Chapter 1. A new language for .NET
This chapter covers
- An introduction to IronPython
- Python and dynamic languages on .NET
- The IronPython interactive interpreter
- Live object introspection with help and dir
The .NET framework was launched in 2000 and has since become a popular platform for object-oriented programming. Its heart and soul is the Common Language Runtime (CLR), which is a powerful system including a just-in-time compiler, built-in memory management, and security features. Fortunately, you can write .NET programs that take advantage of many of these features without having to understand them, or even be aware of them. Along with the runtime comes a vast array of libraries and classes, collectively known as the framework classes. Libraries available in the .NET framework include the Windows Forms and Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF)[1] graphical user interfaces, as well as libraries for communicating across networks, working with databases, creating web applications, and a great deal more.
1 Microsoft’s next generation user interface framework.