Description: In C#, an abstract class is a class that cannot be instantiated directly and is designed to be inherited by other classes. Its main purpose is to provide a common base for other classes, defining methods and properties that must be implemented by derived classes. Abstract classes can contain both abstract methods, which have no implementation and must be implemented by subclasses, and concrete methods, which do have an implementation. This allows developers to establish a contract that derived classes must follow, thus promoting code reuse and structured organization. Abstract classes are fundamental in object-oriented programming as they facilitate the creation of class hierarchies and the implementation of polymorphism, allowing different classes to share a common interface while maintaining their own specific implementations. In summary, abstract classes are powerful tools that help programmers build more robust and maintainable applications while fostering clarity and consistency in software design.
