CSE 325: .NET Software Development

🗝️.NET Ecosystem

The Microsoft .NET developer ecosystem encompasses a range of tools, frameworks, languages, libraries, and community resources that developers use to build software applications using the .NET platform.

To articulate the .NET developer ecosystem means to provide a clear and comprehensive description of each part, explaining how they contribute to the overall .NET developer ecosystem and how developers can leverage them in their projects.

Key Components

• .NET Framework and .NET Core: These are the runtime environments that allow developers to build and run applications. .NET supports cross-platform development.
• Programming Languages: .NET supports various programming languages, with C# being the most widely used. Other languages include VB.NET, F#, and more recently, languages like Rust and Python through projects like Project Tye and .NET MAUI.
• Integrated Development Environments (IDEs): Visual Studio is the primary IDE for .NET development. Visual Studio Code is also widely used, especially for cross-platform and open-source development.
• NuGet: NuGet is a package manager for .NET that allows developers to easily integrate third-party libraries and tools into their projects.
• ASP.NET: This is a framework for building web applications. ASP.NET Core is the modern, cross-platform version of ASP.NET.
• Entity Framework: A widely used Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) framework for database access in .NET applications.
• Xamarin: A framework for building cross-platform mobile applications using .NET and C#.
• Azure DevOps: A set of development tools and services for CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment), version control, build automation, and more.
• Community and Documentation: The .NET community is active and supportive. Online forums, documentation, and community-driven resources contribute to the ecosystem's vibrancy.
• .NET Blazor (WebAssembly and Server): A framework for building interactive web UIs using C# and .NET.
• .NET MAUI (Multi-platform App UI): A framework for building cross-platform applications that run on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows with a single codebase.

🗝️Design and Develop .NET Apps

Designing and developing .NET applications involves creating software solutions using the .NET framework and related technologies. Key components of this outcome may include:

1. Requirements Gathering: Researching and understanding the requirements of the application involves identifying the users, features, and functionality of the application and working with stakeholders to understand the goals of the project and documenting them in a clear and comprehensive manner.
2. Design:
3. Technology Stack: Select the appropriate technology stack in which to develop the design given the requirements and audience. In this course, the stack selection is all within the .NET ecosystem.
4. Development Environment: Set up the development environment. Typically, this involves using an integrated development environment (IDE) such as Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code. The development operation includes the methods, tools, and services needed to build, test, and deploy the application. This class uses Azure DevOps and Azure web services.
5. Development: Write the code for the application. This includes implementing the design, writing, refactoring, optimizing, testing, and debugging the code in the application.
6. Database Integration: If the application requires data storage, integrate a database using technologies like Entity Framework or other data access libraries compatible with .NET.
7. User Interface (UI) Design: Design the user interface (UI) of the application. This includes the visual design of the application, evaluating the user experience (UX), and assessing the accessibility of the application.
8. Deployment: Deploy the application to a production environment. This includes setting up the production environment, configuring the application, and deploying the application to the production environment.
9. Documentation: Create documentation for the application. This includes user manuals, developer documentation, and any other relevant information that helps users and future developers understand the application.

Other considerations include security, performance, scalability, maintainability, and planning for updates.

🗝️Collaboration

Collaboration is an essential skill for software developers. This outcome involves demonstrating the skills of a productive team member, such as:

• Showing up on time to meetings and meeting deadlines.
• Communicating clearly and openly with team members.
• Sharing ideas, updates, and issues to avoid misunderstandings.
• Clearly defining roles and responsibilities of each team member.
• Fulfilling tasks and assignments.
• Working with others to solve problems.
• Celebrating and acknowledging successes.