.NET 3.0: It's A Coming

Believe it or not, .NET 3.0 is barreling down the tracks at top speed. Jeez, it seems like just yesterday that .NET 2.0 appeared on the scene.

Of course, this doesn't mean that .NET 2.0 is going away. Quite the contrary. .NET 3.0 relies on .NET 2.0, it doesn't replace it. What .NET 3.0 does replace--in name only--is WinFX. Putting this another way, .NET 3.0 is the next-generation Windows development API that will be released with Windows Vista. When is that? Your guess is as good as mine, but probably sometime early next year.

So you're probably wondering how I came to be such an expert on .NET 3.0.

That's easy. Yesterday afternoon I spent an hour or so chatting with Juval Lowy, an acknowledged expert on .NET 3.0, among other Windows-related subjects. Our conversation focused exclusively on .NET 3.0 and was, well, very enlightening and highly fascinating. Even entertaining.

What precipitated the conversation was a netseminar entitled ".NET 3.0: It's Just Down the Road" that I moderated and in which Juval did most of the talking. (I've learned that the trick to successful netseminars is for me to keep my trap shut. Everyone seems happier that way, and listeners end up learning more.) All in all, about 1000 listeners signed up and 500 or so eventually showed up. For those who couldn't make it to the session, the event is archived and you can catch up on what Juval had to say at any time.

Juval explained what .NET 3.0 is, focusing on its core parts--the Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Windows Workflow Foundation (WF), and Windows CardsSpace (WCS). Particularly in the Q&A session with readers at the end, he went on to describe how it relates stuff like Windows 2000, .NET 1.1, Visual Studio 2005, and the like.

In fact, the netseminar is just part of a program by Dr. Dobb's to clearly explain what's what in terms of .NET 3.0. We'll conducing a series of roadshow-like conferences on .NET 3.0 starting in October. The series, aptly christened as Dr. Dobb's .NET 3.0 2006 Roadshows" will kick off in Los Angeles on October 9th, then move to Mountain View, CA, on to Downers Grove, IL, next to Reston, VA, and on to New York and Waltham MA. Speakers will include Juval, Michele Leroux Bustamante, and Brian Noyes, all noted .NET 3.0 experts.

In one of the audience polling questions we put forth in yesterday's netseminar, we asked when listeners expected to start serious .NET 3.0 development. If I recall correctly, about 58 percent expected to be doing so by, say, mid next year.

Like it or not, .NET 3.0 will be happening and it will offer new opportunities and challenges for developers. The netseminar and roadshow events offer a great opportunity for you to jump ahead. Hope to see you there.

Posted by Jon Erickson at 10:36 AM  Permalink