Without a doubt the biggest news in application
development for 2008 is Microsoft’s
release of Visual Studio (VS) 2008 (code-named
Orcas)—Microsoft’s flagship development platform.
The VS 2008 release adds support for new
technologies such as Asynchronous JavaScript and
XML (AJAX), Windows Presentation Foundation
(WPF), and Language-Integrated Query (LINQ).
Here are some of the most important new features
in VS 2008.
Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5
Technically, the Microsoft .NET Framework is a separate
entity from VS but it’s delivered with VS 2008,
which is certainly
the premier development
platform for
.NET Framework
applications. The
.NET Framework
3.5 makes more efficient
use of system
resources and provides
support for several new technologies including
Web 2.0 and AJAX applications, Windows Communication
Foundations (WCF), Workflow Foundation
(WF), WPF, and of course LINQ. It’s fully compatible
with applications built for the .NET Framework
2.0 and 3.0.
JavaScript Debugging and
IntelliSense
The ability to provide IntelliSense and debugging
support for JavaScript is another important
enhancement to VS 2008. AJAX really took off
after VS 2005 was released. Adding IntelliSense
and debugging enables AJAX support to be fully
integrated with VS 2008.
Multiple .NET Framework
Targeting
Another great new feature in VS 2008 is the ability
to target multiple versions of the .NET Framework.
Previous versions of VS were limited to building code for the current version of the .NET runtime. VS
2008 extends this capability by being able to target .NET
Framework 2.0, 3.0., and 3.5 as well as the .NET Compact
Framework.
Designer for WPF
VS 2008 also includes a new WPF designer and XAML
editor (code-named Cider). The new WPF designer
features rich graphical design layout tools plus two-way
updating between the Designer and the underlying XMAL
code. It also provides IntelliSense for XAML.
SQL Server Compact Edition 3.5
Another interesting new feature, especially for SQL Server
developers, is the inclusion of SQL Server Compact Edition
3.5. SQL Server Compact Edition is a full featured
in-process database that you can use as a local data store
for your applications. At about 1.8MB, SQL Server Compact
Edition is lightweight and can be freely distributed
with your applications.
Sync Services for ADO.NET
Built in conjunction with SQL Server Compact Edition,
Sync Services for ADO.NET enables disconnected applications
to continue to provide end-users with the same
application experience whether connected or disconnected.
The application works against a local cache and can
periodically sync with a back-end server. Enhancements
to the new .NET Framework 3.5 take care of all of the
heavy lifting required to keep the local store and the server
in sync.
LINQ
From a database developer’s perspective, the biggest new
feature that comes with VS 2008 is LINQ. LINQ is an
evolutionary step forward for database developers as it
simplifies the development process by enabling developers
to write database queries directly in either native Visual
Basic (VB) or C#. LINQ speeds up application development
by providing immediate syntax feedback through
IntelliSense and compile-time error checking that wasn’t
possible using the older ADO.NET and T-SQL development
methodology.