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Outline of the C sharp programming language

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to C#:

C# (pronounced “C-sharp”) is a free and open-source multi-paradigm programming language developed by Microsoft as part of its .NET initiative. C# was designed by Anders Hejlsberg and first appeared in 2000 with the release of .NET Framework. The language emphasizes type safety, component-oriented programming, and modern object-oriented programming concepts. C# syntax is similar to C++ and Java, but is tightly integrated with the .NET runtime environment.

What type of language is C#?

History of C#

General C# concepts

Issues / Limitations

C# toolchain

Compilers

  • Roslyn — open-source compiler platform for C# and VB.NET
  • Mono — cross-platform implementation of C# and .NET
  • Bartok — experimental AOT compiler by Microsoft Research
  • CoreRT — .NET Foundation project for AOT and JIT compilation
  • IL2CPU — AOT compiler used by the COSMOS operating system
  • RemObjects C# — AOT compiler supporting multiple platforms
  • RyuJIT — JIT compiler used in .NET Core and .NET 5+
  • SharpDevelop — open-source IDE and C# compiler under LGPL
  • Visual C# — Microsoft’s primary JIT compiler for C#
  • Visual C# Express — freeware edition of Visual C# for beginners
  • Portable.NET — discontinued AOT compiler from the DotGNU project

Build and package management

  • MSBuild — Microsoft’s official build engine
  • NuGet — official .NET package manager and registry
  • dotnet CLI — command-line interface for building, running, and publishing C# applications.

C# libraries and frameworks

  • .NET Standard — specification ensuring API compatibility across .NET implementations
  • ASP.NET Core — framework for building web applications and APIs
  • Entity Framework Core — object-relational mapper (ORM)
  • Xamarin — framework for building cross-platform mobile applications
  • Blazor — framework for building interactive web UIs with C#
  • Unity — game engine using C# as its primary scripting language

Testing and benchmarking

  • xUnit — popular open-source testing framework
  • NUnit — testing framework for .NET
  • MSTest — Microsoft’s built-in test framework
  • BenchmarkDotNet — library for performance benchmarking in C#

Notable projects written in C#

Example source code

C# publications

Books about C#

  • Andrew Troelsen – Pro C# and the .NET Platform
  • Bill Wagner – Effective C#
  • Herbert Schildt – C#: A Beginner's Guide and C# 4.0: The Complete Reference
  • Jeff Prosise – Programming Microsoft .NET
  • Jeffrey Richter – CLR via C#
  • Jennifer Greene – Head First C#
  • Jon Skeet – C# in Depth
  • Mark J. Price – C# 12 and .NET 8 – Modern Cross-Platform Development
  • Rob Miles – The C# Programming Yellow Book

C# dialects and related languages

C# learning resources

Competitive programming

  • LeetCode — supports C# submissions
  • HackerRank — includes C# challenges
  • Codeforces — supports C# in contests

See also

Outlines of other programming languages

References

External links