.NET Classes

.NET classes are implemented as part of the Common Type System. Types include interfaces, value types, and classes. The .NET Framework provides built-in primitive types as well as higher-level types that are useful in building applications.

A class is a subset of Type (distinct from interfaces and value types) that encapsulates a particular set of methods, events and properties. The word object is usually used to refer to an instance of a class. An object is typically created by calling the system function ⎕NEW with the class as the first element of the argument. Classes support inheritance, in that every class (but one) is based on a base class.

An assembly is a file that contains all of the code and metadata for one or more classes. Assemblies can be dynamic (created in memory as needed) or static (files on disk). In this document, "assembly" refers to a file (usually with a .dll extension) on disk.