Chapter 5. Inheritance with VB .NET

IN THIS CHAPTER

• What Is Inheritance?

• A Quick Inheritance Example

• Shared Members

• Inheritance Keywords

• Polymorphism

• A Visual Inheritance Example

• When to Use and When Not to Use Inheritance

Inheritance is here! Inheritance is here!

Are you excited? Perhaps the most requested feature in Visual Basic since version 1.0 has been inheritance. Finally, inheritance has arrived, and it is good. Most VB .NET developers will want to rush out and inherit themselves silly, but it should be noted that inheritance is very powerful, and with that power comes responsibility. Namely, you must make sure that you should be using inheritance when you actually use it.

If you haven't been on the inheritance bandwagon before, you might be unsure about just what inheritance is, or at least what it can do for you. This chapter seeks to introduce you to inheritance, .NET style.