Q&A
Q1: | I'm confused. What's the difference between the .NET Framework and Visual Studio .NET? |
A1: | The .NET Framework provides the execution environment in which code written using Visual Studio .NET runs. Visual Studio .NET is simply the tool to write the code, whereas the .NET Framework actually provides the runtime environment for the code. You could use Notepad to write your applications, but tools such as Visual Studio .NET help you create distributed applications very quickly. |
Q2: | Should I write all my code in C# because it runs more efficiently than Visual Basic .NET or COBOL .NET? |
A2: | Each .NET compiler produces the MSIL that the common language runtime converts to machine-specific code at runtime. Although one compiler might produce more efficient MSIL, there's really no difference in the performance at runtime among C#, Visual Basic .NET, COBOL .NET, or any other .NET language. |