Course Reference Material

C# Programming for the Microsoft .NET Platform Part 1: Introduction to C#

NETg course 72711

Copyright 2002 National Education Training Group, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, broadcasting, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from National Education Training Group, Inc. Skill Builder is a registered trademark of National Education Training Group, Inc. All other trademarks referenced are the trademark, service mark, or registered trademark of their respective holders. National Education Training Group, Inc. is not affiliated with any company or any other product or vendor mentioned in this course and its accompanying materials. The software and technology used to implement this course contain trade secrets that NETg considers to be confidential and proprietary information, and your right to use this material is subject to the restrictions in the license agreement under which you obtained it.

Contents
Objectives Error: Reference source not found
Overview of C#......................................................................Error: Reference source not found Introduction to the .NET Platform...........................Error: Reference source not found .NET Framework Components................................Error: Reference source not found Structure of a C# Program.......................................Error: Reference source not found Basic Input/Output Operations.................................Error: Reference source not found Best Practices for C#................................................Error: Reference source not found Compiling and Debugging.......................................Error: Reference source not found Value-Type Variables.............................................................Error: Reference source not found CTS..........................................................................Error: Reference source not found Naming Variables....................................................Error: Reference source not found Using Built-In Data Types.......................................Error: Reference source not found Creating User-Defined Data Types..........................Error: Reference source not found Converting Data Types............................................Error: Reference source not found

Procedures

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Overview of C#......................................................................Error: Reference source not found Compiling and Debugging.......................................Error: Reference source not found

Additional Information

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Overview of C#......................................................................Error: Reference source not found Creating a basic executable C# class with the Main() method.Error: Reference source not found Using a fully qualified class name when accessing the Console class Error: Reference source not found Using the Console.WriteLine()and Console.ReadLine() methods......Error: Reference source not found Using the Console.Write() method..........................Error: Reference source not found Using try and catch statements to deal with thrown Exception types..Error: Reference source not found Using if and else statements for conditional output. Error: Reference source not found Using Object.getType() method and the BaseType property to determine an instance type and its parent....................................................Error: Reference source not found Using C# built-in types and the their .NET Framework counterparts. Error: Reference source not found Creating a basic struct type: Implicit and explicit struct initialization Error: Reference source not found Local variable declaration and initialization............Error: Reference source not found Using compound variable assignment and increment operators..........Error: Reference source not found Manipulating variables using increment and decrement operators and comparing with assignment addition and assignment subtraction.......Error: Reference source not found

Creating and accessing an enumeration type...........Error: Reference source not found Explicit type conversion...........................................Error: Reference source not found

Glossary

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Alphabetical List of Terms.....................................................Error: Reference source not found

Objectives

Total number of objectives = 32 Note: (ULT) is the unit, lesson, topic ID.

Overview of C#
Introduction to the .NET Platform
1. .NET Platform Overview (ULT 112): Identify characteristics of the .NET platform. 2. .NET Framework Overview (ULT 113): Identify characteristics of the .NET Framework. 3. Languages in the .NET Framework (ULT 114): Identify characteristics of the languages that are supported by the .NET Framework. 4. SDK Tools (ULT 115): Match Software Development Kit (SDK) tools with their functions.

.NET Framework Components

5. CLR (ULT 121): Identify features of the Common Language Runtime (CLR). 6. BCL (ULT 122): Identify characteristics of the Base Class Library (BCL). 7. ADO.NET (ULT 123): Identify characteristics of ADO.NET. 8. ASP.NET (ULT 124): Identify characteristics of ASP.NET. 9. UI for Windows (ULT 125): Identify characteristics of the user interface (UI) for Windows.

Structure of a C# Program
10. Classes (ULT 131): Identify characteristics of classes in C#. 11. Main Method (ULT 132): Identify characteristics of the Main method. 12. using Directive (ULT 133): Identify the syntax of the using directive.

Basic Input/Output Operations

13. Console Class: ReadLine Method (ULT 141): Identify the characteristics of the ReadLine method. 14. Console Class: WriteLine Method (ULT 142): Identify characteristics of the WriteLine method.

Best Practices for C#

15. XML Documentation: Generating (ULT 151): Identify the syntax used to generate XML documentation. 16. Exception Handling (ULT 152): Identify the syntax of exception handling.

Compiling and Debugging

17. Compiler Options (ULT 161): Match common compiler options with their functions. 18. Compiling C# Applications (ULT 162): Compile a C# application by using Visual Studio.NET. 19. Visual Studio Debugger Overview (ULT 163): Identify characteristics of the Visual Studio Debugger. 20. Debugging C# Applications (ULT 164): Debug a C# application by using Visual Studio.NET.

Value-Type Variables
CTS
21. Common Data Type Categories (ULT 212): Identify characteristics of common data type categories. 22. Value Type Category: Data Types (ULT 213): Identify characteristics of the data types in the value type category.

Naming Variables
23. Variable Names (ULT 221): Identify guidelines for variable names. 24. Keywords in C# (ULT 222): Identify keywords that are reserved in C#.

Using Built-In Data Types

25. Local Variables: Declaring (ULT 231): Identify the syntax used to declare a local variable. 26. Variables: Assigning Values (ULT 232): Identify the syntax used to assign a value to a variable. 27. Operators (ULT 233): Identify characteristics of operators in C#. 28. Variables: Incrementing (ULT 234): Identify the syntax used to increment a variable.

Creating User-Defined Data Types

29. Enumeration Types: Creating (ULT 241): Identify the syntax for creating an enumeration type. 30. Structure Types: Creating (ULT 242): Identify the syntax for creating a structure type.

Converting Data Types

31. Implicit Data Type Conversion (ULT 251): Identify characteristics of implicit data type conversion. 32. Explicit Data Type Conversion (ULT 252): Identify characteristics of explicit data type conversion.

Procedures

Overview of C#
Compiling and Debugging
Compiling C# Applications
1. Click the File menu, point to New, and click Project. 2. In the Project Types box, click Visual C# Projects. 3. In the Templates box, click Console Application. 4. Type a name in the Name box and press the Tab key. 5. In the Location box, type the location to which you will save your program and click OK. 6. To give the class an appropriate name, type over the Class1 default class name. 7. On the File menu, click Save All. 8. In the Main method, type the statements that are required to run the application. 9. On the File menu, click Save All. 10. On the Build menu, click Build. 11. On the Debug menu, click Start Without Debugging. 12. In the console window, type a name and press Enter. 13. To complete the procedure, press any key.

Debugging C# Applications
1. Click the File menu, point to Open, and then click Project. 2. In the Open Project dialog box, browse to the project you want to run and click Open. 3. In the code window, to set a breakpoint, click the left margin adjacent to the line of code where you want the program to halt. 4. Click the Debug menu and click Start. The console window opens and minimizes automatically. 5. Click the Debug menu, point to Windows, and click Watch.

6. Select one of the Watch window options. 7. In the selected Watch window, type the name of the variable that you want to monitor and press Enter. 8. To run only a single line of code, click the Debug menu and then click Step Over. 9. In the open console window, perform the action prompted there and press Enter. 10. To run the next line of code, click the Debug menu and click Step Over. 11. Maximize the console window, check the result of the step-over, and minimize the console window again. 12. To run the program to completion, click the Debug menu and then click Continue.

Additional Information

Overview of C#
Creating a basic executable C# class with the Main() method
using System; class IntMainTest { static int Main(string[] args) { // prints message to the console Console.WriteLine("Hello World"); return 0; } }

Using a fully qualified class name when accessing the Console class
class NamespaceExplicitTest { static void Main(string[] args) { // prints message to the console System.Console.WriteLine("Hello World"); } }

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Using the Console.WriteLine()and Console.ReadLine() methods

using System; public class Greeting { public static void Main(string[] args) { // request input Console.WriteLine("Please enter your name"); // read input string name = Console.ReadLine(); // print output Console.WriteLine("Hello {0}", name); } }

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Using the Console.Write() method

using System; public class Greeting { public static void Main(string[] args) { int customerNumber = 0; // request input Console.WriteLine("Please enter your name"); // read input string name = Console.ReadLine(); // print output Console.WriteLine("Hello {0}", name); Console.Write("You are customer number "); // prints 1 on same line as above Console.WriteLine(++customerNumber); } }

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Using try and catch statements to deal with thrown Exception types
using System; class ExceptionTest { public static void Main(string[] args) { int a = 10; int b = 0; try { IntegerDivide(a , b); } catch (DivideByZeroException e) { Console.WriteLine(e.Message); // provides description of exception } } public static int IntegerDivide(int numerator, int denominator) { if (denominator == 0) { throw new DivideByZeroException(); // built-in exception thrown } return (numerator/denominator) ; } }

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Using if and else statements for conditional output

using System; class AccessEntry { public static void Main(string[] args) { string accessType; Console.WriteLine("Enter employee ID or if you are a visitor, enter \"guest\" "); accessType = Console.ReadLine(); //test the input data if(accessType == "guest") { Console.WriteLine("Welcome Guest, you have first level access"); } else { Console.WriteLine("Welcome {0}, you have employee wide access",accessType ); } } }

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Using Object.getType() method and the BaseType property to determine an instance type and its parent
using System; class Employee { //... } class Programmer : Employee { static void Main() { Programmer p = new Programmer(); // prints Programmer Console.WriteLine(p.GetType()); // prints Employee Console.WriteLine(p.GetType().BaseType); } }

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Using C# built-in types and the their .NET Framework counterparts

using System; class ValueTypeTest { static void Main(string[] args) { byte b1 = 20; Byte b2 = 20; int n1 = 4500; Int32 n2 = 4500; } } //...

// reserved keyword // struct type // reserved keyword // struct type

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Creating a basic struct type: Implicit and explicit struct initialization

using System; public struct Point { public int myX, myY; public Point(int x, int y) { myX = x; myY = y; }

} class Test { public static void Main() { Point pt1 = new Point(); Point pt2 = new Point(100,100); Console.Write("Point Console.WriteLine("x Console.Write("Point Console.WriteLine("x

// implicit initialization // explicit initialization

} }

1: "); = {0}, y = {1}", pt1.myX, pt1.myY); 2: "); = {0}, y = {1}", pt2.myX, pt2.myY);

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Local variable declaration and initialization

using System; class LocalVar3 { public static void Main() { int n = 0; int count; count = n; string name, address, dept; name = ""; address = ""; dept = ""; //... } }

// single declaration and initialization // single declaration // must be initialized before use // multiple declaration // must be initialized before use

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Using compound variable assignment and increment operators

using System; class Employee { int EmployeeNumber; static int numberOfEmployees; static char sector = 'A';

// default value of 0 // default value of 0 // default value of '\0'

public Employee() { EmployeeNumber = ++numberOfEmployees; // increment and assign } static void Main(string[] args) { Employee[] empArray = new Employee[20]; empArray[0] = new Employee(); // compound assignment empArray[0].EmployeeNumber = empArray[0].EmployeeNumber+1; // using increment operator empArray[0].EmployeeNumber++; Console.WriteLine(empArray[0].EmployeeNumber); } } // prints 3

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Manipulating variables using increment and decrement operators and comparing with assignment addition and assignment subtraction
using System; class PrefixPostfix { public static void Main(string[] args) { int count; count = 9; count += 1; Console.WriteLine(count); // prints 10 Console.WriteLine(++count); // prints 11 Console.WriteLine(count++); // prints 11 Console.WriteLine(count); // prints 12 count -= 1; Console.WriteLine(count); // prints 11 Console.WriteLine(count--); // prints 11 Console.WriteLine(--count); // prints 9 } }

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Creating and accessing an enumeration type

using System; class FahrenheitTempEnumeration { public enum FahrenheitTemp{ ExtremelyCold = 0, FreezingPoint = 32, Warm = 60, VeryHot = 95, BoilingPoint =212 } public static void Main() { FahrenheitTemp levelFourTemp; levelFourTemp = FahrenheitTemp.VeryHot; //... Console.WriteLine(++levelFourTemp); //prints 96 }

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Explicit type conversion

using System; class ExplicitConversion { public static void Main(string[] args) { long longValue = 20000; int intValue = (int)longValue; // value within allowed int range Console.WriteLine(longValue); // prints 20000

long longValue2 = Int64.MaxValue; intValue = (int)longValue2; // unchecked arithmetic overflow Console.WriteLine(intValue); // prints value of -1 checked // prevents arithmetic overflow { // will throw an OverflowException // exceeds by 1 the max long value of 9223372036854775807 Console.WriteLine(++longValue2); }

} }

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Glossary

Alphabetical List of Terms

#
The pound character is used as a prefix for C# directives.

.cs
C# files are saved with the extension .cs.

.NET
Usually appended to or associated with products associated with or compatible with the .NET Framework

.NET Framework
Signifies the underlying structure that provides the base functionality to support .NET processes

.NET Runtime
.NET Runtime manages memory allocation, threads, processes, reinforces security, and satisfies any dependencies that the component might have.

/?,/help
This is a common compiler switch in C#. It displays the compiler options on the standard output.

/checked
It is a common C# compiler switch. It indicates whether arithmetic overflow will generate a run-time exception.

/debug
It is a common C# compiler switch. It generates debugging information.

/doc
It is a common C# compiler switch. It processes documentation comments to produce an XML file.

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/main
It is a common C# compiler switch. It specifies the class that contains the Main method if more than one class in the application includes a Main method.

/optimize
It is a common C# compiler switch. It enables and disables the code optimizer.

/out
This is a common compiler switch in C#. It specifies the name of the executable.

/target
It is a common C# compiler switch. It specifies the type of application generated.

/warn
It is a common C# compiler switch. It sets the warning level of the compiler.

/warnaserror
It is a common C# compiler switch. It treats all warnings as errors that abort the compilation.

ADO
ActiveX Data Object is a programming interface from Microsoft that was designed as the Microsoft standard for data access. It has been enhanced for the .NET platform within ADO.NET.

ADO.NET
ActiveX Data Object .NET is an augmentation of the existing ADOs.

ADT
Abstract Data Types (ADTs) are types of data that are completely private. They are called abstract because you cannot access or rely on the private data representation. You can only access the behavioral methods.

AL
The Assembly Linker (AL) utility is used to create assemblies.

API
application programming interface Provide functionality that a programmer can access through their application For example, the ODBC or OLEDB APIs provide functionality that allow a programmer to make connections to and manipulate data from diverse data sources.

APL
A Programming Language A programming language that is brief and can easily generate matrixes. It shortens programs by including loops within its fundamental instructions.

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ASP.NET Web Forms

ASP.NET Web Forms are combinations of HTML, code, and prepackaged server components (controls) that execute on a Web server running Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) and they display a user interface by generating mainly HTML to return to browsers.

BBS
Bulletin Board System A computer system used as an information source and forum for a particular interest group. A BBS functions somewhat like a stand-alone Web site, but without graphics. However, unlike Web sites, each BBS has its own telephone number to dial into. BBSs are still used throughout the world where there is much less direct Internet access, and many serve as e-mail gateways to the Internet. A general-purpose communications program such as Crosstalk or Qmodem Pro is used to access a BBS. The address list in a communications program stores telephone numbers just like the address list of an e-mail program holds e-mail addresses

BCL
Base Class Library is a collection of the .Net Framework class libraries available to all .Net enabled languages.

BMP
BitMaP file (BMP file) Also known as a bump file. It is a Windows and OS/2 bitmapped graphics file format. It is the Windows native bitmap format, and every Windows application has access to the BMP software routines in Windows that support it. BMP files provide formats for 2, 16, 256 or 16 million colors (1-bit, 4-bit, 8-bit and 24-bit color).

bool
bool: A logical data type that can be true or false.

Byte
An integer type used in C# programming

C#
It is an object oriented programming language developed by Microsoft. It addresses some of the inherent problems in both C++(which it is mainly based on) and Java. It is the primary development language for .NET.

C++
It is an object oriented programming language. C++ is a superset of the C language developed primarily by Bjarne Stroustrup at AT&T Bell Laboratories in 1986.

call-stack
A set of hardware registers or a reserved amount of memory used for arithmetic calculations or to keep track of internal operations. Stacks keep track of the sequence of routines called in a program.

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char
A character type used in C# programming. It is short for character.

Charset
The combination of a particular character encoding (which maps between byte strings and integers) and a particular coded character set (which maps between integers and characters).

class
A class defines the data structure and functions of an object. To declare a class, you use the class keyword.

Class.MethodName()
Account.Setup is an example of a method. Account is the name of the class and Setup is the name of the method for that class.

CLR
Common Language Runtime The high level architecture of the execution engine of the .Net platform

CLS
Common Language Specification provides a common standard in which .NET languages can share and extend each other's libraries.

COBOL
common business oriented language The second-oldest high-level programming language, COBOL is a wordy language. Its wordiness makes it easy to understand programs because everything is spelled out.

COM
The Component Object Model (COM) is a Microsoft architecture, which defines a structure for building objects that can be called up and executed in a Windows environment.

COM+
Enhanced version of the Microsoft Component Object Model (COM) that enables programmers to develop COM objects more easily. It also now incorporates transaction management previously supported by Transaction Server.

CPU
Central Processing Unit

CR/LF
carriage return/line feed This is an ASCII character combination.

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CSC
C# command-line compiler The name of the executable that compiles C# source code into intermediate language

CSS
Cascading Style Sheets A style sheet format for HTML documents endorsed by the W3C. CSS1 (Version 1.0) provides hundreds of layout settings that can be applied to all the subsequent HTML pages that are downloaded. CSS2 (Version 2.0) adds support for XML, oral presentations for the visually impaired, downloadable fonts and other enhancements.

CTS
common type system It defines the types that can be expressed as metadata and intermediate language and the possible operations that can be performed on those types.

delegate
A delegate contains a reference to a method. Calling the delegate executes the method it references.

DLL
A dynamic-link library (DLL) is a library of executable functions or data that can be used by a Windows application.

DLLImport
An attribute that denotes an external function that defines a DLL entry point.

DOM
Document Object Model A common programming interface (API) for accessing HTML and XML documents from a Web browser. It was developed to formalize Dynamic HTML, which allows animation, interaction, and dynamic updating of Web pages. DOM provides a language and platform-neutral object model for Web pages, but because it deals with document structures in general, DOM may also be used by any application that accesses documents.

DTD
The XML document type declaration contains or points to markup declarations that provide a grammar for a class of documents.

EAI
enterprise application integration The process of getting the vast array of disparate business applications found in most large companies to work together

Eiffel
An advanced programming language, Eiffel encourages object-oriented program development. The Eiffel compiler generates C code, which you can then modify and re-compile with a C compiler.

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entranceone
entranceone is the name of a user defined class.

enum
An enum is a type consisting of a set of named constants.

executable
An executable is a file that contains a program. It is a file that is capable of being executed or run as a program in the computer. In a operating system, an executable file usually has a file name extension of .bat, .com, or .exe.

FTP
File Transfer Protocol A protocol used to transfer files over a TCP/IP network. For example, after developing the HTML pages for a Web site on a local machine, they are typically uploaded to the Web server using FTP.

GAC
Global Assembly Cache (GAC). To share a .NET assembly with multiple applications installed on the same machine, it needs to be installed into the Global Assembly Cache (GAC).

GDI
Graphics device interface You can use the System.Darwing class to access the new GDI+ features. This class provides support for the next generation of GDI two-dimensional graphics.

GIF
Graphics Interchange Format It is a bit-mapped graphics file format used by the World Wide Web, CompuServe and many BBSs. GIF supports color and various resolutions. It also includes data compression, making it especially effective for scanned photos.

Greet.exe
The name of a user defined executable component.

guillemet
Guillemet characters are used in C# to distinguish keywords. For example, to distinguish a class as being abstract, you write <<abstract class>>.

Heap
The free memory that is available to be used by a computer program

Hello.cs
The name of a user defined C# file

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HTML
HyperText Markup Language It defines the page layout, fonts and graphic elements as well as the hypertext links to other documents on the Web. Each link contains the URL, or address, of a Web page residing on the same server or any server worldwide.

HTTP
HyperText Transfer Protocol It is the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web. HTTP defines how messages are formatted and transmitted, and what actions Web servers and browsers should take in response to various commands. For example, when you enter a URL in your browser, this actually sends an HTTP command to the Web server directing it to fetch and transmit the requested Web page. The other main standard that controls how the World Wide Web works is HTML, which covers how Web pages are formatted and displayed. HTTP is called a stateless protocol because each command is executed independently, without any knowledge of the commands that came before it. This is the main reason that it is difficult to implement Web sites that react intelligently to user input. This shortcoming of HTTP is being addressed in a number of new technologies, including ActiveX, Java, JavaScript, and cookies. Currently, most Web browsers and servers support HTTP 1.1. One of the main features of HTTP 1.1 is that it supports persistent connections. This means that once a browser connects to a Web server, it can receive multiple files through the same connection. This should improve performance by as much as 20%.

Idispatch
An Interface that COM objects must implement when interoperating with C# objects via late (runtime) binding.

IDisposable
An interface that is implemented by classes wishing to invoke explicit object destruction in a user defined order

if/else statements
Switch statements are similar to multiple if/else statements.

IIOP
Internet Inter-ORB Protocol The CORBA message protocol used on a TCP/IP network. CORBA is the industry standard for distributed objects, which allows programs to be run remotely in a network.

IL
Intermediate Language You must compile a C# program before you can execute it. The compiler converts the source code that you write into machine code that the computer understands called the Intermediate Language (IL).

ILDASM
Intermediate Language Disassembler (ILDASM).

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instantiate
To instantiate something means to create an instance of something. For example, to instantiate an object means to create an object as an instance of a class.

Int
A type used in C# programming. It is short for integer.

int
int is the shortened word for integer which is a whole number.

interface
An interface specifies a contract. A class or struct that implements the interface must adhere to this contract.

Iunknown
Used to access unmanaged code

JIT
Languages in the .NET Framework compile to IL ready for the JIT (Just-in-Time) compiler to turn them into native code when the program is installed or on the first run. The runtime engine pulls in uncompiled functions for compilation on the fly as required.

JScript
JScript is Microsoft 's extended implementation of ECMAScript (ECMA262), an international standard based on the Netscape 's JavaScript and Microsoft's JScript languages.

JScript.NET
Enhanced version of JScript designed for use within the .Net Framework

Long
An integer type used in C# programming.

method
A method is a member that implements a computation or action that can be performed by a class or an object.

MethodName()
Is an example of a method declaration.

MSIL
Microsoft Intermediate Language, often referred to simply as IL. It is created by a .NET compiler.

MSMQ
Microsoft Message Queue Messaging Middleware for Windows NT and Windows 2000. It can be used to queue up transactions in a

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transaction processing system.

namespace
A namespace uniquely identifies a set of names so that there is no ambiguity when objects having different origins but the same names are mixed together. All classes exist within a single hierarchical namespace. In C#, the using statement lets you avoid having to specify the fully qualified name when you use a class.

now.hour
now.hour is the name of a field within the now class that represents hours.

now.minute
now.minute is the name of a field within the now class that represents minutes.

object
An object is an instance of a class. Objects are classified based on their common behavior or attributes.

ODBC
Open DataBase Connectivity A database programming interface from Microsoft that provides a common language for Windows applications to access databases on a network. ODBC is made up of the function calls programmers write into their applications and the ODBC drivers themselves.

OLEDB
Object Linking and Embedding Data Base

OMG
Object Management Group An international organization founded in 1989 to endorse technologies as open standards for object-oriented applications

operator
An operator is a stylized method that does not add behavior. It just provides a more concise syntax for behavior.

Pascal
A high-level programming language named after Blaise Pascal, the seventeenth-century French mathematician, with an affinity to structured programming techniques. It is a popular teaching language because it forces programmers to design programs methodically and carefully.

PCX
A bitmapped graphics file format that handles monochrome, 2-bit, 4-bit, 8-bit and 24-bit color and uses RLE to achieve compression ratios of approximately 1.1:1 to 1.5:1. Images with large blocks of solid colors compress best under the RLE method.

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PE
A portable executable (PE) is a file format developed for Windows NT but used by other Microsoft operating systems. The PE format consists of an MS-DOS MZ header, followed by a real-mode stub program, the PE file signature, the PE file header, the PE optional header, the section headers, and the section bodies. The PE file format has eleven predefined sections, but each application can also define its own unique sections for code and data.

Program.Main
A C# program is a class that has a static method called Main. Program.Main is an example of static method for a class called Program.

QFE
Quick Fix Engineering. An engineering fix to which customers should upgrade.

scope
Scope is the period of activation and deactivation of a programmatic entity.

SDK
A software development kit (SDK) is a set of software routines and utilities used to help programmers write an application.

SDL
Schema Definition Language Offers facilities for describing the structure and constraining the contents of XML 1.0 documents

SOAP
Simple Object Access Protocol It provides a way for applications to communicate with each other over the Internet, independent of platform. Unlike OMG's IIOP, SOAP piggybacks a DOM onto HTTP (port 80) in order to penetrate server firewalls, which are usually configured to accept port 80 and port 21 (FTP) requests. SOAP relies on XML to define the format of the information and then adds the necessary HTTP headers to send it. SOAP was developed by Microsoft, DevelopMentor, and Userland Software and has been proposed to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as a standard.

StringBuilder class
A StringBuilder builds a string that can be internally modified and converted into an immutable string when complete. This removes the need to create several temporary immutable strings and can provide improved performance.

struct
A struct is a blueprint for a value and has an accessible state and no identity or added behavior.

System.Exception
This is the base type for all exceptions.

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T-SQL
Transact-SQL is a sophisticated dialect of SQL used by Microsoft in both SQL Server 7 and SQL Server 2000. T-SQL is loaded with enhanced features that takes it far beyond the basic ANSI SQL 92 standard.

TCP/IP
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. TCP is one of the main protocols in TCP/IP networks. The IP protocol deals only with packets but TCP enables two hosts to establish a connection and exchange streams of data. TCP guarantees delivery of data and also guarantees that packets will be delivered in the same order in which they were sent.

The Clear method

You use the Clear method to set the value of a range of elements.

The Clone method

The Clone method creates a copy of an object.

The GetLength method

The GetLength method returns the length of a given dimension within an array construct.

The IndexOf method

The IndexOf method returns the array element index of the first occurrence of a value.

The Sort method

The Sort method organizes data that has been entered in ascending order.

TIFF
Tagged Image File Format It is one of the most widely supported file formats for storing bit-mapped images on personal computers (both PCs and Macintosh computers). Other popular formats are BMP and PCX. TIFF graphics can be any resolution, and they can be black and white, gray-scaled, or color. Files in TIFF format often end with a .tif extension.

try/catch block
Used to catch and deal meaningfully with any potential exceptions that may be thrown by methods invoked within the try block

UI
User Interface Usually takes the form of a set of graphical software components that allow a user to interact with a program

UML
Unified Modeling Language An object-oriented analysis and design methodology

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Unicode
Unicode is an entirely new idea in setting up binary codes for text or script characters, officially called the Unicode Worldwide Character Standard. Currently, the Unicode standard contains 34,168 distinct coded characters derived from 24 supported language scripts. These characters cover the principal written languages of the world. It uses 2 bytes to represent any particular character.

VB
Visual Basic A version of the BASIC programming language from Microsoft specialized for developing Windows applications

Visual Basic.NET
Enhanced version of Visual Basic designed for use within the .Net Framework

VisualStudio.NET
Visual Basic .NET is rapid application tool (rad) for building.netenterprise applications that enable developers build applications of their choice.

W3C
World Wide Web Consortium It is an international consortium of companies involved with the Internet and the Web. The W3C was founded in 1994 by Tim Berners-Lee, the original architect of the World Wide Web. The organization's purpose is to develop open standards so that the Web evolves in a single direction rather than being splintered among competing factions. The W3C is the chief standards body for HTTP and HTML.

XML
Extensible Markup Language A tool for defining languages where a language is a set of tags and attributes and the various constraints upon them

XPath
XPath is a language that describes a way to locate and process items in XML documents by using an addressing syntax based on a path through the logical structure of the document or hierarchy.

XSD
XML Schema Definition language An XSD allows each XML element and attribute, as well as content models, to be defined. XML-Schema also allows the definition of data types that represent the actual information.

XSL
Extensible Style Language This is a specification for separating style from content when creating HTML or XML pages. The specifications work similar to templates, allowing designers to apply single style documents to multiple pages. XSL is the second style specification to be offered by the W3C (www.w3c.org). The first, called Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), is similar to XSL but does not include two major innovations of XSL -allowing developers to dictate the way Web pages are printed, and specifications allowing one to transfer
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XML documents across different applications. W3C released the first draft of XSL in August 1998, and promotes the specifications as helpful to the speed, accessibility, and maintenance of the Web.

XSLT
Extensible Style Sheet Language Transformation It is the language used in XSL style sheets to transform XML documents into other XML documents. An XSL processor reads the XML document and follows the instructions in the XSL style sheet, then it outputs a new XML document or XML-document fragment. This is extremely useful in e-commerce, where the same data need to be converted into different representations of XML. Not all companies use the exact same programs, applications and computer systems. XSLT Recommendation was written and developed by the XSL Working Group and became ratified by the W3C on November 16, 1999.

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