Visual Studio .NET

Visual Studio .NET is an IDE developed (2002) by Microsoft. It is for the Microsoft Windows operating system and is aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at development for Win32 platforms.

Overview

The latest version in their line of IDEs, Visual Studio .NET supports the new .NET languages C#, Visual Basic .NET and Managed C++ in addition to C++. You can use Visual Studio .NET to make applications targeting Windows (using Windows Forms), Web (using ASP.NET and Web Services) and portable devices (using .NET Compact Framework).

The look-and-feel of Visual Studio .NET is nearly identical to previous versions of the IDE (Microsoft Visual Studio). Some notable exceptions include the cleaner interface and greater cohesiveness. It is also more customizable with status windows that automatically hide when not in use. All versions of Visual Studio, including its predecessor Visual C++, include a debugger that is integrated with the editing environment.

The most notable feature of the IDE is its support of the new .NET languages. Programs developed in these languages do not compile to machine language (like C++ does, for example) but instead compile into something called CIL. When programs execute the MSIL application, it is jitted into the appropriate machine language for the platform it is being executed on. Via this method, Microsoft hopes to be able to support various implementations of their Windows operating systems (such as Windows CE). Programs compiled into MSIL can be executed only on platforms which have a implemetation of .NET framework. You can run CIL programs in Linux or MacOS X using some non-Microsoft .NET implementation, like Mono (Ximian) and DotGNU.

Microsoft distributes various versions of this IDE. Some lack an optimizing compiler, others lack support for database instructions. These versions are generally less expensive than the full version of the IDE.

Versions

Visual Studio .NET

The initial release from 2002, technically Visual Studio 7.0.

Visual Studio .NET 2003

Technically Visual Studio 7.1, this release incorporated version 1.1 of the .NET framework, added support for the .NET Compact Framework (for portable devices) and the ASP.NET Mobile Designer (for building web applications for mobile phones, PDAs and pagers), as well as various minor improvements and interface changes.

Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2005 Express

The next scheduled version, currently in beta stage and planned for release in the first half of 2005, is Visual Studio 2005, which incorporates version 2.0 of the .NET framework.

Also planned is Visual Studio 2005 Express, a low cost version "designed for hobbyists, enthusiasts, and students." Exactly what features will be absent from the Express version, or what the pricing will be, has not been finally determined.