Windows programming is tricky stuff. Don't let anyone fool you. But microsoft has blessed us with their IDE called Developer's Studio. It will handle all the compiling and linking, provides help, fills in tons of code for you, and gives you that 'visual' designing environment to make cute little dialogs. There a few things you must learn to use to get anywhere. First and most importantly, USE THE ONLINE HELP. There are so many windows functions, you will find yourself in the help 50% of the time or more for the first few months. If you have visual c 6.0 you need the MSDN for help. Get it. If you have 4.2 or 5.0 you can use the built in help. Next, the single most important key combination is Ctrl-W. This brings up what is called the 'Class Wizard'. This guy will insert a bunch of code in your project for you. It handles all the code for connecting functions up to the messages windows posts. You will also find yourself in the resource view a bit. It is used to ...