Technology changes with the speed of light, and dot net technology is no exception. If you’re looking to get in on the ground floor of a burgeoning industry, dot net technology may be the perfect choice for you and your career. This is because over 34% of web apps and websites run on .NET Framework.
As you probably know already, dot net technology has taken off as one of the most popular web development frameworks in recent years, and the demand for developers who specialize in this particular area only continues to rise.
Unfortunately, all great things will likely come to a juncture, and we have to think about the future. However, for dot net developers, the future is a viable question. But at Onviqa, we can say the time ahead seems bright for any asp.net developer.
So read this article, and we shall tell you why:
Microsoft Developed .NET Framework
Microsoft developed the .NET framework for its website using PHP and Apache HTTP Server, which was the first in a family of web development languages used by Microsoft. Dot NET has gone through significant changes since then, making it possible for developers to produce applications without having to write code themselves. This technology has grown immensely in the past decades since it was launched.
.NET is Here to Stay
One of the most common questions developers ask is what will happen to .NET in the future? or when are you going to move to .NET Core? The answer, simply put, is that it is not going anywhere. .NET Framework has been and will continue to be the main vehicle of Microsoft development for years to come.
Release of .NET 5
As usual, Microsoft has been updating its software by adding modern features like security. However, it lastly released the current .NET framework in 2020 which was supported by Visual Studio Code and Visual Studio 2019.
For developers who are currently using this .NET framework, here are the key features:
- The framework is under an open-source community but is still supported by Microsft.
- It is a single unified platform: Windows, Web, Mac, Cloud, Mobile, IoT, Machine Learning, Data Science, and Gaming.
- It supports all .NET Framework, Xamarin, and .NET Core major capabilities such as LINQ, Entity Framework, ASP.NET MVC, UWP, WPF, Windows Forms, and more.
- Cross-platform with any device.
- Smaller deployment and packages.
- Scalable, fast, and high-performance.
- Supports most productive tools and IDEs such VS Code, Visual Studio, Command Line Interface (CLI), and VS for Mac.
Desktop Development with .NET
As developers, we are always striving for the most efficient and productive environment in which to work. For many, that means moving from desktop development over to web development. Though this transition has certainly been happening, it’s not what will define the future of .NET as a programming language.
Luckily, .NET 5 supports desktop development functionalities and libraries. These four major desktop platforms include Windows Forms, Xamarin, UWP, and WPF. Since its inception, Windows Forms have been part of the .NET. they use C# as the backend code and help developers to develop Windows UI apps.
.NET Languages and Runtimes
As an agile and modern platform, .NET has always been optimized for change and adaption, including investing in future technologies like .NET Core, which will become a cross-platform development option in the very near future. You’ll also see significant advancements in software development with features like asynchronous programming and reactive streams, which help you build responsive applications that scale on demand. With releases that include a new scripting runtime as well as NuGet Package Manager capabilities right out of the box, the evolution of how we code can happen more quickly with less friction for developers who are ready for it.
Web Development using ASP.NET
Web API and ASP.NET are part of the .NET 5 playing a vital role in building cloud applications and the web. As an open-source, the ASP.NET framework is highly used in building web apps. It is a cross-platform that runs on Docker, macOS, Linux, and Windows.
Game Development with .NET
If you’re looking for a modern, popular, and well-supported programming language for game development, look no further than C# and the .NET Framework. The C# programming language includes specialized libraries that target game development and with Windows, as the most common OS for gamers, there are plenty of opportunities for games to be built with the .NET Framework.
Interoperability in .NET
.NET and Mono have always been interoperable, which means that any code you write in C#, F#, or VB can be used by projects using Mono at runtime without modification. Microsoft is committed to this vision and has been updating tools such as Visual Studio and the Xamarin tools to seamlessly develop apps for iOS and Android without the need for extra layers of abstraction.
Cloud Development with .NET
For many years, C# has been the language of choice for building enterprise cloud applications. However, even if you’re an expert in Java, NodeJS, or GoLang, there are a lot of tools and services that make it easier to develop your application with C# on the Microsoft Azure cloud. A number of third-party .NET libraries have emerged which can help you build responsive web services and support cross-platform development for mobile apps.
Mobile Development with .NET
Although the future looks bright for .NET, there are still challenges it faces. One issue that persists in Microsoft’s platform is the lack of a unified strategy for cross-platform compatibility. Fortunately, Microsoft has listened to the call and introduced a number of new cross-platform frameworks, like the recently-released Xamarin. Developers looking to create mobile apps using different languages will find this toolset very helpful and powerful, as it eases them into developing applications for iOS or Android using C# and F# through Visual Studio.
The Future of .Net in 2023
The future of .NET has never been brighter. Microsoft just launched its latest version of the world’s most popular programming language, TypeScript 3.9. These new features allow developers to use custom tools to create new open-source workflows to build better software faster and more efficiently.
With their enhanced cross-platform support, developers can now write the same code in multiple languages, including TypeScript, JavaScript, and F# – all of which compile into a single type. This way, there’s no need for translators between platforms, meaning devs have fewer headaches when building robust cross-platform projects that must be compatible with Android, iOS, and any other system available today.
And to keep dot net applications services on top, Microsoft will not introduce the latest versions each year. It stopped its support in 2021. But that doesn’t mean it is dead. So, dot net has a chance to continue improving and evolving from other developers.