Microsoft updates developer tools

Microsoft has released updates for two of its most popular developer tools.

The company has released the first copies of the Service Pack 1 versions of Visual Studio and .Net Framework 3.5 to manufacturers.

Along with the cumulative security updates and big fixes, the service pack releases also add a number of new features to both products.

For .Net users, the update will include the Framework Client Profile, a tool which reduces the size of the .Net framework by 86 per cent, making applications built with the framework smaller and easier to deploy, claims Microsoft.

"This is a huge step forward for the more than 4 million .NET developers worldwide," proclaimed Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of Microsoft's .Net developer division.

"The .Net Framework Client Profile significantly speeds up the installation of Windows and enables a much more consumer-friendly experience."

Much of the Visual Studio update revolves around web-based applications. The 2008 SP1 release sports improvements to the AJAX and Javascript components, as well as improved tools for ADO.Net Entity Framework and better WPF development tools.

The new Visual Studio release will also be fine-tuned to work with SQL Server 2008, allowing developers to tap into the database management platform when creating new applications.

Users can download both updates from Microsoft's download site.