Finding the correct implementation assembly for DataContractJsonSerializer

If your .NET application requires parsing JSON data, chances are that you want to try using the .NET class libraries to do the work for you. Since version 3.5, the .NET libraries have included a class called DataContractJsonSerializer which lives in the namespace System.Runtime.Serialization.Json.

However, it happens that it is not always easy to find the proper implementation assembly, i.e. the DLL file that actually contains that namespace and the class.

For instance, in Silverlight (and Windows Phone 7) application, you need to reference the assembly System.ServiceModel.Web, but if you were to build web applications with ASP.NET or desktop applications with WPF/WinForms, you would need to reference the assembly called System.Runtime.Serialization.

This just as a reminder if you are looking to use the DataContractJsonSerializer class from your C# code.