CHAPTER 2 BUILDING C# APPLICATIONS
•
Visual Web Developer Express: A lightweight tool for building dynamic ASP.NET
web sites and WCF services
•
Visual Basic Express: A streamlined programming tool ideal for novice
programmers who want to learn how to build applications using the user-friendly
syntax of Visual Basic
•
Visual C# Express and Visual C++ Express: Targeted IDEs for students and
enthusiasts who wish to learn the fundamentals of computer science in their
syntax of choice
•
SQL Server Express: An entry-level, database management system geared toward
hobbyists, enthusiasts, and student developers
Some Unique Features of Visual C# Express
By and large, the Express products are slimmed-down versions of their Visual Studio proper
counterparts and are primarily targeted at .NET hobbyists and students. Like SharpDevelop, Visual C#
Express provides various object browsing tools, GUI designers for desktop applications, the Add
References dialog box, IntelliSense capabilities, and code expansion templates.
However, Visual C# Express offers a few (important) features currently not available in
SharpDevelop, including the following:
•
Rich support for Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) XAML applications
•
The ability to download additional free templates that support Xbox 360
development, WPF applications with Twitter integration, and much more
Because the look and feel of Visual C# Express is so similar to that of Visual Studio proper (and, to
some degree, SharpDevelop), I do not provide a walk-through of this particular IDE here. You are free to
use this IDE as you work through the book, but do be aware that Visual C# Express does not support
project templates for building ASP.NET web sites. If you wish to also build web applications, be sure to
also download Visual Web Developer, also available from http://msdn.microsoft.com/express.
Building .NET Applications Using Visual Studio
If you are a professional .NET software engineer, the chances are extremely good that your employer has
purchased Microsoft’s premier IDE, Visual Studio, for your development endeavors
(http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio). This tool is far and away the most feature-rich, enterprise-ready
IDE examined in this chapter. Of course, this power comes at a price, which will vary based on the
version of Visual Studio you purchase. As you might suspect, each version supplies a unique set of
features.
Note There are a staggering number of members within the Visual Studio family. My assumption during the
remainder of this text is that you have chosen to make use of Visual Studio Professional as your IDE of choice.
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