Microsoft® Visual Studio® 2010 Unleashed

The .NET Framework(s)

The .NET Framework represents the base classes, libraries, and useful functions that make programming in .NET so productive. The classes and functions found in the .NET Framework provide the majority of common features you need as a developer. Thanks to the CTS, each language can take advantage of this single Framework of functionality. Framework features include file I/O, web, workflow, collections, Windows, communication, and much, much more.

Of course, as the .NET languages evolve so does the Framework. However, to maintain backward compatibility, each version of the Framework remains as a separate entity. There are now at least six versions of the .NET Framework: 4.0, 3.5, 3.0, 2.0, 1.1, 1.0. There are also various versions ...