the Task Dialog API.

A 'How To' for creating a COM Big Integer Library that uses Visual C++ ATL Wizard and Wei Dai's Crypto++ Library.

Find out what's become of the Windows Template Library (WTL) since Microsoft released it as an open-source project in 2004. Examine the recent WTL releases and see where WTL fits in the C++ programmer's toolkit.

Add one header file to your *.vcproj, insert a few lines of code into your class header, and you'll never again worry about the asynchronous routines in your ATL GUI application.

Learn how to set up and use the Microsoft Symbol Server to help you debug applications under Windows.

Learn about OLE container implementation to host a Transparent Flash Player Control using plain C++. No ATL, MFC, or other libraries are used.

Learn about a simple way to understand and implement the COM+ Admin and Instrumentation interfaces.

Learn how a BHO (Browser Helper Object) could be used to block a particular Web site.

Learn how to implement some basic error handling and perform cleanup operations.

Learn how to work around the restriction of using a single handler type at a time.

CComPtr wraps any interface pointer and will call AddRef() and Release() properly. You don't need to worry about controlling the lifetime of your interface pointer.

Learn to employ a small utility class that allows you to modify how objects for a given class are dynamically allocated.

The security issues with Standard C++ aren't as severe as those of C and the CRT, but a few exploits are possible if you misuse STL and iterators.

Discover a simple technique to share data across multiple processes running on the same machine using the Running Object Table.

Learn about a native C++, MFC, ATL/COM system to remote view a desktop.

"Profile" a block of C++ code with just one include file and two variable definitions.

Learn how to use .NET and Managed C++ to program owner-draw menu items with the fonts and point sizes you want.

Use the IOUpdate.dll library to automatically update your application from the Internet.

For those who don't have the desire or time to become experts on Windows security, follow this demonstration of using various .NET classes to test for a user's inclusion in one or more security groups.

Here are two Microsoft (tm) Visual C++ projects. One project is an ATLCOM project with two objects: a Huffman compression object and a run length encoding object. One project is an MFC dialog that utilizes the library to perform file-based compression and decompression.

Implementing and utilizing extensible property sheets in your .NET classes has never been easier.

Ever wanted to get a mouse hover/leave message from the system tray? The Windows shell doesn't support that. This class is a solution that works.

Learn how to create resourceless dialogs using the Trilobyte-Solutions.nl Resourceless Dialog Toolkit.

One drawback to using remoting in a mixed—MFC/.NET—environment is that MFC objects cannot be remoted. Explore this technique for overcoming this limitation.

A very basic shell extention to add and reterive the comments of the files.

Discover how to make serial communication (RS232) with MSComm.

In this installment of the .NET Tips & Techniques column, learn how to serialize entire objects—as well as selected members—to and from disk using Managed C++ Extensions.

Learn how to add a button to a server application (a WinForm app with a big Listen button) and have the handler for the click event raise a custom event.

Having enterprise development problems? Discover Whitehorse, a set of modeling tools included in the next release of Visual Studio .NET (code-named Whidbey).

Learn how to create an audit trail for application data on an Oracle database (Oracle 8 and up). It includes two scripts that can be used to quickly get started.

Learn about a way to enable a hot key in an ActiveX control without a message hook.

For beginners: Learn how to make a tabbed user interface using a simple MFC ActiveX control in VC++ .NET.

Create a WTL class using VC++ .NET 2003 that will simplify building SDI applications by allowing you to combine tab controls with splitters.