First released in 2002, .Net is a free, open-source software development platform, developed by Microsoft for building and running Windows apps. 

It is a holistic framework that comprises developer tools, programming languages, and vast libraries… All the tools needed to build seamless and high-performing desktop and web applications, websites, web services, and games.

In fact, the .Net framework can be used to create both web-based applications and form-based applications.

While the original version was .Net Framework 1.0, today it has evolved to a much more sophisticated .Net Framework 4.7.2.

Today’s .Net framework not only allows you to integrate MVC structure with web API, but it can also convert legacy conventional codes to build rich web apps. 

.Net also uses and supports multiple programming languages and frameworks. Developers can choose between the likes of Visual Basic, C#, .NET MVC, JS, C++, etc. 

With so much on its side, is it any wonder then that .Net is one of the most popular platforms for both businesses and developers?

So who uses .NET to create their web apps or web pages?

• Microsoft (obviously)
• Outlook
• StackOverflow
• Unity (develops games for Coca Cola, Disney, and NASA, using C#, .NET)
• Dell
• GoDaddy
• Xero

But the story doesn’t end there…

According to a 2021 StackOverflow survey, ASP.Net is the 5th most popular web framework. 

And going beyond web development, .NET framework, .NET Core, and .NET 5 are the #1 and #2 most used and preferred frameworks by developers worldwide.

Psst… This not just highlights the popularity of .NET, but also makes it much easier for you to hire a .NET developer (as the “Most Used Web Framework by Developers” 2021 Statista survey corroborates too).

But we are yet to answer the most crucial question…

Why is .NET so important?

Why .NET development is important for the success of your business?

1. Reduced coding time

.Net reduces the amount of coding time needed, by allowing effective code reuse and component reuse.

The .NET Framework comes in-built with many techniques that allow for high levels of runtime code reuse and reuse for interface declarations. 

The programming interface of ASP .NET gives developers a great framework of controls that can be used to populate server pages. And most of these controls come with a large set of properties, methods, and events that can be used to create even more specialized components to be reused.

A few popular techniques developers use to create reusable content on .NET:

• ASP.NET user controls
• Server-side, include files
• Custom master pages and templating techniques, etc.
• Using COM or COM+ components (through COM Interop)

2. Easier and clearer coding

The .NET framework is designed to eliminate unnecessary programming and make development easier. It is based on an object-oriented programming (OOP) development model. With OOP the developer can break down the software into smaller, more manageable parts that are easier to combine. 

This allows for better developer productivity, better quality software, and lesser maintenance cost. On top of that, OOP systems can also be easily upgraded from small to large systems.

Thus OOP simplifies the entire programming process by making the code also easier to test and troubleshoot issues in the long run. 

3. .NET gives you platform independence

One of the biggest perks of the .Net framework is that it is platform-independent because of the MONO framework.

Thanks to the Mono framework the .Net application can run on any Operating System, from Windows to Linux.

Mono also lets you use multiple languages with C#, Basic, and Ilasm compilers along with both open source and commercial compilers that can be used.

Since the mono system found a framework to operate in Linux, it has CLR, which is practised for organising ones and runs everywhere.

4. High platform security

.NET allows developers to efficiently configure and maintain security for the websites and apps.

The ASP.NET Core comes with features for handling authentication, authorization, data protection, app codes, HTTPS implementation, CORS control, and more.

These security features allow developers to create solid and protected apps.

ASP.NET Core security features include many tools and libraries, including built-in identification providers and the option for third-party identification.

They also include features that help you secure the app and stop any security breaches instantly. 

5. Improved app performance with caching

Simple and reliable caching can greatly improve the performance and scalability of an app, as it reduces the work needed to generate content on the page.

The .NET Framework comes with caching functionality that can be used to improve both of them, in both Windows client and server applications.

All the caching systems in .NET are robust, simple to use, and designed to be extensible. 

ASP.NET Core supports several different caches, including

• in-memory cache
• distributed caching
• response caching, etc.

6. Extremely versatile app development frameworks

.NET Core is arguably one of the most versatile app development frameworks that are available for free in the market.

With its cross-platform help availability, developers can use it for a wide range of operating systems and chipsets. It is not restricted to just being operated exclusively with Windows applications, via exclusive Windows licenses. 

Windows OS, macOS, Linux OS, etc. are all backed by .NET core to expand their market potential.

7. Active support from Microsoft and the community

The .NET framework is officially supported by Microsoft, for all official releases and updates. And all of which are built and tested on Microsoft-maintained servers in Azure and fully supported like all Microsoft products.

There’s almost no other tech company with such a full ecosystem that meets the requirements of engineers, with IDEs, frameworks, and cloud services.

And Microsoft is always trying to evolve and improve further.

The transition to .NET Core, major growth in ecosystem development that embraced cloud and offered phenomenal performance improvements, is one such example. 

Automatic monitoring to identify and fix issues (with ASP.NET).

ASP.NET comes with built-in automatic monitoring. The server carefully monitors web pages and applications that run on it. 

Some of the components that can be monitored with the .NET framework are:

• Total memory usage (and any leaks)
• Any thread pools (or infinite loops)
• Locks
• Exceptions & Connections
• Network Traffic
• Security breaches

So when any issues strike, you are instantly alerted about them. So not only are the web apps and pages more stable, but you also get higher transparency and ease of maintenance.

This also helps developers easily optimise the application performance.

8. Direct integration with Visual Studio IDE

An Integrated Development Environment (IDE) makes app development easier for developers, by equipping them with all the tools needed to write and test code fast.

And the Microsoft IDE, Visual Studio, which is integrated with .NET, is one of the best. It allows developers to build, debug, and publish apps across all platforms (Android and iOS). 

It’s used as a single IDE for all .NET applications.

It comes with:

• integrated compilation features
• integrated debugging features.
• collaborative features (like Git-first workflow)
• integrated code reviews

And it allows you to customise the environment to match and meet user preferences.

9. Cross-platform design and implementation

.NET implementation that allows the code to run on macOS, Windows, and Linux. 

In fact, .NET Core has a fully open-source code that ensures that a wide engineering community can continuously contribute to its development.

If you’re writing in C#, F#, or Visual Basic, your code will run on each of the compatible operating systems. This enables companies to reach the widest variety of platforms while staying within the .NET ecosystem.

With so many top-of-the-line features, it is hard to pass up .NET as the development framework of choice if you have dreams of a high-performance windows app or webpage in the pipeline.

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