Future of VB.Net

For some reason VB.Net seems to be surrounded by many myths. The latest rumor is that its days are numbered and will soon be gone after VS.Net 2.0 is released. Nothing could be further from the truth! For years Microsoft has been supporting VB as a RAD (Rapid Application Development) Tool, and this is still true.

My experience from attending Microsoft training seminars and talking to other professionals in the field is that VB is here to stay and will not be replaced by C#. The only speculations I have heard were on blogs, but nothing official from Microsoft. Besides, both C# and VB.Net are very similar in most aspects with very few differences. In Whidbey, these differences are even less. It is true that more companies are looking for C# experience over VB by 60/40 margin. This is not to say that VB is dying. To further make my case, I went straight to the source for confirmation. Listed below is an email from Rick Brewis, a Microsoft employee, and previous speaker at the last SIG meeting.


Sam,

I had a chance to speak with one of our Developer Evangelists about VB.NET. He emphasized that VB.Net is here for the long haul and Microsoft continues to invest in enhancing the product. In fact, Microsoft is 100% committed to VB.NET going forward. To emphasize the fact that VB.NET has a strong future, please see the article referenced below discussing the great language enhancements for VB.NET in VS2005.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/vbasic/default.aspx?pull=/library/en-us/dnvs05/html/LanguageEnhancements.asp

Also, here’s a link to 2 free MS Press books on VB.NET development in VS2005 that you can share with the SIG:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/vbasic/whidbey/introto2005/
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vbrun/staythepath/additionalresources/upgradingvb6/

I hope you find this information helpful. Let me know if you need anything else.

Regards,

Rick
Rick Brewis
Microsoft


Like I always say: when in doubt, go straight to the source!