ASP.NET Application Development – Tools

Question

Hi,

We are building an ASP.NET website using C#.NET language and VSTS 2008.

Would you please let me know which are all the third-party tools those can help us in the complete SDLC of this project?

Thank you..

Regards, Karina.

Answer 1

Try Microsoft Team Foundation Server. It will handle your source control, work item tracking, bug tracking, reports, and provide you with a Sharepoint project portal.

Answer 2

Phew! There's lots that you can use, basically a complete eco-system has been constructed around this.

Much depends on

• the process you'll use to develop the software (waterfall? agile? a mix?)
• where your people are (if you have remote folks, you'll need good collaboration)
• how many you are (small projects won't need quite as much project tracking software)
• the kind of project you're on (a large complex site might need a comprehensive database management system, a small one can just use free tools)
• what metrics you need to report
• how experienced your developers are
• the kind of graphic design expertise you have and need
• your budget!

And that's just off the top of my head.

More specifically, here's some third-party tools I've used successfully that I'd not consider starting a project of any size without:

• A source code repository: Subversion is a good one, TFS is expensive but does the job
• A continuous integration server: I prefer Hudson, others like CruiseControl.NET
• A refactoring tool for software developers (Refactor!, Resharper)
• A virtual machine system for hosting test systems on a server (I use VMWare)

For larger teams where you're using Agile methodologies and need to report progress, consider Scrumworks.

Putting it another way, I'd suggest that you budget at least $500 per developer for tools, add-ons and geegaws beyond Visual Studio.

Answer 3

At home I use:

tortoises - Source Control - http://tortoisesvn.tigris.org/
ankhsvn - VS Integration - http://ankhsvn.open.collab.net/
CruiseControl.Net - Continuous Integration - http://confluence.public.thoughtworks.org/display/CCNET/Welcome+to+CruiseControl.NET
Screwturn wiki - wiki for knowledge sharing - http://www.screwturn.eu/

At work I use TFS.

Answer 4

Check out Elementool for 7 integrated tools to handle your issue tracking, test case management, time tracking, help desk, and file sharing tasks. Elementool also offers forums and docs, which integrate with the above tools. The tools are all web-based, so you can have an unlimited number of users logging on from any location.