Managed Types, Instances, and Memory

Abstract

.NET’s CLI introduces a new type system called the Common Type System (CTS). A major design goal of the CTS is language interoperability. This means that the CTS is used by all .NET languages—hence the name Common Type System. Language interoperability is helpful for users of class libraries as well as for developers writing class libraries for others. Due to the CTS’s language interoperability, many .NET class libraries can be used by all .NET languages. Even if you switch from one .NET language to another, your knowledge about the .NET class libraries and their types is likely not lost. This is especially helpful because the Microsoft .NET Framework SDK ships with a huge, powerful base class library. Throughout this book, I will call this base class library the Framework Class Library (FCL).