C# (pronounced "C sharp") is a programming language that is designed for building a variety of applications that run on the .NET Framework. C# is simple, powerful, type-safe, and object-oriented. The many innovations in C# enable rapid application development while retaining the expressiveness and elegance of C-style languages.
If you don't already have C#, you can acquire a version of Visual Studio that includes C# for free from the Visual Studio site.

In This Section

Getting Started with C#

Introduces the features of C# for programmers who are new to the language or are new to Visual Studio, and provides a roadmap for finding Help about Visual Studio.

Using the Visual Studio Development Environment for C#

Introduces the Visual C# development environment.

C# Programming Guide

Provides information and practical examples about how to use C# language constructs.

C# Reference

Provides detailed reference information about C# programming concepts, keywords, types, operators, attributes, preprocessor directives, compiler switches, compiler errors, and compiler warnings.

C# Samples

MSDN Code Gallery filtered for C#.

C# Walkthroughs

Provides links to programming walkthroughs that use C# and a brief description of each walkthrough.

Related Sections

C# Language Specification

Links to the latest version of the C# Specifications in Microsoft Word format.

See Also

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Getting Started with Visual C# and Visual Basic
.NET Development