Once the connection is opened, we can then retrieve a recordset from it. We use the Open method of a recordset object to open a recordset. Using the Open method establishes the physical connection to a data source and opens a recordset that represents records from a base table or the results of a query. Once we have the recordset, we can access the Fields Collection, just as if we're operating with the DAO recordset. Let's see how these pieces fit together.
The Connection and Recordset objects are the key components we will use for manipulating data. A VB6.0 application can use the connection object to establish connections with the database server. The Command object is used to issue commands, such as queries, updates, and so on to the database. And we use the Recordset object to view and manipulate the returned data, as we'll do when we update a listbox in a simple program we will write later.
The language used with the command object is dependent on the underlying provider for the database. But for our purposes, we will be using relational databases where the command language is generally SQL. You might want to refer back to Chapter 7 for an SQL refresher.