About Visual Studio

The Microsoft Visual Studio development system is a suite of development tools designed to aid software developers—whether they are novices or seasoned professionals—face complex challenges and create innovative solutions. Every day, software developers break through tough problems to create software that makes a difference in the lives of others. Visual Studio's role is to improve the process of development to make the work of achieving those breakthroughs easier and more satisfying.

How Visual Studio improves the process of development:

Productive

Visual Studio-branded tools continually deliver better ways for software developers to do more with less energy wasted on repetition and drudgery. From efficient code editors, IntelliSense, Wizards, and multiple coding languages in one integrated development environment (IDE) to high-end application life-cycle management (ALM) products in Microsoft® Visual Studio® Team System. New versions of Visual Studio keep bringing innovative tools to help developers focus on solving problems, not waste time on minutiae.

Integrated

With Visual Studio, software developers benefit from an integrated product experience that spans tools, servers, and services. Visual Studio products work well together—not just with one another, but also with other Microsoft software, such as Microsoft server products and the Microsoft Office system.

Comprehensive

Visual Studio offers a choice of tools for all phases of software development—development, testing, deployment, integration, and management—and for every kind of developer—from the novice to the skilled professional. Visual Studio is also engineered to support development across all types of devices—PCs, servers, the Web, and mobile devices.

Reliable

Visual Studio is engineered and tested to be consistently dependable, secure, interoperable, and compatible. Visual Studio offers an unmatched combination of security features, scalability, and interoperability. Although Visual Studio always incorporates forward-thinking features, it is designed to ensure backward-compatibility wherever possible.

Visual Studio and the Microsoft Application Platform

The Microsoft Application Platform is a portfolio of technology capabilities, core products, and best practice guidance focused on helping IT and development departments partner with the business to maximize opportunity.

As one of the core products of the Microsoft Application Platform, Visual Studio can help you drive the right business efficiencies, customer connections, and value-added services by providing a single, fully integrated development environment for all types of development, including Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office, Web, and mobile applications. Use Visual Studio development solutions to give your development team powerful ways to:

• Increase productivity and quality through integrated and familiar tools.
• Deploy, secure, and support your critical Web applications and infrastructure.
• Reduce costs through better visibility of your development process.
• Provide better predictability and planning through integrated process and methodology support.