1. Chapter 1 .NET Overview

   1. Microsoft .NET

   2. The .NET Platform

   3. .NET Framework Design Goals

   4. .NET Framework

2. Chapter 2 The Common Language Runtime

   1. CLR Environment

   2. CLR Executables

   3. Metadata

   4. Assemblies and Manifests

   5. Intermediate Language (IL)

   6. The CTS and CLS

   7. CLR Execution

   8. Summary

3. Chapter 3 .NET Programming

   1. Common Programming Model

   2. Core Features and Languages

   3. Language Integration

   4. Summary

4. Chapter 4 Working with .NET Components

   1. Deployment Options

   2. Distributed Components

   3. COM+ Services in .NET

   4. Message Queuing

   5. Summary

5. Chapter 5 Data and XML

   1. ADO.NET Architecture

   2. ADO.NET Benefits

   3. Content Components

   4. Managed Providers

   5. DataSet and XML

   6. Summary

6. Chapter 6 Web Services

   1. Web Services in Practice

   2. Web Services Framework

   3. Web Services Provider

   4. Web Services Consumers

   5. Web Services and Security

   6. Summary

7. Chapter 7 Web Forms

   1. ASP

   2. ASP.NET

   3. The System.Web.UI Namespace

   4. Web Form Syntax

   5. ASP.NET Application Development

   6. ASP.NET and Web Services

   7. Data Binding and the Use of Templates

   8. State Management and Scalability

   9. Summary

8. Chapter 8 Windows Forms

   1. Introducing Windows Forms

   2. The System.Windows.Forms Namespace

   3. Windows Forms Development

   4. Windows Forms and Web Services

   5. Conclusion

1. Appendix A .NET Languages

   1. Microsoft-Supported Languages for .NET

   2. Third-Party Languages for .NET

2. Appendix B Common Acronyms

3. Appendix C Common Datatypes

   1. Usage

4. Appendix D Common Utilities

   1. Assembly Generation Utility (al.exe)

   2. Assembly Registration Utility (gac.exe)

   3. MSIL Assembler (ilasm.exe)

   4. MSIL Disassembler (ildasm.exe)

   5. C++ Compiler (cl.exe)

   6. C# Compiler (csc.exe)

   7. Visual Basic Compiler (vbc.exe)

   8. PE File Format Viewer (dumpbin.exe)

   9. Type Library Exporter (tlbexp.exe)

   10. Type Library Importer (tlbimp.exe)

   11. XML Schema Definition Tool (xsd.exe)

   12. Shared Name Utility (sn.exe)

   13. Web Service Utility (wsdl.exe)

5. Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. shrimp Jeffrey Holcomb was the production editor and copyeditor for .NET Framework Essentials. Mary Brady and Claire Cloutier provided quality control. Sada Preisch and Edie Shapiro provided production assistance. Joe Wizda wrote the index.

Ellie Volckhausen designed the cover of this book, based on a series design by Edie Freedman. The cover image is a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. Emma Colby produced the cover layout with QuarkXPress 4.1 using Adobe's ITC Garamond font.

David Futato designed the interior layout based on a series design by Nancy Priest. Anne-Marie Vaduva converted the files from Microsoft Word to FrameMaker 5.5.6 using tools created by Mike Sierra. The text and heading fonts are ITC Garamond Light and Garamond Book; the code font is Constant Willison. The illustrations that appear in the book were produced by Robert Romano and Jessamyn Read using Macromedia FreeHand 9 and Adobe Photoshop 6. This colophon was written byJeffrey Holcomb.