Introduction

This part of the book introduces you to the .NET Framework, which is Microsoft’s distributed run-time environment for creating, deploying, and using applications over the Internet. On the DVD that comes with this book, you will find a free 30-day trial version of the .NET framework and Visual Studio .NET, which is Microsoft’s integrated development environment (IDE) for creating, debugging, and deploying .NET applications and Web sites.

Chapter 21 presents the concepts and defines the terms that will help you understand how the .NET architecture adds to Windows a new operating system layer called the Common Language Runtime (CLT). To enable you to develop applications, ASP.NET pages, and Web Services that run in the CLT, Chapter 22 has you install Visual Studio .NET.

To introduce you to the new environment and also test that you have installed it properly, Chapter 23 has you create an ASP.NET application called the Clock Project. True to its name, the Clock Project serves up a screen telling what time it is. While the example is brief, its purpose is to familiarize you with the new Visual Studio development environment, which you will use to create a more advanced project in the next part of the book.