Using Global Variables

In the previous lesson, we saw that you could declare a global variable outside of any procedure. When using various procedures in a code file, one of the characteristics of a global variable is that it is automatically accessible to other procedures. Still, a global variable can use access modifiers that would control its access:

• Private: A private global variable can be accessed  by any procedure of the same module. No procedure of another module, even of the same program, can access it
   
  
• Friend: A friendly global variable can be accessed by any procedure of any module of the same project. A procedure of another program cannot access that variable
   
  
• Public: A public global variable can be accessed by any procedure of its project and procedures of other projects
   
  

Based on this characteristic of the procedures of a module having access to global variables of the same program, you can declare such variables and initialize or modify them in any procedure of the same code file.

1. To use global variables, change the document as follows:
   

   Module Geometry
       Private Length As Double
       Private Width As Double
   
       Private Sub GetLength()
           Length = InputBox("Enter Rectangle Length:")
       End Sub
   
       Private Sub GetWidth()
           Width = InputBox("Enter Rectangle Width:")
       End Sub
   
       Private Function CalculatePerimeter() As Double
           CalculatePerimeter = (Length + Width) * 2
       End Function
   
       Public Function Main() As Integer
           Dim Perimeter As Double
           GetLength()
           GetWidth()
           Perimeter = CalculatePerimeter()
   
           MsgBox("=-= Square Characteristics=-=" & vbCrLf &
                  "Length: " & vbTab & Length & vbCrLf &
                  "Width:  " & vbTab & Width & vbCrLf &
                  "Perimeter: " & Perimeter)
           Return 0
       End Function
   
   End Module

2. To execute the program, on the Standard toolbar, click the Start Debugging button
3. Enter the length as 32.08 and the with as 24.84
4. Close the message box and return to your programming environment

So far, to use a value in a procedure, we had to declare it. In some cases, a procedure may need an external value in order to carry its assignment. A value that is supplied to a procedure is called an argument.

When creating a procedure that will use an external value, declare the argument that represents that value between the parentheses of the procedure. For a procedure, the syntax you use would be:

Sub ProcedureName(Argument)
      
End Sub

If you are creating a function, the syntax would be:

Function ProcedureName(Argument) As DataType
      
Function Sub

The argument must be declared as a normal variable, omitting the Dim keyword. Here is an example that creates a function that takes a string as argument:

Function CalculatePayroll(strName As String) As Double
      
Function Sub

A certain procedure can take more than one argument. In this case, in the parentheses of the procedure, separate the arguments with a comma. Here is an example of a procedure that takes two arguments:

Sub EvaluateInvoice(EmplName As String, HourlySalary As Currency)
      
End Sub

In the body of a procedure that takes one or more arguments, use the argument(s) as you see fit as if they were locally declared variables. For example, you can involve them with values inside of the procedure. You can also exclusively use the values of the arguments to perform the assignment.

To call a procedure that takes an argument, type its name and a space, followed by a value for each argument between parentheses. The value provided for an argument is also called a parameter. If there is more than one argument, separate them with a comma. Here is an example:

Module Exercise

    Private Function GetFullName$(strFirst As String,
                                  strLast As String)
        Dim FName As String

        FName = strFirst & " " & strLast
        GetFullName = FName
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FirstName, LastName As String
        Dim FullName As String
        Dim ComputerLanguage As String = "Visual Basic"

        FirstName = inputbox("Enter First Name: ")
        LastName = inputbox("Enter Last Name: ")

        FullName = GetFullName(FirstName, LastName)

        msgbox("Hello, " & FullName)
        Welcome(ComputerLanguage)
	Return 0
    End Function

    Sub Welcome(ByVal strLanguage As String)
        msgbox("Welcome to the wonderful world of " & strLanguage)
    End Sub

End Module

As mentioned previously, you can also use the Call keyword to call a procedure.

When you call a procedure that takes more than one argument, you must provide the values of the arguments in the exact order they are listed inside of the parentheses of the function. Fortunately, you don't have to. If you know the names of the arguments, you can type them in any order and provide a value for each. To do that, on the right side of each argument, type the := operator followed by the desired value for the argument. Here are examples:

Public Module Exercise

    Private Function GetFullName$(MI As String,
				  LastName As String,
				  FirstName As String)
        GetFullName = FirstName & " " & MI & " " & LastName
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FullName As String
        Dim ComputerLanguage As String = "VBasic"

        FullName = GetFullName(LastName:="Roberts", FirstName:="Alan", MI:="R.")

        MsgBox("Hello " & FullName)
        Call Welcome(ComputerLanguage)
	Return 0
    End Function

    Private Sub Welcome(ByVal strLanguage As String)
        MsgBox("Welcome to the wonderful world of " & strLanguage)
    End Sub

End Module

1. To pass arguments to a function, change the file as follows (when you type the argument, Microsoft Visual Studio, actually the Visual Basic language parser, will add the ByVal keywords; in the next sections, we will learn what that keyword means; for now, keep it but ignore it):

   Module Geometry
       Private Function GetValue(TypeOfValue As String) As Double
           Dim Value As Double
   
           Value = InputBox("Enter the " & TypeOfValue & ":")
           Return Value
       End Function
   
       Private Function CalculatePerimeter(ByVal Length As Double,
                                           ByVal Width As Double) As Double
           CalculatePerimeter = (Length + Width) * 2
       End Function
   
       Public Function Main() As Integer
           Dim L As Double, W As Double
           Dim Perimeter As Double
   
           L = GetValue("Length")
           W = GetValue("Width")
           Perimeter = CalculatePerimeter(L, W)
   
           MsgBox("=-= Square Characteristics=-=" & vbCrLf &
                  "Length: " & L & vbCrLf &
                  "Width: " & W & vbCrLf &
                  "Perimeter: " & Perimeter)
           Return 0
       End Function
   
   End Module

2. To execute the program, on the main menu, click Debug -> Start Debugging
3. Enter the length as 44.14 and the with as 30.76
4. Close the message box and return to your programming environment

When calling a procedure that takes an argument, we were supplying a value for that argument. When this is done, the procedure that is called makes a copy of the value of the argument and makes that copy available to the calling procedure. That way, the argument itself is not accessed. This is referred to as passing an argument by value. This can be reinforced by typing the ByVal keyword on the left side of the argument. Here is an example:

Private Sub Welcome(ByVal strLanguage As String)
    MsgBox("Welcome to the wonderful world of " & strLanguage)
End Sub

If you create a procedure that takes an argument by value and you have used the ByVal keyword on the argument, when calling the procedure, you don't need to use the ByVal keyword; just the name of the argument is enough, as done in the examples on arguments so far. Here is an example:

Public Module Exercise

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim ComputerLanguage As String = "Visual Basic"

        Welcome(ComputerLanguage)
	Return 0
    End Function

    Private Sub Welcome(ByVal strLanguage As String)
        MsgBox("Welcome to the wonderful world of " & strLanguage)
    End Sub

End Module

This would produce:

An alternative to passing an argument as done so far is to pass the address of the argument to the procedure. When this is done, the procedure doesn't receive a simple copy of the value of the argument: the argument is accessed by its address. That is, at its memory address. With this technique, any action carried on the argument will be kept. If the value of the argument is modified, the argument would now have the new value, dismissing or losing the original value it had. This technique is referred to as passing an argument by reference. Consider the following program:

Public Module Exercise

    Private Function Addition#(ByVal Value1 As Double, ByVal Value2 As Double)
        Value1 = InputBox("Enter First Number:  ")
        Value2 = InputBox("Enter Second Number: ")

        Addition = Value1 + Value2
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim Result As String
        Dim Number1, Number2 As Double

        Result = Addition(Number1, Number2)
        MsgBox(Number1 & " + " & Number2 & " = " & Result)
	Return 0
    End Function

End Module

Here is an example of running the program:

Notice that, although the values of the arguments were changed in the Addition() procedure, at the end of the procedure, they lose the value they got in the function. If you want a procedure to change the value of an argument, you can pass the argument by reference.

To pass an argument by reference, on its left, type the ByRef keyword. This is done only when defining the procedure. When the procedure finishes with the argument, the argument would keep whatever modification was made on its value. Now consider the same program as above but with arguments passed by reference:

Public Module Exercise

    Private Function Addition#(ByRef Value1 As Double, ByRef Value2 As Double)
        Value1 = InputBox("Enter First Number:  ")
        Value2 = InputBox("Enter Second Number: ")

        Addition = Value1 + Value2
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim Result As String
        Dim Number1, Number2 As Double

        Result = Addition(Number1, Number2)
        MsgBox(Number1 & " + " & Number2 & " = " & Result)
	Return 0
    End Function

End Module

Here is an example of running the program:

Using this technique, you can pass as many arguments by reference and as many arguments by value as you want. As you may guess already, this technique is also used to make a procedure return a value, which a regular procedure cannot do. Furthermore, passing arguments by reference allows a procedure to return as many values as possible while a regular function can return only one value.

1. To pass an argument by reference, change the file as follows:
   

   Module Geometry
       Private Sub GetValues(ByRef Length As Double, ByRef Width As Double)
           Length = InputBox("Enter the length:")
           Width = InputBox("Enter the width:")
       End Sub
   
       Private Function CalculatePerimeter(ByVal Length As Double,
                                           ByVal Width As Double) As Double
           CalculatePerimeter = (Length + Width) * 2
       End Function
   
       Private Function CalculateArea(ByVal Length As Double, _
                                      ByVal Width As Double) As Double
           CalculateArea = Length * Width
       End Function
   
       Private Sub ShowCharacteristics(ByVal Length As Double,
                                       ByVal Width As Double)
           Dim Result As String
   
           Result = "=-= Rectangle Characteristics =-=" & vbCrLf &
                          "Length: " & vbTab & vbTab & CStr(Length) & vbCrLf &
                          "Width: " & vbTab & vbTab & CStr(Width) & vbCrLf &
                          "Perimeter: " & vbTab &
                          CalculatePerimeter(Length, Width) & vbCrLf &
                          "Area: " & vbTab & vbTab &
      CalculateArea(Length, Width)
           MsgBox(Result)
       End Sub
   
       Public Function Main() As Integer
           Dim L As Double, W As Double
   
           GetValues(L, W)
           ShowCharacteristics(L, W)
   
           Return 0
       End Function
   
   End Module

2. To execute the program, on the Standard toolbar, click the Start Debugging button
3. Enter the length as 24.55 and the width as 22.85
    
   
4. Close the message box and return to your programming environment

If you create a procedure that takes one or more arguments, whenever you call that procedure, you must provide a value for the argument(s). Otherwise,, you would receive an error. If such an argument is passed with the same value over and over again, you may be tempted to remove the argument altogether. In some cases, although a certain argument is passed with the same value most of the time, you still have situations in which you want the user to decide whether to pass a value or not for the argument, you can declare the value optional. In other words, you can create the argument with a default value so that the user can call the procedure without passing a value for the argument, thus passing a value only when necessary. Such an argument is called default or optional.

Imagine you write a procedure that will be used to calculate the final price of an item after discount. The procedure would need the discount rate in order to perform the calculation. Such a procedure could look like this:

Function CalculateNetPrice#(ByVal DiscountRate As Double)
    Dim OrigPrice#

    OrigPrice = InputBox("Please enter the original price:")

    Return OrigPrice - (OrigPrice * DiscountRate / 100)
End Function

Since this procedure expects an argument, if you do not supply it, the following program would not compile:

Public Module Exercise

    Function CalculateNetPrice#(ByVal DiscountRate As Double)
        Dim OrigPrice#

        OrigPrice = InputBox("Please enter the original price:")

        Return OrigPrice - (OrigPrice * DiscountRate / 100)
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FinalPrice#
        Dim Discount# = 15 ' That is 25% = 25

        FinalPrice = CalculateNetPrice(Discount)

        MsgBox("Final Price = " & FinalPrice)
        Return 0
    End Function

End Module

Here is an example of running the program:

Most of the time, a procedure such as ours would use the same discount rate over and over again. Therefore, instead of supplying an argument all the time, you can define an argument whose value would be used whenever the function is not provided with the argument.

To specify that an argument is optional, when creating its procedure, type the Optional keyword to the left of the argument's name and assign it the default value. Here is an example:

Public Module Exercise

    Function CalculateNetPrice#(Optional ByVal DiscountRate As Double = 20)
        Dim OrigPrice#

        OrigPrice = InputBox("Please enter the original price:")

        Return OrigPrice - (OrigPrice * DiscountRate / 100)
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FinalPrice#
        Dim Discount# = 15 ' That is 25% = 25

        FinalPrice = CalculateNetPrice()

        MsgBox("Final Price = " & FinalPrice)
        Return 0
    End Function

End Module

Here is an example of running the program:

If a procedure takes more than one argument, you can provide a default argument for each and select which ones would have default values. If you want all arguments to have default values, when defining the procedure , provide the Optional keyword for each and assign it the desired default value. Here is an example:

Public Module Exercise

    Function CalculateNetPrice#(Optional ByVal Tax As Double = 5.75,
                                Optional ByVal Discount As Double = 25,
                                Optional ByVal OrigPrice As Double = 245.55)
        Dim DiscountValue As Double = OrigPrice * Discount / 100
        Dim TaxValue As Double = Tax / 100
        Dim NetPrice As Double = OrigPrice - DiscountValue + TaxValue
        Dim Result As String

        Result = "Original Price: " & vbTab & CStr(OrigPrice) & vbCrLf &
                 "Discount Rate: " & vbTab & CStr(Discount) & "%" & vbCrLf &
                 "Tax Amount: " & vbTab & CStr(Tax)
        MsgBox(Result)

        Return NetPrice
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FinalPrice As Double

        FinalPrice = CalculateNetPrice()
        MsgBox("Final Price: " & CStr(FinalPrice))
        Return 0
    End Function

End Module

This would produce:

If a procedure takes more than one argument as above, remember that some arguments can be specified as optional. In this case, when calling the procedure, any argument that does not have a default value must be passed with a value. When creating a procedure that takes more than one argument, the argument(s) that has(have) default value(s) must be the last in the procedure. This means that:

• If a procedure takes two arguments and one argument has a default value, this optional argument must be the second
• If a procedure is taking three or more arguments and two or more arguments have default values, these optional arguments must by placed to the right of the non-optional argument(s).

Because of this, when calling any procedure in the Visual Basic language, you must know what, if any, argument is optional and which one is not.

If a procedure takes two arguments and one argument has a default value, when calling this procedure, you can pass only one value. In this case, the passed value would be applied on the first argument. If a procedure takes more than two arguments and two or more arguments have a default value, when calling this procedure, you can provide only the value(s) of the argument that is (are) not optional. If you want to provide the value of one of the arguments but that argument is not the first optional, you can leave empty the position(s) of the other argument(s) but remember to type a comma to indicate that the position is that of an argument that has a default value. Here is an example:

Public Module Exercise

    Function CalculateNetPrice(ByVal AcquiredPrice As Double,
                               ByVal MarkedPrice As Double,
                               Optional ByVal TaxRate As Double = 5.75,
                               Optional ByVal DiscountRate As Double = 25) As Double
        Dim DiscountAmount As Double = MarkedPrice * DiscountRate / 100
        Dim TaxAmount As Double = MarkedPrice * TaxRate / 100
        Dim NetPrice As Double = MarkedPrice - DiscountAmount + TaxAmount
        Dim Result As String

        Result = "Price Acquired: " & vbTab & CStr(AcquiredPrice) & vbCrLf &
                 "Marked Price: " & vbTab & CStr(MarkedPrice) & vbCrLf &
                 "Discount Rate: " & vbTab & CStr(DiscountRate) & "%" & vbCrLf &
                 "Discount Amt: " & vbTab & CStr(DiscountAmount) & vbCrLf &
                 "Tax Rate: " & vbTab & CStr(TaxRate) & "%" & vbCrLf &
                 "Tax Amount: " & vbTab & CStr(TaxAmount)
        MsgBox(Result)

        Return NetPrice
    End Function

    Public Function Main() As Integer
        Dim FinalPrice As Double

        FinalPrice = CalculateNetPrice(225.55, 150.55, , 40)
        MsgBox("Final Price: " & CStr(FinalPrice))
        Return 0
    End Function

End Module

This would produce:

A program involves a great deal of names that represent variables and procedures of various kinds. The compiler does not allow two variables to have the same name in the same procedure (or in the same scope). Although two procedures should have unique names in the same program, you are allowed to use the same name for different procedures of the same program following certain rules.

The ability to have various procedures with the same name in the same program is referred to as overloading. The most important rule about procedure overloading is to make sure that each one of these procedures has a different number or different type(s) of arguments.

The moment of inertia is the ability of a beam to resist bending. It is calculated with regard to the cross section of the beam. Because it depends on the type of section of the beam, its calculation also depends on the type of section of the beam. In this exercise, we will review different formulas used to calculate the moment of inertia. Since this exercise is for demonstration purposes, you do not need to be a Science Engineering major to understand it.

1. To start a new project, on the main menu, click File -> New Project...
2. In the middle list, click Console Application
3. Change the Name to MomentOfInertia1
4. Click OK
5. In the Solution Explorer, right-click Module1.vb and click Rename
6. Type MomentOfInertia.vb and press Enter
7. To calculate the moment of inertia of a rectangle, change the file as follows:
    

   Module MomentOfInertia
   
       ' Moment of Inertia
       ' Rectangle
       Private Function MomentOfInertia(ByVal b As Double,
                                        ByVal h As Double) As Double
           Return b * h * h * h / 3
       End Function
   
       Public Sub Main()
           Dim Base As Double, Height As Double
   
           Base = InputBox("Enter the base of the Rectangle")
           Height = InputBox("Enter the height of the Rectangle")
   
           MsgBox("Moment of inertia with regard to the X axis" & vbCrLf &
                  "I = " & CStr(MomentOfInertia(Base, Height)) & "mm")
       End Sub
   
   End Module

8. To execute the program, on the main menu, click Debug -> Start Debugging
9. Enter the base as 3.25
    
   
10. Enter the height as 2.85
     
    
     
    
11. Close the DOS window and return to your programming environment
12. Here are the formulas to calculate the moment of inertia for a semi-circle:
     

    A circle, and thus a semi-circle, requires only a radius. Since the other version of the MomentOfInertia() function requires two arguments, we can overload it by providing only one argument, the radius.

    To calculate the moment of inertia of a rectangle, change the file as follows: 

    Module MomentOfInertia ' Moment of Inertia ' Rectangle Private Function MomentOfInertia(ByVal b As Double, ByVal h As Double) As Double Return b * h * h * h / 3 End Function ' Semi-Circle Function MomentOfInertia(ByVal R As Double) As Double Const PI As Double = 3.14159 Return R * R * R * R * PI / 8 End Function Public Sub Main() ' Dim Base As Double, Height As Double Dim Radius As Double ' Base = InputBox("Enter the base of the Rectangle:") ' Height = InputBox("Enter the height of the Rectangle") ' MsgBox("Moment of inertia with regard to the X axis" & vbCrLf & _ ' "I = " & CStr(MomentOfInertia(Base, Height)) & "mm") Radius = InputBox("Enter the radius of the semi-circle:") MsgBox("Moment of inertia of a semi-circle with " & "regard to the X axis:" & vbCrLf & "I = " & CStr(MomentOfInertia(Radius)) & "mm") End Sub End Module

13. To execute the program, on the Standard toolbar, click the Start Debugging button
14. Enter the radius as 6.35
     
    
     
    
15. Close the DOS window and return to your programming environment
16. On the main menu, click File -> Close Solution (Microsoft Visual Studio) or File -> Close Project (Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Express)
17. When asked whether you want to save, click Discard