We should first define the terminology before starting the talk about the .NET Platform. The fact is that today you can find many names on the Internet that include the .NET element: .NET Framework, .NET Core, ASP.NET and ASP.NET Core, .NET 5. More recently, .NET 6 has also appeared. How not to get confused here?
So first, let’s put everything on the right shelves.
Before diving into the benefits of .NET development, it’s essential to understand what the platform is and how the products differ, being united by a common .NET element in their name.
.NET Framework
The firstborn in this family of software solutions from Microsoft is the .NET Framework application development platform, first introduced to the public in February 2002. Many detractors have argued that the primary language used in this development environment — C# — is either a clone of Java or an unsuccessful copy of C++. However, time has confirmed the originality of the Microsoft developers’ decisions. The new platform made it possible to create both applications with a monolithic architecture and software solutions based on microservices. Thus, the .NET Framework made it possible to create a .NET application for almost any system requirement and task.
The only limitation of the .NET Framework to be considered is that this platform could only work on the Windows operating system. However, this significant drawback was eliminated in the next incarnation of the .NET platform.
.NET Core
If the .NET Framework was a revolutionary platform solution for developing Windows applications, then the cross-platform .NET Core, released in 2016, became a revolutionary successor to the .NET Framework.
Thanks to .NET Core, which retained all the advantages of the .NET Framework, developers could work on any operating system and create applications that work equally well on any OS.
Such versatility and flexibility allowed, among other advantages, to provide the highest quality UX design for any systems and environment as well as opened up new opportunities to outsource .NET applications on the market.
ASP .NET / ASP .NET Core
These frameworks, designed for developing web applications and dynamic websites, are a logical extension of the .NET Core and are an integral part of it.
Today, if you decide to hire .NET developers, you can be absolutely confident that you get the most flexible, highly scalable, and reliable application that works flawlessly on any known operating system.
Xamarin
This is the one more .NET framework designed for developing, testing, and running mobile applications.
.NET 5 and .NET 6
.NET 5 and the recently released .NET 6 are the next giant steps forward in developing the .NET platform. This environment has received a significant increase in speed, versatility, and stability and now covers all areas of development and subsequent application of software solutions without exception.
Based on .NET 5 and .NET 6, you can create applications for any operating system and platform, including the Internet of Things. It goes without saying that this platform provides a complete set of tools for front-end and back-end development and the creation of native and web applications, dynamic sites, complex software systems (in particular, CRM), and multiplayer games.
Briefly summarizing the above, we can say that over the 20 years of its existence, the .NET platform has become a universal tool, without which it is impossible to imagine any of the sectors of the modern IT industry. .NET software solutions are used today by such global giants as Dell, Samsung, GE Aviation, UPS, etc.
So many .NET benefits! Are there any disadvantages?
Of course, nothing in the world is perfect. The flawlessness of the .NET platform should also be discussed with some reservations.
For example, it was believed that this solution was primarily suitable for large-scale projects until recently. However, with the advent of .NET 5 and especially .NET 6, developers have received the necessary tools and mechanisms to launch startups. In other words, what was a problem yesterday can already be considered history today.
However, one cannot fail to mention the relatively high threshold for entering this area of programming. It is no coincidence that specialists who code in F# — one of the languages used in this development environment — are among the highest-paid globally.
However, the benefits that a software product created in this environment receives are so undeniable that the lack of personal experience is worth compensating for by inviting a reliable outsourcing tech partner with proven expertise in such developments.
The bottom line
Almost any solution that exists on the market today sooner or later comes to one or another limitation — in terms of scope, platform, scalability, resource intensity, architecture, etc. However, the approach of Microsoft, which literally embodied all known solutions in .NET and adequately met all known challenges, allows us to speak of an exception that confirms the general rule by its existence.
