1.7. Common language infrastructure

You have seen that .NET supports multiple languages because the source codes of these languages are eventually compiled into IL codes. This has a serious implication – there must be a common minimum standard which all these .NET languages need to follow. There are certain rules that all must adhere to (or else they will never be able to be converted into the universal IL code). This set of rules is the Common Language Specification (CLS).

The Common Type System (CTS) (which will be elaborated on later) and the CLS form a major part of the Common Language Infrastructure (CLI) specification. [23],[24]

[23] The CLI is ECMA-335 (blue cover). You can download it free of charge in pdf/postscript format at www.ecma.ch/ecma1/STAND/ecma-335.htm ...

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