How does Mono work

Question

I have used C# in Visual Studio with .NET, and I have played around a little with Mono on openSUSE Linux, but I don\'t really understand how it works.

If I write an

Answer 1

Mono is an open-source implementation of Microsofts .NET CLR (Common Language Runtime). This is what runs part of .NET programs which are not in native code but in CIL (Common Intermediate Language), a language and machine-neutral intermediate language. The Runtime takes that intermediate code and translates it into machine code.

At the current state of Mono, you can take .NET programs that use the main parts of .NET (mscorlib.dll) and run them everywhere Mono runs, not just Windows.