Dot net is the best

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With dot net you really do need to think about how the garbage collector and the cli work to make things efficient, I'm still learning but the language gives you much more power over memory management than Java does. This has the downside of being slightly more involved but can result in faster programs... simple things like taking advantage of the difference between how classes and structs are stored in memory can make a big difference on efficiency, whereas in Java you don't really have control over any of that. I guess its really just a matter of personal preference, because I've found that threading in C# was really easy... and I've actually never used an enum. Whatever

You should be using enums. Threading in C# is a nightmare compared to Java. What you mentioned about C#'s garbage collector is exactly the problem I'm talking about. If I wan't to manage memory I will use C++ or C, programming is a bad place my half measures, and C# is basically built around half measures.

If I want to quickly whip up a cross platform piece of software Java is faster and simpler than C#. If I want to make a complex piece of software that runs FAST C++ is the go, leaving C# in a sort of no mans land. Where its moderately fast, but no-where near C++, where its moderately cross platform, but nowhere near Java, where its moderately easy to program with, but nowhere near Java, where it sort of lets you manage memory, but nowhere near C++.

They tried to mix the power of C++ with the simplicity of Java and only half got there.

Its an in between language. Personally I think the .NET languages that go to extremes are the only good ones, like VB and F#.

[WarHampster]

I really don't know what you're talking about with threading... I learned how to use threads with C# and didn't have much trouble. Granted I wasn't doing anything particularly involved but w/e. Obviously if you need maximum speed you should use C++ and if you want maximum ease of use you use Java, but what if you want to program in a comfortable syntax and only dip into memory management if you need to? I'll give an example:

I helped a friend out with a gamemaker-like program that he was (is?) writing in C#; he was having trouble with some annoying windows GUI quirks. Where in Java I would have been at the mercy of swing and awt, I was able to solve the problem by directly assessing winapi functions through P/Invoke. The point is that C# gives you more control, and while this can make things more difficult you only need to exercise that control if you need/ want to tweak minute details of how the program runs.

[x]

I really don't know what you're talking about with threading... I learned how to use threads with C# and didn't have much trouble. Granted I wasn't doing anything particularly involved but w/e. Obviously if you need maximum speed you should use C++ and if you want maximum ease of use you use Java, but what if you want to program in a comfortable syntax and only dip into memory management if you need to? I'll give an example:

I helped a friend out with a gamemaker-like program that he was (is?) writing in C#; he was having trouble with some annoying windows GUI quirks. Where in Java I would have been at the mercy of swing and awt, I was able to solve the problem by directly assessing winapi functions through P/Invoke. The point is that C# gives you more control, and while this can make things more difficult you only need to exercise that control if you need/ want to tweak minute details of how the program runs.

This is what C# was engineered to do, and on the surface appears to do well.

But the fact is, in Java, you probably would never have run into this problem, thus saving your time (although removing the fun of messing with the windows API ).

Look, I'm not saying C# is a bad language, (in fact my main problem is only with the .NET part of it) I'm just saying its not as good as the alternatives. Its a middle child, and middle children are always runty. Take the time to learn Java properly, and then tell me which you prefer.  

[WarHampster]

I'm not speaking from a lack of experience, I've been taking Java at school for... two and a half years or something.

Whatever, whatever, any language is the best if you can make good stuff with it.

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I'm not speaking from a lack of experience, I've been taking Java at school for... two and a half years or something.

Whatever, whatever, any language is the best if you can make good stuff with it.

Anything can be done in any language, if you know how. Thats the joy of programming!

[Gan]

I've made a space ship game in Java and have found C# and even Obj-C easier to use with less headaches. (I like the VS libraries)

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http://forums.indiegamer.com/showthread.php?t=24340

Some of you C# lovers might be able to find a nice job.