RSSNew Visual Studio, SQL Server Launch
By Nate Mook | Published November 7, 2005, 1:03 PM
With musical support from Cheap Trick, Microsoft heralded the arrival of Visual Studio 2005 and SQL Server 2005 at a special "Rock" event in San Francisco Monday. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took the stage looking uncharacteristic in a suit, and even apologized for his formal attire.
Both SQL Server, which was last updated five years ago, and Visual Studio 2005 are critical releases for Microsoft as it gears up for the debut of Windows Vista next year. The development tools, combined with .NET Framework 2.0, will usher in the next-generation of applications that focus on connectivity and streamlining business processes.
Specifically, Visual Studio 2005 boasts improved performance and security to build what Microsoft calls "enterprise-grade" applications, along with a new Team System element to facilitate collaboration within a development group. But Visual Studio Team System won't come cheap, with pricing starting at $10,939.
Ballmer admitted that SQL Server 2005 was "a little bit long in coming," but emphasized the major changes in the release.
Microsoft's flagship database can now handle up to 93,000 concurrent users, and integration with .NET Framework 2.0 brings "183 percent better performance than equivalently coded EJB-applications running on IBM WebSphere 6.0 against and Oracle 10G backend," Microsoft says.
Business intelligence has also taken center stage in SQL Server 2005. Microsoft has added built-in reporting and data analysis tools and will soon launch Business Scorecard Manager 2005 to extend that functionality. SQL Server will also offer better integration with Microsoft Office and Visual Studio.
"Through deep collaboration with our customers and partners, today we're delivering powerful new platform capabilities with unprecedented integration between the server infrastructure and development tools," Ballmer said in a statement. "We're enabling people to gain more insight into their businesses and play an even bigger role in the success of their organizations."
Despite businesses waiting through numerous delays to see the new products come to fruition, Microsoft must still convince them of the benefits, says Jupiter Research senior analyst Joe Wilcox.
"Cross-integration is either going to appeal to customers or it's going to drive them away. Conceptually, customers can reap huge benefits from the feature cross-integration," explained Wilcox. "But, assuming that cross-integrated features really work well, product A will need Products B, C or D for businesses to recognize the real feature benefits."
As previously announced, Microsoft has reworked its product editions for SQL Server 2005. Workgroup Edition is priced at $3,899 per processor, with the Standard release now running $1,000 more at $5,999. SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition remains the same at $24,999 per processor.
However, Microsoft will make available a free "Express" version of SQL Server 2005 to developers and for non-commercial use. Visual Studio 2005 Express, meanwhile, will run $49 USD.
I don't understand why MS pushes "security" in their managed code so hard, yet their own applications are written in unmanaged code to avoid security problems.
Tell me how that makes sense...
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VS2005 is very impressive. I can't wait to get my copy. We use VS2003 right now, but 2005 blows it away. I wish we would switch right away, but it'll probably be a year before we start using this in production. This IDE is far more advanced than anything else on the market. Try it, you'll love it.
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why does sql server need to cost so much?
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If your database functions well on 1 CPU, 1GB of RAM, and is smaller than 4GB in size (limitations I see MS expanding on down the road), then chances are, it won't cost you anything except download time and administrative time to implement it... go SQL Express, be Happy.
If your development needs don't require Office integration or Remote Network functionality (that is, it is developed to work locally on a client machine) then you can go Visual Studio Express and be happy.
If you need a little more, then you pay a little more to get it. If you need a lot more, then you pay a lot more... It's called Capitalism... get used to it.
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"I waaaaant yooooou to want me.."
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Come on you folks, Express Editions are excellent and absolutely free, even for commercial use. Those who really need something like VS Team Edition, are usually corporates thus can afford the price.
Btw, DigitalSin, how can you compare VS with Ruby, PHP and the rest stuff?
Ruby and PHP are pure interpreters, GCC or any other free Windows C++ compiler cannot compete with MSVC++ in terms of performance and finally, #Develop is just a joke when compared with the free Microsoft C# Express Edition IDE.
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The prices are just absurd in my opinion. Especially when you compare it to alternatives like Ruby, PHP, freeware C\C++ compilers, or even the freeware #Develop IDE for .NET
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Luckily, they're giving away the Express editions free for one year. (Meaning they're giving away free copies until then ... not that it will expire in one year. After then it's something like $50.)
But, yes, the other prices are insane if you ask me. (Not to compare ... but Apple gives away Xcode for free, and that's what even *they* use to develop most of their stuff. It'd be nice to have at least once deent, free semblance of an IDE from MS ... and the free Express editions are a start, but unfortunately that's a temporary thing.)
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Hmmm...the Sequel to SQL server ;)
Visual Studio 6.0 Enterprise Edition was over $3,000 as I recall, quite a price increase. But most users wont use the big version...the little version SHOULD still be priced like the Pro version at around $1,500 if MS wants to get business. paying $10K + is just impossible for most companies, even if they love MS...if they can't afford it, then that's that.
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