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Microsoft's framework for Web services and component software was introduced in 2000 and is pronounced "dot-net."

.NET supports all the web-based features and functions, including XML and the web services protocols such as SOAP and UDDI. .NET applications run on intranets as well as public Internet sites, thus .NET is an all-inclusive web-oriented software architecture for internal and external use.

The .NET Framework created by Microsoft is a software development platform focused on rapid application development (RAD), platform independence and network transparency. It has introduced a new programming language environment that compiles all source code into an intermediate language. .NET languages are compiled into the Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL), which is executed by the Common Language Runtime (CLR) software in the Windows computer. The MSIL is similar to Java's bytecode, except that whereas Java is one language, .NET supports multiple programming languages such as Microsoft's C# and VB.NET. A subset of the CLR has been standardized by ECMA so that third parties can port non-Microsoft programming languages and create runtime environments for operating systems other than Windows.

It erases the boundaries between applications and the Internet. Instead of interacting with an application or a single web site, .NET will connect the user to an array of computers and services that will exchange and combine objects and data.

.NET has brought new functionalities and tools to the application programming interface (API). These innovations allow programmers to develop applications for both Windows and the web as well as components and services (web services).

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