What is VB.NET?
VB.NET is a simple, multi-paradigm object-oriented programming language designed to create a wide range of Windows, Web, and mobile applications built on the .NET Framework.
- It is a simple, high-level, object-oriented programming language developed by Microsoft in 2002.
- It is an evolution of classic Visual Basic language, it is not backward-compatible with VB6, and any code written in the old version does not compile under VB.NET.
- It supports the OOPs concept, such as abstraction, encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism, etc.
- Everything in the VB.NET language is an object, including all primitive data types such as, Integer, String, char, long, short, Boolean, user-defined data types, events, and all objects that inherit from its base class.
- It is not a case sensitive language, whereas, C++, Java, and C# are case-sensitive language.
Why VB.NET?
VB.NET is implemented by Microsoft's .NET framework and it has full access to all the libraries in the .Net Framework. You can also execute VB.NET programs on Mono, the open-source alternative to .NET, not only under Windows but even Linux or Mac OSX.
The VB.Net is a widely used professional language due to the following reasons.
- Modern, general-purpose.
- Object-oriented.
- Component oriented.
- Easy to learn.
- Structured language.
- It produces efficient programs.
- It can be compiled on a variety of computer platforms.
- Part of .Net Framework.
Features
VB.Net is a high-level programming language with many features to develop a secure and robust application. The following features make it one of the most popular programming languages.
- It is an object-oriented programming language that follows various oops concepts such as abstraction, encapsulation, inheritance, and many more.
- It is used to design user interfaces for window, mobile, and web-based applications.
- It supports a rapid application development tool kit in which you can get various codes automatically from its libraries.
- It is not a case-sensitive language like other languages such as C++, java, etc.
- It supports Boolean conditions for decision-making in programming.
- It also supports the multithreading concept, in which you can do multiple tasks at the same time.
- It provides simple events management in a .NET application.
- A Window Form enables us to inherit all existing functionality of the form that can be used to create a new form that reduces the code complexity.
- It uses an external object as a reference that can be used in a VB.NET application.
- Automatic initialized a garbage collection.
- It follows a structured and extensible programming language for error detection and recovery.
- Conditional compilation and easy to use generic classes.
- It is useful to develop web, window, and mobile applications.
Advantages
- The VB.NET executes a program under CLR (Common Language Runtime), creating a robust, stable, and secure application.
- It is a pure object-oriented programming language based on objects and classes.
- Using the Visual Studio IDE, you can develop a small program that works faster, with a large desktop and web application.
- It uses drop and drag elements to create web forms in .NET applications.
- A VB.NET can automatically structure your code.
- Using VB.NET language, you can transfer data between different layers of the .NET architecture such that data is passed as simple text strings.
Disadvantages
- The VB.NET programming language is unable to handle pointers directly.
- It is easy to learn, which increases a large competition between the programmers to apply the same employment or project in VB.NET. Thus, it reduces a secure job in the programming field as a VB.NET developer.
- It uses an Intermediate Language (IL) compilation that can be easily decompiled (reverse-engineered), but there is nothing that can prevent an application from disintegrating.
- It contains a large collection of libraries for the JIT compiler that helps to interpret an application. These large libraries hold a vast space in our system that takes more computing time.
