Visual Studio provides tools to create occasionally connected smart device applications by using SQL Server Compact and Microsoft Synchronization Services for ADO.NET (Devices) version 1.0. For more information, see Occasionally Connected Applications (Devices).

The new DataRepeater control lets you use standard Windows Forms controls to display rows of data in a scrollable container. This control provides more flexibility than standard grid controls.

For more information, see Introduction to the DataRepeater Control (Visual Studio).

The Line and Shape controls are a set of three graphical controls that let you draw lines, ovals, and rectangles on forms and containers at design time. These controls make it easier to enhance the look of your user interface. Line and Shape controls encapsulate many of the graphics methods that are contained in the System.Drawing namespace so that you can draw lines and shapes in a single step without having to create graphics objects, pens, and brushes. You can create complex graphics effects such as gradient fills by just setting some properties. These controls also provide events such as click and double-click to enable you to respond to and interact with end users.

For more information, see Introduction to the Line and Shape Controls (Visual Studio).

The PrintForm component is designed so that you can easily print a Windows Form as you could in Visual Basic 6.0. By using the PrintForm component, you can once again lay out a Windows Form exactly how you want it and enable users to print the form as a quick report.For more information, see PrintForm Component (Visual Basic).

The Printer Compatibility Library enables projects that use the Visual Basic 6.0 Printer object and Printers collection to be upgraded without requiring you to rewrite the printing logic. Just add a reference to the library, declare a Printer, and make some minor syntax changes, and the project will be able to print by using the Printers collection and Printer object as it did in Visual Basic 6.0. This version incorporates a new Write method into the Printer object. The new method lets you print text without using a forced carriage return, like the semicolon syntax used by the Print method in Visual Basic 6.0.

For more information, see Printer Compatibility Library.

Also included is a bootstrapping package that lets you easily redistribute the Visual Basic Power Packs with an application. This lets you include the Power Packs in a ClickOnce Project or Setup Project by just clicking a check box.

For more information, see Deploying Applications That Reference Power Packs Controls.

If you have Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008 installed on the same computer, then when you first start Visual Studio 2008, you can migrate most of your settings from Visual Studio 2005. Third-party code snippets and add-ins cannot be automatically migrated and must be manually installed again for use in Visual Studio 2008. If you do not have Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008 installed on the same computer, you can still manually migrate your Visual Studio 2005 settings for use in Visual Studio 2008. For more information, see How to: Share Settings Between Computers or Visual Studio Versions and Visual Studio Settings.

When you author community components by using Visual Studio 2008, you can specify whether you intend the component to be installed for use with Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008 or just with Visual Studio 2008 by using a new value for the ContentVersion element. If you install a community component designed in Visual Studio 2005, the component will automatically be installed for use with both Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008.

Note:
A community component created by using Visual Studio 2005 might not work in Visual Studio 2008 and vice versa, depending on the design.

For more information, see How to: Package Community Components to Use the Visual Studio Content Installer and Community Component Essentials.

The Community menu has been removed for Visual Studio 2008. The commands formerly known as Ask a Question and Check Question Status have been combined into a new command named MSDN Forums, which is on the Help menu. The Send Feedback command is now the Report a Bug command, also on the Help menu. All other commands that were on the Community menu were removed from Visual Studio 2008.

Several user interface (UI) elements have been updated. These include the following:

• IDE Navigator: An improved interface makes switching between items easier.

• Tool window docking targets have been improved to make tool windows easier to dock.

• Common dialog boxes: Visual Studio 2008 uses Windows standard dialog boxes instead of custom dialog boxes. This makes the navigation experience more consistent with that of Windows.

• You can now specify a custom font for IDE elements not identified individually in the Show settings for list in the Fonts and Colors, Environment, Options Dialog Box by using the new option Environment Font.

In earlier versions of Visual Studio, the Class Designer supported only the managed languages (Visual C# and Visual Basic). In Visual Studio 2008, Class Designer adds limited support for native C++ code that can be used only for visualization and documentation. For more information about Visual C++ support in Class Designer, see Working with Visual C++ Code in Class Designer.

The new Web application project model includes a structure that is based on project files and a build model that is based on compiling all the code for a project into one assembly. In addition, the new project type supports many of the new features of Visual Studio (such as class diagrams, test development, and generics) and of ASP.NET version 2.0 (such as master pages, data controls, membership and logon, role management, Web parts, personalization, site navigation, and themes).

The Web application project model in Visual Studio removes two elements that are required for Web projects in Visual Studio .NET 2003:

• Using FrontPage Server Extensions. These are no longer required, but they are supported if your site already uses them.

• Using a local copy of Internet Information Services (IIS). The new project model supports both IIS and the built-in ASP.NET Development Server.

Use Web application projects when you have to do one of the following:

• Migrate large applications from earlier versions of Visual Studio.

• Control the names of output assemblies.

• Use stand-alone classes to reference page and user-control classes.

• Build a Web application that includes multiple Web projects.

• Add pre-build and post-build steps during compilation.

For more information about Web application projects, see Web Application Projects Overview.

You can now create Web applications that feature next-generation user interfaces and reusable client components that use the new features of Visual Studio. You can develop Web pages by using a server-based approach, a client-based approach, or a combination of both, according to your requirements. The AJAX server-based and client-based programming models are supported by the following:

• Server controls that support server-based AJAX development. This includes the ScriptManager, UpdatePanel, UpdateProgress, and Timer controls. These controls enable you to create rich client behavior, such as partial-page rendering and displaying update progress during asynchronous postbacks, with little or no client script.

• The Microsoft AJAX Library, which supports client-based, object-oriented development that is browser independent. In addition to supporting the new AJAX-enabled server controls, the client library enables you to develop custom client components that extend DOM elements or that represent a DOM element.

• Server classes that enable you to develop server controls that map to custom client components whose events and properties are set declaratively. Server types that support this functionality include controls that derive from the ExtenderControl or ScriptControl base classes, or that implement the IExtenderControl or IScriptControl interfaces.

• Support for script globalization and localization. Globalization enables you to display dates and numbers based on a culture value (locale). Localization enables you to specify localized content (text, images, and so on) for client components for UI elements or exception messages.

• Access to Web services and to ASP.NET authentication, roles management, and profile application services.

Visual Studio 2008 enables you to easily enable asynchronous partial-page updates in a page, which avoids the overhead of full-page postbacks. You can just put existing controls and markup inside UpdatePanel controls. Postbacks from inside an UpdatePanel control become asynchronous postbacks and refresh only the part of the page inside the panel, which creates a more fluid user experience. You can display the progress of the partial-page update by using UpdateProgress controls.

Project Designer Support for Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) Applications

Project Designer Support for Web Application Projects

Project Designer Multitargeting Support

ClickOnce Deployment

Windows Installer Deployment

Visual Studio 2008 now has a rich CSS editing experience with several new tools to make working with cascading style sheets (CSS) easier than ever. Much of the work designing the layout and styling content can be done in Design view using the CSS Properties grid, the Apply Styles and Manage Styles panes, and the Direct Style Application tool. You can also change positioning, padding, and margins in Design view using WYSIWYG visual layout tools.

IntelliSense has been significantly improved and now supports JScript authoring and ASP.NET AJAX scripting. Client script that is included in a Web page by using <script> tags now has the benefit of IntelliSense, as do .js script files.

Additionally, IntelliSense displays XML code comments. XML code comments are used to describe the summary, parameter, and return details of the client script. ASP.NET AJAX also uses XML code comments to provide IntelliSense of ASP.NET AJAX types and members. IntelliSense is also supported for external script file references that use XML code comments.

You now can specify that the Object Browser display only information for a single version of the .NET Framework or the .NET Compact Framework. In addition, Find Symbol, Find and Replace Window searches can be restricted to a single version of the .NET Framework or the .NET Compact Framework. 

The Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) Designer lets you create WPF applications and custom controls in the IDE. The WPF Designer combines real-time editing of XAML with an enhanced graphical design-time experience. The following features are new for the WPF Designer:

• SplitView lets you adjust objects in the graphical designer and immediately view the changes to the underlying XAML code. Likewise, changes to the XAML code are immediately reflected in the graphical designer.

• The Document Outline window lets you view and move through your XAML with full selection synchronization between the designer, the document outline, the XAML editor, and the Properties window.

• IntelliSense in the XAML editor enables rapid code entry. IntelliSense now supports types that you have defined.

• Grid lines can be added to grids in the designer to enable easy grid-based control placement.

• Snap lines let you easily align controls and text.

• The designer now supports the loading of types you have defined. These include custom controls and user controls.

• You can cancel loading of large XAML files.

• Design-time extensibility supports design mode and property editors.

• For more information, see WPF Designer.

Visual Studio 2008 includes two new project templates for creating reporting applications. You will find the Reports Application template available on the New Project dialog box and the ASP.NET Reports Web Site template available on the New Web Site dialog box. When you create a new Reports Application project, Visual Studio provides a report (.rdlc) and a form (.vb/.cs) with a ReportViewer control bound to the report. For an ASP.NET Reports Web Site project, Visual Studio will create a Web site that contains a report (.rdlc), default ASP.NET page (.aspx) with a ReportViewer control bound to the report, and Web configuration file (.config).

When you create a report project, a new Report Wizard is started. You can then use the wizard to build the report, or alternatively, close the wizard and build the report manually.

Visual Studio 2008 introduces a Report Wizard, which guides you through the steps to create a basic report. You will select a report data source, define a data set, select a report type (tabular or matrix), and apply a style to the report. After you complete the wizard, you can enhance the report by using Report Designer.

The Report Wizard is started automatically when you create a new Reports Application project or ASP.NET Reports Web Site.

The Expression Editor now provides sample expressions that you can use in report expressions. You can copy the sample expressions to your report to use as is or modify to suit your needs.

The RSClientPrint control is now available when the ASP.NET ReportViewer control is configured for local processing. This enables you to print reports that have been processed by the control and are independent of a report server.

The ReportViewer controls will now compress reports that are rendered or exported to the PDF format when they are configured for local processing.

MSBuild now lets you build projects for specific versions of the .NET Framework. Several new API functions support this new functionality. For more information, see Building for Specific .NET Frameworks.

MSBuild now recognizes when a system is using multiple processors, either multicore processors or multiple separate processors. MSBuild uses all the available processors to reduce the overall build time for projects. For more information, see Using Multiple Processors to Build Projects.

Build event logging has been upgraded to handle multi-processor builds. MSBuild now supports the distributed logging model in addition to the central logging model, and introduces a new technology known as "forwarding loggers." For more information, see Logging in MSBuild. 

The new ItemDefinitionGroup project file element lets you define a set of Item Definitions, which are global default metadata values that are applied to all items in the project. For more information, see Item Definitions.

The file names and locations of the MSBuild assemblies have been updated for Visual Studio 2008. The following assemblies now have "v3.5" appended to their file names:

• Microsoft.Build.Conversion.v3.5.dll

• Microsoft.Build.Utilities.v3.5.dll

• Microsoft.Build.Tasks.v3.5.dll

In addition, the following build assemblies are now located in \Program Files\Reference Assemblies\Microsoft\Framework\v3.5\:

• Microsoft.Build.Conversion.v3.5.dll

• Microsoft.Build.Engine.dll

• Microsoft.Build.Framework.dll

• Microsoft.Build.Utilities.v3.5.dll

The Microsoft.Build.Tasks.v3.5.dll file is located in \Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v3.5\.