Is visual studio 2010 ready to actually build proper applications and websites on or is it just for play at this point. Any feedback on stability and performance?
+1
A:
I wouldn't recommend using it for production it is still on the first beta you (it might crush , lose your work ...) shouldn't even try it on your main machine (use a virtual machine) !
Yassir
2009-09-26 19:24:51
use it in a VM... whimp :)... I have it running on three of my computers and when it does blow up all it takes with it is its self. My only problems have been in the Flow Chart workflow designer.
Matthew Whited
2009-09-28 14:46:42
+3
A:
I think you should wait at least for beta 2 for more stability and performance. The IDE usually crashes on me at least once every 30 minutes and the performance of the new wpf GUI is not all that great yet. I've read that many improvements have been made in beta 2 and is supposed to be released in the fall.
Also, the splash screen for VS 2010 says it should only be used for evaluation purposes.
Joepro
2009-09-26 19:25:41
A:
Until it comes out in release you shouldn't build anything for production using it. Once it is in release, then you may want to start creating on it, but realize that the vast majority of your users won't have .NET 4 for quite a while.
But, there are so many changes coming out in VS2010 that you may want to start writing applications, realizing that you will have to fix them due to changes that are probably going to come, as they continue to get feedback on problems people encounter while trying to develop with it.
James Black
2009-09-26 19:28:02
One of VS 2010 big features is better multi-targeting, so while you may be using VS 2010, you don't have to use .NET 4 and could just as easily build against a previous version of the framework.
Todd
2009-09-26 19:31:48
It depends on what features you are using. Some of the features are very much .NET 4 only I expect.
James Black
2009-09-26 20:02:25
then again like 2008 some of the features are from the compiler and not the language so you can make them work without targeting for the new framework (getting auto properties and extension methods for .Net 2.0 is nice.)
Matthew Whited
2009-09-28 14:48:11
The really interesting features, at least to me, will require the .NET 4 framework installed, but your point is valid.
James Black
2009-09-28 14:51:21
A:
It works pretty okay in my opinion if you tread carefully, but there are some severe issues. For example, there are these post-it like floating debugger watch windows you can use, but they tend to crash the IDE when I remove them.
I say you should restrict use to what the splash screen says it's intended for: evaluation purposes only.
Oh, and as this question and its answers are pretty subjective, I think it should be community wiki.
Joren
2009-09-26 19:32:43
I think the number one thing I don't like about the UI is how they moved the close tab button.
Matthew Whited
2009-09-28 14:49:41
+2
A:
Even if you think it is, Microsoft haven't issued a "Go Live" licence, so you'd be in breach of their licensing agreement!
Additionally, you do not yet have redistribution rights to the .NET 4.0 runtime/framework and most customers (in a commercial environment) would feel something is wrong in being asked to download and install beta products.
Choice of a development environment at a transitional stage is always a bit of trade off... If your development cycle is likely to be 6 months or more, and you want a feature from VS2010, I'd personally be itching to start the project in VS2010, but on the flip side, always consider why you are making that choice -- professionally I'd either stick to VS2008 or ensure I dual-develop (working with VS2010 but performing regular/automated testing with VS2008).
If you are only asking because it is shiny and new or you plan to ship within six months... stick to VS2008.
Ray Hayes
2009-09-28 14:42:12
A:
I tried it, but wasn't able to convert the projects I'm working on. I'm waiting for the next beta, as I wasn't really interested in starting anything new on it.
We had some problems with VS2008 when it first came out, and only started using it with the first service pack. I don't expect VS2010 to be production-ready before release.
If you work with other people, remember that VS project files tend not to be backwards compatible, so if you start a VS2010 project other people may have to use VS2010 on it, and since it's still an early beta it might not work as well for them as for you.
David Thornley
2009-09-28 14:45:44