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# Throwback Thursday: October 2, 2025
- URL: https://nolongerset.com/throwback-thursday-2025-10-02/
- Published: 2025-10-03T01:07:31.000Z
- Updated: 2026-05-08T12:47:06.000Z
- Description: Today's edition of Throwback Thursday is all about subtlety. The subtle differences between + and &; between . and !; between IsNull() and Is Null; and between IIf and IIf.
- Author: Mike Wolfe
- Tags: Throwback Thursday, #Import 2026-05-20 02:59

*With over a million words scattered across more than 1,500 articles on this blog, you've probably missed a few things here.*

*That’s why each week in "Throwback Thursday," we’ll revisit some standout posts. Expect a blend of my personal favorites, insightful articles from other great minds, and a touch of coding humor to keep things light.*

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## Highlights from NoLongerSet.com

[Concatenating Strings in VBA: Plus (+) vs. Ampersand (&)Both the ampersand and the plus sign operators can be used to join strings in VBA. Clever developers can use this to their advantage.![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/09/NLS_Icon_square.png)No Longer SetMike Wolfe![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/2024/01/Last-First-Trick.jpg)](https://nolongerset.com/plus-vs-ampersand/)

[Bang! Dot. DefaultThree ways to reference form and report controls. Which way is best?![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/09/NLS_Icon_square.png)No Longer SetMike Wolfe![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/2020/12/graffiti-366829_1920.jpg)](https://nolongerset.com/bang-dot-default/)

[T-SQL ISNULL() vs. VBA IsNull() vs. Jet IS NULL vs. Access VBA Nz()How do I check thee for NULL? Let me count the ways.![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/09/NLS_Icon_square.png)No Longer SetMike Wolfe![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/2022/04/kid-517839_1920.jpg)](https://nolongerset.com/null-handling-in-ms-access/)

[The IIf() Function vs. The IIf() StatementThey may look identical, but there is a very important difference in how they get evaluated.![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/09/NLS_Icon_square.png)No Longer SetMike Wolfe![](https://nolongerset.com/content/images/2022/01/work-of-art-1798585_1920.jpg)](https://nolongerset.com/iif-function-vs-statement/)

## Wisdom from Around the Web

[The Bang! (Exclamation Operator) in VBAOne of the most peculiar aspects of Visual Basic for Applications in the ! operator, called the “bang”. It is particularly common in code for Microsoft Access, where you may see things like this: \[…![](https://t1.gstatic.com/faviconV2?client=SOCIAL&type=FAVICON&fallback_opts=TYPE,SIZE,URL&url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130725045624/http://bytecomb.com/the-bang-exclamation-operator-in-vba/&size=128)Byte Comb![](https://web.archive.org/web/20130725045624im_/http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/ef61948fe5c56d0849b2ecc830bc181c?s=50&d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D50&r=G)](https://web.archive.org/web/20130725045624/http://bytecomb.com/the-bang-exclamation-operator-in-vba/)

[Microsoft Access tips: Optimizing queriesHow to get JET (the database engine in Microsoft Access) to execute queries quickly![](http://allenbrowne.com/favicon.ico)![](http://allenbrowne.com/graphics/cross.png)](http://allenbrowne.com/QueryPerfIssue.html)

## Developer Humor

### Average Familiarity

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/eb/d7/ebd732c1-5f03-4f07-b386-5d08557e15c9/content/images/2025/10/image-4.png)](https://xkcd.com/2501/)

How could anyone consider themselves a well-rounded adult without a basic understanding of silicate geochemistry? Silicates are everywhere! It's hard to throw a rock without throwing one!

*Cover image generated by Ideogram*