XNA

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Jackolantern
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Re: XNA

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Raven67854 wrote:
Jackolantern wrote:[quote="Raven67854"#Sakar
I have used XNA in the past. Its a very nifty game library for C#. Personally I think most of C#'s success is due to the introduction of XNA.
C# was in wide-spread use years before XNA was released. C# is merely popular because Java skills are portable to it, and it leverages the .NET platform for creating web applications. As far as web applications go, .NET is the most complete platform ever made. It is just a little jumbled and can be hard for new users to wrap their head around the class library (which is the largest ever packed in with a general-purpose language). I like C#, but it is also nice that if you learn Java, you basically know the syntax and usage in C#.

And yes, there is a book coming out, but it has been pushed back. It now lists it as May 18, 2010, so you definitely have a while to work with XNA before it comes out. Here is the Amazon link here.
I know C# was out for years. I have used it long before XNA. But if you read what I said I specifically said to the rise of C# mostly came from the introduction of XNA. I mean seriously before XNA most people had never heard of C#. And Visual Basic.net was used more than C# was. It was used in just business applications. Yes C# and Java have there similarity's but I much prefer C# much more than I do java. Also .net isn't just for web applications. Actually .net's entire purpose isn't for .net applications :P. .net is the virtual machine upon programs written for .net are run on. Which if you use C# is probably every program you make. But there is silverlight written specifically for web environment. And about that book. yeah it is a shame it's not out yet, and yeah you definitely don't wanna be a beginner to XNA but hey if you got some experience under your belt you should defiantly buy it.

Also fix your quote tags.
I did read your post specifically ;) And the rise of C# did not come because of XNA. You say it was mostly used in business programming, but that is what programming is mostly used for. As far as game development goes, then yes, XNA had everything to do with C# becoming popular. I wish I could find the site that lists the "popularity" of specific programming languages (which is just figured from several sources; it is not perfect), because C# was quickly gaining on VB.NET long before XNA was announced. This is likely due to the fact that more professional programmers out there are used to "C-like" syntax than BASIC-like syntax (there are just more languages that use brackets, semi-colons, etc.). In effect, there is no difference between C# and VB.NET. They are the same language that is just written differently. And I know that .NET is not just for web applications. I was only stating why it became popular so quickly. The web application side of .NET is the most robust library ever created. The other parts of the library have fairly competent equals in other languages.

And .NET can refer to either: A. The platform as a whole B. The class library included with the SDKs C. the runtime. When people refer to .NET, they are usually referring to A or B, and occasionally C (there is just less reason to talk about the runtime). Silverlight is specifically designed to be a competition to Adobe's Flash.

I like C# a lot. I use mostly Java, C# 2008 and VB.NET 2008 (what can I say, I like managed code :D )

As far as the book goes, sadly, I am starting to wonder if it is really going to happen. Just like with game development, short delays are common and almost expected in book publishing. But when huge delays strike (almost a whole year delay in one shot), that is not a good sign. On the plus side, the author is a nice guy, and even stopped by on MMORPGMaker.com to talk with us about it. Here is the thread. Maybe it will still work out.
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hallsofvallhalla
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Re: XNA

Post by hallsofvallhalla »

I am getting more into vb.net these past weeks. Have to say I like it though its not much different than vb6 in syntax and mixed with some asp.net has been some real fun.

I actually didnt care anything about C# until XNA but thats just me.
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Jackolantern
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Re: XNA

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hallsofvallhalla wrote:I am getting more into vb.net these past weeks. Have to say I like it though its not much different than vb6 in syntax and mixed with some asp.net has been some real fun.

I actually didnt care anything about C# until XNA but thats just me.
The differences between VB6 and VB.NET really become apparent when you begin working with OO and the .NET class library. I honestly don't remember much about VB6 (I have not used it in years), but I know that it was an "object aware" language, meaning that it did not fully support OO features such as inheritance, polymorphism or interfaces. Note that I don't really remember which of these VB6 understands, and to what extent. It can also be used in a loosely-typed manner, whereas VB.NET only offers variant types for database programming such as LINQ, and using them in place of standard variables is frowned-upon (or possibly not allowed; I have never tried it) due to the strongly-typed nature of .NET. I personally cannot stand loosely-typed languages :?

And then everything changes when it comes to the class libraries. There are basically no similarities from the VB6 class library to the .NET library, which is at least 10x bigger.

And C# is the same thing as VB.NET, just typed differently. Both VB.NET and C# are compiled into almost identical MIL bytecode. It just really depends on whether you want Java-like code or VB-like code.
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hallsofvallhalla
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Re: XNA

Post by hallsofvallhalla »

C# has far more libraries than VB.Net and many many more more engines that use it along with a bigger fan base. Now I mean in game development, VB.Net in the working real world is highly more used. Nearly any medical firm you work for uses vb.net for its apps.
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Jackolantern
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Re: XNA

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hallsofvallhalla wrote:C# has far more libraries than VB.Net and many many more more engines that use it along with a bigger fan base. Now I mean in game development, VB.Net in the working real world is highly more used. Nearly any medical firm you work for uses vb.net for its apps.
It is true that there are more libraries written natively for C#. Theoretically, though, because of .NET's interoperability, you should be able to use any C# library with VB.NET. I know there are people writing XNA applications with VB.NET, for example. The only issue is that you are on your own typically if you use a C# library with VB.NET, or vice versa. Microsoft doesn't support the use of VB.NET to write XNA applications, and most other library developers probably have the same policies.
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hallsofvallhalla
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Re: XNA

Post by hallsofvallhalla »

i was reading a little about that, people are trying vb.net and XNA but quickly going back to C# due to lack of help and resources.
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Jackolantern
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Re: XNA

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hallsofvallhalla wrote:i was reading a little about that, people are trying vb.net and XNA but quickly going back to C# due to lack of help and resources.
Exactly. I don't know of any project that has been completed; only proof of concept stuff to show that it can be done. I think these types of projects are being thrown on the pile to try to convince Microsoft to open up XNA support for VB.NET.
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hallsofvallhalla
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Re: XNA

Post by hallsofvallhalla »

which might be pretty awesome
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Jackolantern
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Re: XNA

Post by Jackolantern »

I personally prefer C-Style coding, with the brackets, semi colons and all. Although my first coding was in BASIC, and then VB years ago, I have come to like coding such as C++, Java and C#. It just feels more clear to me with all the block elements roped off in brackets. That, and I like not relying on white-space to delimit statements. I still kick around VB.NET some, but I prefer to use C# or Java.
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