Transition Opinions Welcome

[Guest]

Hi Everone,
I think most would agree that .net or something like it is the future of
computing. I have been using C# 2005 Express for about a month now and I am
extremely pleased with the availability of classes and functions to
accomplish just about anything. But........since I only do desktop
applications, the start up time and execution speed leave alot to be desired
compared to unmanaged code. My standard and favorite environment is Borland
C++ Builder and contrary to some opinions it is much more than a Delphi
wrapper. I am converting some of my CBuilder code to C# for comparison
purposes and just because I think unmanaged code will be obsolete before I
retire. So, I will continue with my transition.....very slowly.......I am
spoiled by the speed and ease of development with CBuilder. Since MS has a
small financial stake in Borland and because an ex-Borland employee has alot
to with .net at MS I think it's ok if I use both??

Regards to ALL

 

[Guest]

I'd think that C++ Builder is more comparable to Visual C++. Have you looked
at that? Its part of the Visual Studio.Net family, and you can use it to
create managed or unmanaged applications.
Peter

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the reply Peter. I think I will stick with my current plan
since I have alot of time and effort invested in CBuilder. Is there
any way to improve the startup times of .net desktop apps?

 

[Kevin Spencer]

Hi Paul,

The difference between C++ and C# is basically the difference between
managed and unmanaged code. Working with C++ is like walking a high wire
without a net. If you're good enough, avoid all memory leaks, security
issues, etc., yes, you can write a much faster app with it. Of course, this
incurs a lot more development time in the process. Managed code takes care
of most of these issues for you, and provides a safe development environment
out of the box. Yes, you can definitely get into trouble with it, but are
much less likely to. So, the trade-off is speed of execution versus speed of
development. .Net is RAD.

That said, there are lots of optimization tricks built into the .Net
platform. While an app may intially load slowly, it cranks up to a
respectable speed in fairly short order. There's a whole world of caching
going on under the hood, as well as other speed boosters. Still, as I said,
it will not perform as well as a well-optimized C++ app.

So, you ought to be able to make an informed choice for yourself about what
you should do with this information.

--
HTH,

Kevin Spencer
Microsoft MVP
..Net Developer
A watched clock never boils.