Cool, New, Fun Features in the Framework 2.0 Base Class Libraries

To get the slides:

With the release of the .NET Framework 2.0 in November, a wealth of new features will be available to VB.NET, C# and other Managed Code developers. In the form of nearly 80% more public classes, and over twice as many public methods, nearly every sub-framework (Windows Forms, ASP.NET and ADO.NET) has been extended and enhanced, not to mention Generics or new features found in the VS2005 IDE. In this talk, we'll examine new features that have been added to the Base Class Libraries, uncovering capabilities that have been largely overlooked elsewhere.

We'll start with some simple features added to most of the Value types in the Framework, such as improved string parsing and conversion, as well as new additions to the String class. We'll also look at extensions that have been added to the Console class to make it more adaptable to porting Mainframe or MS-DOS character-mode applications to .NET (and we'll have some fun playing a game written to use the new Console features). We'll also examine features in System.Environment and System.GC that can make day-to-day .NET development a bit easier. Next, you'll see how version-tolerant serialization is now supported (so that serializing different version objects doesn't break like it used to), and how to use the new Async Component for relegating operations to a 2nd thread.

Then we'll turn to new features added for improving your day-to-day Debugging experience: with the advent of Debugger Visualizers, you can define how any data type - your own or those defined by others - can be viewed and examined in the debugger. We'll look at the new SerialPort class, the features in System.IO and System.Net, and how to create Friend Assemblies: assemblies whose internal members are specifically exposed for consumption by other, named assemblies. Finally, we'll wrap up with a look at new Security, Threading and Transaction features.

By the time we're through, you'll have a thorough understanding of new Base Class Libraries features and how you can use them up receipt of VS2005 and FW 2.0.

Richard Hale Shaw is a Microsoft MVP for Visual C#, and a member of the C# Customer Council: a group of hand-picked experts who consult to the C# Team at Microsoft regarding new features and new directions in the C# Programming Language. He's the CEO of the Richard Hale Shaw Group (http://www.RichardHaleShawGroup.com), and a consultant and lecturer who focuses on Managed Code development of distributed systems with the C# Language and the .NET Framework. He's a frequent INETA speaker (www.ineta.org), and the BlackBelt (advanced session) Chair of VSLive (www.vslive.com). Richard taught himself to program in C (and later, C++) in 1982, and began writing and speaking on contemporary software development topics as a contributing editor to PC Magazine and Microsoft Systems Journal (now MSDN Magazine) in 1988. He's consulted to 1000s of developers on C++, MFC, COM, ATL, .NET and C#, and authored the C# 2.0 / .NET 2.- BootCamp (a 5-day hands-on course), the .NET Patterns & Practices BootCamp, and the Advanced C# BootCamp. Over the years, Richard has created and organized a number of developer events (e.g., the Visual C++ Conference). Now living in Cambridge, MA, he's also known as a groove bass player specializing in classic Jazz. And you can read his blog at: www.RichardHaleShawGroup.com/blog.