Chapter 1. CLRFramework Gotchas

Chapter 1. CLR/Framework Gotchas

The Common Language Runtime (CLR) provides a common platform for the execution of programs in .NET. The code written in a .NET language is first translated into the Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL). The CLR then executes the MSIL. The .NET Framework exposes a rich class library to give your applications access to its underlying capabilities.

In this chapter I discuss the features in the CLR and the Framework that can impact the behavior and performance of your application. I will also discuss items that are somewhat confusing, misleading, or prone to misuse.

Developers coming into .NET knowing other languages expect behavior similar to what they're used to. C++ and Java programmers expect C# to act almost the same, since it looks almost the same. VB6 programmers have like expectations of VB.NET.

However, when it comes to the aliases for data types, and the behavior of value types versus reference types, .NET has a few surprises. Furthermore, some features may be convenient to use, but may not provide the best performance. Suffice it to say that when dealing with a rich but new API, you need to clearly understand its behavior. Idiosyncrasies often cost you precious time.