COM in C++ ... shudder. That interface was very nicely hidden in VB6. It could be done in C++ but getting the typing and interface correct was awful. That switching to vb6 to make com components was easier was my exp as well. That VARIANT struct they created was a nightmare to do correctly. Which you would use a lot if you thunked between VB6 and C++.

In case you miss doing it, the new C++/WinRT is hardly any better.

Similarly I reached for VB6 any time I needed to consume a COM component. Stunningly easy compared to the absolute nightmare of consuming COM in C++. There really was no better way to do it than VB6.

Python with pywin32 [1] was also, and still is, a pretty good way to work with COM APIs. There is a book on it [2] from twenty years ago that is still surprisingly applicable.

[1] https://github.com/mhammond/pywin32/

[2] https://www.amazon.com/Python-Programming-Win32-Windows-Prog...