VB .NET vs. C#

Personal Edification

个人领悟

Perhaps you’ve always wanted to program in C but found it too obscure, difficult, or overwhelming. Now, you see that C# exists but removes some of the more intensive tasks, such as managing memory and handling pointers. If it’s been a lifelong dream of yours to program in C or C , feel free to take C# for a spin. You’ll find it quite forgiving and very powerful for creating business applications.

If you’re thinking, “Aha! Now I can learn C# and pull down the big bucks!” then I need to warn you about something. You see, it’s true in most cases today that C developers earn more than do VB developers. One reason is that there are a lot fewer C developers. Another reason, though, is the kind of work that C developers are doing. They are typically doing things you can’t do (at least not reasonably) in VB. They’re writing device drivers, socket interfaces, or any manner of low-level applications. VB developers, on the other hand, are busy solving business problems.

C# is not going to be used for the same purposes as C . Instead, C# will be used for business applications. Therefore, C# and VB .NET will be used to create exactly the same kinds of applications. The advantage of one over the other will be miniscule when creating business applications. The only way you might earn more as a C# developer is that there likely will be fewer of them, so you may get lucky that way. It’s unlikely, however, that you’ll be building low-level applications. So, unless the manager is a dolt, you won’t be worth more than a VB .NET developer.

Finally, pick the language you like. A friend tells me he has always thought C/C looked more elegant and logical to him than VB, but he’s been using VB for a few years. He plans on making the jump to C# because “it looks better.” That’s not a bad reason, but he’ll be learning the CLR and C# at the same time. As a VB developer, he’d probably have an easier time learning the CLR and VB .NET at the same time and then making the move to C#.

说了这么多，还是个有千秋。

Conclusion

From a purely technical standpoint, which language you choose is probably irrelevant. Yes, there are some differences in the functionality between VB .NET and C#, but they’re small. The main issue to consider is your comfort level with the languages on which these new languages are based: If you are familiar with VB, you’ll have an easier (though not necessarily easy) transition to VB .NET. If you are a C, C , Java, or JScript developer, you likely will find C# more comfortable.