INFO: Differences Between Exclamation Mark (!) & Dot (.) Syntax

MORE INFORMATION

To obtain direct access to the Ctrl1 property on the form, type this:

   Form1.Ctrl1.Text = "Hello"
				

This line:

   Form1!Ctrl1.Text = "Hello"
				

translates into this code:

   Form1.Controls.Item("Ctrl1").Text = "Hello"
				

Visual Basic for Applications has a specific optimization for Forms that allows the compiler to translate this syntax:

   Form1!Ctrl1.Text = "Hello"
				

into this code:

   Form1.Ctrl1.Text = "Hello"
				

Therefore the performance of the two statements should be identical. Note that this optimization is specific to controls on Visual Basic version 4.0 forms. It will not work with any other collection.

WARNING: This optimization may not occur in future versions of Visual Basic forms.

Steps to Reproduce Behavior in Visual Basic 4.0

1. Create a new project, and add a CommandButton to Form1.
2. Double-click Form1 to edit the Form_Load event, and type:

         Form1!Command1.Caption = "Test"
         Form1.Command1.Caption = "It Works!"
   						

3. Run the project, and notice how both methods work.