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C and the .NET Framework The C programming language was designed for developing programs for Microsoft’s .NET Framework. This chapter will take a brief look at where .NET came from, and its basic architecture. Just to make sure you’re starting on the right foot, let me take this opportunity to remind you of what is hopefully the obvious: C sharp is pronounced see sharp. In the late 1990s, Windows programming using the Microsoft platform had fractured into a number of branches. Most programmers were using Visual Basic (VB), C, or C++. Some C and C++ programmers were using the raw Win32 API, but most were using the Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC). Others had moved to the Component Object Model (COM). All these technologies had their own problems. The raw Win32 API was not objectoriented, and using it required a lot more work than MFC. MFC was objectoriented, but was inconsistent and getting old. COM, although conceptually simple, was plex in its actual coding, and required lots of ugly, inelegant plumbing. Another shorting of all these programming technologies was that they were aimed primarily at developing code for the desktop rather than the Inter. At the time, programming for the Web was an afterthought and seemed very different from coding for the desktop. What we really needed was a new start— an integrated, objectoriented development framework that would bring consistency and elegance back to programming. To meet this need, Microsoft set out to develop a code execution environment and a code development environment that met these goals. In 2020, Microsoft released the .NET Framework, which promised to address the old problems and meet the goals for the nextgeneration system. The .NET Framework is a much more consistent and objectoriented environment than either the MFC or COM programming technologies. Some of its features include the following: ? Multiple platforms: The system runs on a broad range of puters, from servers and desktop machines to PDAs and cell phones. ? Industry standards: The system uses industry standard munication protocols, such as XML, HTTP, SOAP, and WSDL. ? Security: The system can provide a much safer execution environment, even in the presence of code obtained from suspect sources. The .NET Framework is made up of three ponents. The execution environ