Beginning ASP.NET 3.5: In C# and VB

5.5. Object Orientation Basics

A chapter about writing code in ASP.NET wouldn't be complete without a section on object orientation. Object orientation, or object-oriented programming (OO), is a highly popular style of programming where the software is modeled as a set of objects interacting with each other. Object orientation is at the heart of the .NET Framework. Literally everything inside the framework is an object, from simple things like integers to complex things like a DropDownList control, a connection to the database, or a data-driven control.

Since object orientation is such an important aspect of .NET, it's important to be familiar with the general concepts of object-oriented programming. At the same time, you don't have to be an expert on OO to be able to build web sites with ASP.NET. This section gives you a 10,000-foot overview of the most important terms and concepts. This helps you get started with object orientation in no time, so you can actually start building useful applications in the next chapter instead of keeping your nose in the books for the next three weeks.

5.5.1. Important OO Terminology

In object orientation, everything revolves around the concept of objects. In fact, in OO everything is, in fact, an object. But what exactly is an object? And what do classes have to do with them?

5.5.1.1. Objects

Objects are the basic building blocks of object-oriented programming languages. Just like in the real world, an object in OO-land is a thing. It can be ...