How do I view this VB source code? (Stupid computer question)

[samoth]

Okay, I tried to download this game and it's source code, but I can't seem to read the main program files. Some files open, but the main .exe one just... um, executes. How do I just run it's source code? Viewing it has it coming up as gibberish.

The page recommended "3)Scan the source code with Minnow's Project Scanner", so I downloaded that, too. But I have no idea how the damn thing works... there's no executable files in it.

This is just a small RPG game written in VB. I'm probably doing something really obvious or dumb, but this totally isn't my forte. I don't need to buy some stupid software in order to read programming languages, do I?

 

[javaguru]

You can't decompile a .exe but if you have the source code it should open without problem.
:edit:
The source files are compiled to a .exe and the source files are the actual code used to create the .exe.

 

[jnuts]

only VB4 or lower can be decompiled... or something like that. Unless it's really old software, you won't be able to unroll the code.

 

[samoth]

Yeah, but the link says, "Download Code". There's a huge .frx file that opens to gibberish... I'm assuming that's the main part of the source? There's a .frm file with the same prefix name, but it doesn't seem long enough to be the majority of the source. Or maybe I'm wrong. I'm obviously quite clueless, lol.

 

[javaguru]

The .frm is a form. It's typically used as a user interface and it can/does hold code but I would expect a program to have modules, especially a game. However, it could hold the entire code for the game, hypothetically. Do you have the appropriate version of VB installed on your system?

 

[samoth]

Do you have the appropriate version of VB installed on your system?

I have to have VB installed? I figured it was something like HTML or Java, where you could simply see the source by clicking "view source".

The downloaded files contain some .ini files, the .exe file which plays the game, some .map files, quite a few .bas files, a .vbp file, the the .frm and .frx files, the latter of which is the largest file next to the .exe file.

Man, I suck at this, lol.

 

[javaguru]

Yeah, you need VB installed on your system.

 

[jerkbox]

bas files will have the code, but i think you will need something that can edit visual basic files

 

[jnuts]

I have to have VB installed?

TITCR

 

[gjohnson5]

This is why I'm a unix Administrator
Perl , python , Php , expect , any shell language , modula II only requires a text editor