167_C#NET

30 Chapter 1 • Introducing the Microsoft .NET Platform

Frequently Asked Questions

The following Frequently Asked Questions, answered by the authors of this book, are designed to both measure your understanding of the concepts presented in this chapter and to assist you with real-life implementation of these concepts. To have your questions about this chapter answered by the author, browse to www.syngress.com/solutions and click on the “Ask the Author” form.

Q: If any .NET language has access to everything in the Base Class Library why is there so much talk about C#?

A: Although in theory all .NET languages have equal access to the BCL, in

reality it was left up to the language teams to determine what level of support they wanted to offer, at least beyond the minimums needed for basic compliance. In our opinion, C#, because it was developed as a new language specifically for the .NET platform, has the best support for .NET applications.

Q: I’m a C/C++ developer.Why on earth would I give up all the power and control I have now? And what about speed—native code is always better.

A: The .NET platform is all about a new way of developing applications. Many of the enhancements are there for increased productivity. For example, today a C++ application for the desktop and PocketPC are vastly different pieces of code. In the .NET world, they can be the same. Additionally, there are a lot of prebuilt classes available in the BCL that have a lot to offer any developer. As to the native code issue, that is debatable. In a perfect model, you might be right, but for the majority of applications developed today, it’s just not a significant factor. The improvements in versioning support and automatic memory management alone make a good argument for the managed environment.

Q: Is everything in the Win32 API exposed through the BCL?

A: Not through the BCL, but you can make API calls directly through most languages.

Q: Why not just switch to Java?

A: I’m going to preface this answer by saying that I like Java, I’ve written several successful commercial projects in Java, and it met the requirements of those projects well. However, Java as a platform requires the developer to buy into

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30 Chapter 1 • Introducing the Microsoft .NET Platform

		Frequently Asked Questions The following Frequently Asked Questions, answered by the authors of this book, are designed to both measure your understanding of the concepts presented in this chapter and to assist you with real-life implementation of these concepts. To have your questions about this chapter answered by the author, browse to www.syngress.com/solutions and click on the “Ask the Author” form. Q: If any .NET language has access to everything in the Base Class Library why is there so much talk about C#? A: Although in theory all .NET languages have equal access to the BCL, in reality it was left up to the language teams to determine what level of support they wanted to offer, at least beyond the minimums needed for basic compliance. In our opinion, C#, because it was developed as a new language specifically for the .NET platform, has the best support for .NET applications. Q: I’m a C/C++ developer.Why on earth would I give up all the power and control I have now? And what about speed—native code is always better. A: The .NET platform is all about a new way of developing applications. Many of the enhancements are there for increased productivity. For example, today a C++ application for the desktop and PocketPC are vastly different pieces of code. In the .NET world, they can be the same. Additionally, there are a lot of prebuilt classes available in the BCL that have a lot to offer any developer. As to the native code issue, that is debatable. In a perfect model, you might be right, but for the majority of applications developed today, it’s just not a significant factor. The improvements in versioning support and automatic memory management alone make a good argument for the managed environment. Q: Is everything in the Win32 API exposed through the BCL? A: Not through the BCL, but you can make API calls directly through most languages. Q: Why not just switch to Java? A: I’m going to preface this answer by saying that I like Java, I’ve written several successful commercial projects in Java, and it met the requirements of those projects well. However, Java as a platform requires the developer to buy into

	www.syngress.com