COBOL and Visual Basic on .NET is a comprehensive guide to help mainframe programmers successfully complete a .NET retraining effort. This book is intended for the COBOL/CICS mainframe community of programmers making the transition from the mainframe to .NET, and also for those who simply wish to broaden their .NET knowledge base.Starting with a complete set of .NET retraining prerequisites and a full chapter answering the question "What is .NET?" Richardson skillfully takes you through such essential topics as the .NET Framework, database access, Windows, the Web, and web services. Additional topics include printing with Crystal Reports, using XML and HTML, .NET configuration, and security for Web services.Richardson also includes information to help the mainframe programmer with infrastructure setup issues, often faced when deploying modules using Internet Information Server and COM+. He provides you with the tools to learn both COBOL.NET and Visual Basic .NET, illustrated by extensive code samples in the book.Drawing upon many legacy mainframe analogies, Richardson's conversational writing style makes this book both informative and an enjoyable read. COBOL and Visual Basic on .NET: A Guide for the Reformed Mainframe Programmer is a complete and definitive .NET guide for the mainframe programmer.