This book is divided into three parts. Part I covers the C# language fundamentals; Part II covers application development using C#, and Part III provides three appendices that cover the list of C# keywords, the .NET class libraries, and document generation using the Sandcastle utility.
□ Chapter 1 introduces the .NET Framework. It examines the key components in the .NET Framework as well as the role played by each of the components. In addition, it discusses the relationships between the various versions of the framework, from version 1.0 to the latest 3.5.
□ Chapter 2 covers the use of Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 as the tool for C# development. Visual Studio 2008 is an extremely versatile and powerful environment for developing .NET applications. This chapter explores some of the common features that you will likely use in the process of your development work.
□ Chapter 3 introduces the syntax of the C# language and covers all the important topics: C# keywords, variables, constants, comments, XML documentation, data types, flow control, loops, operators, and preprocessor directives.
□ Chapter 4 tackles one of the most important topics in C# programming — classes and objects. Classes are essentially templates in from which you create objects. In C# .NET programming, everything you deal with involves classes and objects. This chapter provides a firm foundation in the use and creation of classes for code reuse.
□ Chapter 5 explains how interfaces can be used to define the contract for a class. It also discusses difference between an interface and an abstract class.
□ Chapter 6 looks at how inheritance facilitates code reuse, enabling you to extend the functionality of code that you have already written. This book explains the different types of inheritance and how to define overloaded methods and operators.
□ Chapter 7 introduces the concept of delegates and events used in object oriented programming, and discusses what a delegate is and how delegates are used to implement events.
□ Chapter 8 examines strings handling in C# and the various ways to manipulate them. For more complex strings pattern matching, you can use regular expressions. This chapter also covers the various ways to format your strings data.
□ Chapter 9 looks into the basics of generics and how you can use them to enhance efficiency and type safety in your applications. Generics enable developers to define type-safe data structures without binding to specific fixed data types at design time.
□ Chapter 10 explains how to write multithreaded applications using the Thread class in the .NET Framework. It also shows you how to create and synchronize threads as well as how to write thread-safe Windows applications.
□ Chapter 11 delves into the concepts of files and streams in .NET. With streams, you can perform a wide range of tasks, including compressing and decompressing data, serializing and deserializing data, and encrypting and decrypting data. This chapter covers the various ways to manipulate files and the various stream objects in .NET.
□ Chapter 12 deals with exception handling. An exception is a situation that occurs when your program encounters an error that it is not expecting during runtime. Understanding how to handle exceptions makes your program more robust and resilient.
□ Chapter 13 examines arrays and collections. It discusses the many collection classes that you can use to represent groups of data in .NET.
□ Chapter 14 introduces a new feature in .NET 3.5: Language Integrated Query (LINQ). It covers all the important implementations of LINQ — LINQ to Objects, LINQ to XML, LINQ to Dataset, and LINQ to SQL.
□ Chapter 15 explores the concept of assemblies. In .NET, the basic unit deployable is called an assembly. Assemblies play an important part of the development process where understanding how they work is useful in helping you develop scalable and efficient .NET applications.
□ Chapter 16 demonstrates how you can build a Windows application using the C# language. The sample application illustrates how to perform FTP using the classes available in the .NET Framework. You will also see how to perform printing in a.NET application and how to deploy Windows applications using the ClickOnce technology.
□ Chapter 17 takes you through building an ASP.NET web application in C#. You perform data binding using the new LinqDataSource control and see how to AJAX-enable your web pages.
□ Chapter 18 illustrates Windows Mobile development using the .NET Compact Framework, a subset of the .NET Framework. It examines the basics of the Windows Mobile development and builds a sample RSS reader application. Finally, it shows you how to create a professional setup package for your application so that it can be distributed to your readers for installation.
□ Chapter 19 helps you get started with Silverlight and provides an opportunity for you to get a feel for Silverlight development works. It covers Silverlight 1.0 and 2, and contains several examples showing the capabilities of Silverlight, including animation, media, and .NET integration.
□ Chapter 20 provides a quick introduction to the new Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) technology and shows how it addresses some of the limitations of today's web services technology. While most books and conferences focus heavily on the theory behind WCF, this chapter shows you how to build WCF services and then explains the theory behind them. It ends with an example that creates a ticketing application, allowing multiple clients to obtain updated seat information in real time.
□ Appendix A lists the various keywords in C# that are predefined and have special meanings to the compiler.
□ Appendix B summarizes the features of the various versions of the .NET Framework and explains how to use the Object Browser feature in Visual Studio 2008 to browse the available namespaces and classes in the .NET Framework.
□ Appendix C shows you how to generate MSDN-style documentation for your project using Visual Studio 2008 and a third-party documentation generation tool — Sandcastle.
For all the examples demonstrated in this book, I used Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008. However, Microsoft has released a plethora of editions of Visual Studio designed for the different types of C# developers:
□ Visual Web Developer 2008 Express Edition
□ Visual C# 2008 Express Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Standard Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Team System 2008 Architecture Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Team System 2008 Database Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Team System 2008 Development Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Team System 2008 Test Edition
□ Visual Studio 2008 Team System 2008 Team Suite
For a detailed discussion of the features available in each edition, check out the following URL: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc149003.aspx.
Express editions are designed for hobbyists and are available for download at no charge. This is a great way to get started with Visual Studio 2008 and is ideal for students and beginning programmers. However, if you are a professional developer, you should purchase either the Standard or Professional Edition. If you are developing Windows Mobile applications, you need the Professional Edition (or higher). If you are working in a large development environment and need to develop collaboratively with other developers on large projects, check out the Team System editions.
If you are not ready to purchase Visual Studio 2008, you can always download a 90-day trial edition of Visual Studio 2008 Professional from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx.
