[Robert Levy]

http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/productinfo/roadmap.aspx

Following up on Andy's post about Whidbey, here's a full run down of Microsoft's roadmap for Visual Studio in 2004. If you are a developer of any kind, make sure you give this a read - it outlines some really exciting features that we'll be seeing next year.

Here's what it says specifically about mobile devices:

"With the release of Visual Studio .NET 2003 and the .NET Compact Framework, developers using Visual Basic and C# were empowered with the capability to build device-based applications using the same tools and methodologies they employ for desktop and Web-based development. In Whidbey, smart device programmability will be extended to include an updated version of the .NET Compact Framework and support for native C++ smart device development from within the IDE.

The inclusion of native C++ smart device development in Whidbey provides developers with greater flexibility when developing applications for the Pocket PC, Smartphone, and other Microsoft Windows-powered devices. Developers targeting mobile devices will benefit from the tight integration of the native C++ development features and a consistent development experience across all Visual Studio project types, ranging from smart devices to Windows servers.

For developers building managed applications using the .NET Compact Framework, Whidbey will enable creation of applications that run on the latest devices, including the Smartphone, Windows CE .NET 4.2-based devices, and the newest versions of the Pocket PC. This release will also introduce new classes and controls for accessing telephony features, messaging (MSMQ), and Short Message Service (SMS). Finally, native code interoperability enhancements, including improved marshalling, COM Interop and runtime hosting will improve the smart device application development experience."
Wow! This is definitely something to look forward to Note that these article don't say that the ability to do managed Smartphone development will be introduced in Whidbey - it's mentioned in the same context as Pocket PC. This gives me hope that a Smartphone 2003 SDK will be released in the coming months to allow us to start building .NET Compact Frameworks apps for Smartphone using Visual Studio.NET 2003.

[Robert Levy]

http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/productinfo/roadmap.aspx

Following up on Andy's post about Whidbey, here's a full run down of Microsoft's roadmap for Visual Studio in 2004. If you are a developer of any kind, make sure you give this a read - it outlines some really exciting features that we'll be seeing next year.

Here's what it says specifically about mobile devices:

"With the release of Visual Studio .NET 2003 and the .NET Compact Framework, developers using Visual Basic and C# were empowered with the capability to build device-based applications using the same tools and methodologies they employ for desktop and Web-based development. In Whidbey, smart device programmability will be extended to include an updated version of the .NET Compact Framework and support for native C++ smart device development from within the IDE.

The inclusion of native C++ smart device development in Whidbey provides developers with greater flexibility when developing applications for the Pocket PC, Smartphone, and other Microsoft Windows-powered devices. Developers targeting mobile devices will benefit from the tight integration of the native C++ development features and a consistent development experience across all Visual Studio project types, ranging from smart devices to Windows servers.

For developers building managed applications using the .NET Compact Framework, Whidbey will enable creation of applications that run on the latest devices, including the Smartphone, Windows CE .NET 4.2-based devices, and the newest versions of the Pocket PC. This release will also introduce new classes and controls for accessing telephony features, messaging (MSMQ), and Short Message Service (SMS). Finally, native code interoperability enhancements, including improved marshalling, COM Interop and runtime hosting will improve the smart device application development experience."
Wow! This is definitely something to look forward to Note that these article don't say that the ability to do managed Smartphone development will be introduced in Whidbey - it's mentioned in the same context as Pocket PC. This gives me hope that a Smartphone 2003 SDK will be released in the coming months to allow us to start building .NET Compact Frameworks apps for Smartphone using Visual Studio.NET 2003.

[Mike Temporale]

Originally Posted by Robert Levy

Following up on Andy's post about Whidbey, here's a full run down of Microsoft's roadmap for Visual Studio in 2004.

8O I just finished upgrading! I had assumed that Whidbey was going to be released in mid to late 2005. Anyone else think they are pumping out the VS updates pretty fast? I hope they have another cheap upgrade path.

Originally Posted by Robert Levy

Note that these article don't say that the ability to do managed Smartphone development will be introduced in Whidbey - it's mentioned in the same context as Pocket PC. This gives me hope that a Smartphone 2003 SDK will be released in the coming months to allow us to start building .NET Compact Frameworks apps for Smartphone using Visual Studio.NET 2003.

I think this would be the case. Microsoft needs developers to jump on board now, and providing the SDK sooner rather than later, is a big part of that.

[David McNamee]

Originally Posted by BlueRocket

Anyone else think they are pumping out the VS updates pretty fast?

I say "keep 'em coming!" I think it's great that they have aligned the tools releases to major platform updates. Having tool support the same day you have a new platform is a boon to developers. Much better than when we had to spend a couple of years kludging things together until the new version of VS came out.

We do need to be careful about making sure our apps play nicely under 1, 1.1, 1.2, 2.0, etc.

Originally Posted by BlueRocket

I hope they have another cheap upgrade path.

Ditto, but it sure makes MSDN Universal look all that more useful.