By Greg DeMichillie [bio]
Posted: Nov. 6, 2006

The following an excerpt of a Research Report published by Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm focused exclusively on Microsoft strategy & technology. More samples of our content, as well as a list of upcoming articles and reports are also available.

The .NET Framework 3.0 is the latest version of Microsoft's application development platform. It includes the Common Language Runtime, which is a software component for running and loading applications, and a set of class libraries—hierarchically organized collections of code that developers can use in their applications to present graphical user interfaces, access databases and files, and communicate over the Web.

With the .NET Framework 3.0 shipping as part of Windows Vista but also available for Windows XP SP2 and Windows Server 2003 SP1, Microsoft is expanding the Framework's libraries to include sophisticated graphics, better support for Web services, workflow programming to capture business processes, and a new user interface for authentication, among other capabilities. However, another update to the .NET Framework, along with better support from Visual Studio, is due in 2007. Some IT organizations, therefore, may choose to wait until then to begin serious evaluation.