Understanding the .NET Framework (Programmer to Programmer)

With the .NET Framework, Microsoft have significantly changed the nature of developing applications for Windows and the Web. .NET represents a step-change for developer productivity and efficiency as well as introducing increased functionality and scalability to their applications. This books provides a real-world overview of the changes that Microsoft have implemented, an analysis of the new functions and capabilities of .NET, and an insight into the motivations and reasoning that has gone into this revolutionary development platform.

This book covers:

.NET in Perspective
Developing applications for .NET
Rich-Client Development in .NET
Web Development in .NET
The .NET Data Model
Enterprise Development in .NET
Web Services in .NET
Next Steps in .NET Understanding

Suitable for most any .NET developer or IT professional who works with Windows, Understanding the .NET Framework largely cuts through the marketing hype and confusion to explain what Microsoft's new .NET platform really is and what it means for the future of software development.

While many titles on .NET succumb to cheerleading for Microsoft's newest platform, this book largely avoids this, instead presenting a worthwhile perspective on what .NET means for IT professionals, including a notably fair-minded comparison with Java, arguably the established player in enterprise computing today.

The book examines essential features of .NET (including its built-in run-time virtual machine, a rich array of standard APIs, and garbage collection). Sample code drawn from C# is supplemented with Visual Basic .NET (and several other languages) to give a broad comparison of the support for multilanguage programming available on this platform.

A real strength of this text is the overview of what .NET means for both "traditional" applications and Web development. (The team of authors argue that "thick clients" are not at all dead, and they explore Windows Forms for building standalone applications.) There's plenty of coverage of Web-based applications, too, including a solid tour of ASP.NET and its advantages over the earlier ASP standard for performance and code maintainability. Sections on the new ADO.NET explore new ways to access data beyond relational databases, including built-in XML support.

As it winds down, this text zeros in on Web services from top to bottom (including a solid explanation of SOAP and other relevant standards), plus how Web services are implemented in .NET. Better yet, the authors offer their perspective on the future of software development based on the Web service model.

Overall, Understanding the .NET Framework can be read profitably by both hands-on developers and IT managers (and anyone else in the enterprise who must come to grips with .NET). This often tough-minded and smart look offers plenty of nuts-and-bolts information on the .NET platform, as well as a wider perspective on the future of software built with Microsoft's latest technology. --Richard Dragan