Desmond File

Blog archive

Microsoft Updates HTML5 Support for Visual Studio

Microsoft today released its Web Standards Update for Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 SP1. The update works on both commercial versions of Visual Studio, as well as the free Visual Web Developer Express 2010 SP1. The download, hosted on the Visual Studio Gallery Web site, can be found here.

The first in a planned series of releases, the Web Standards Update features improved HTML5 support and adds support for CSS 3. Also added is JavaScript IntelliSense support for additional APIs. According to the site, Microsoft expects to release new updates about "every three months to keep Visual Studio updated with the changes made by W3C."

Scott Hanselman, Principal Program Manager Lead at Microsoft, described the update in detail in a blog post.

"We don't know what all will come in the next version of Visual Studio, or the next version of HTML5, but for those of you who are interested, we hope this 'living update' of Web Standards support for Visual Studio will help you out!" he wrote.

Hanselman also took a moment to rib developers concerned about the fate of Silverlight, after a pair of Windows 8 demos highlighting the HTML5 capabilities of the new OS failed to make mention of Silverlight.

"This is an update for ASP.NET and HTML5 editing people who want to use HTML5, new JavaScript features and CSS3," he wrote in a P.S. to his blog post. "I didn't mention Silverlight because it has nothing to do with Silverlight. I said once 'just because your favorite technology isn't mentioned in a keynote doesn't mean it's dead.' Assume that the same rule applies to a Blog Post."

Posted by Michael Desmond on 06/16/2011 at 12:54 PM


Reader Comments:

Wed, Aug 10, 2011 David Longstreth Florida

Wow, great comment by Mr. Vogel. In VS 2010 the CSS file is there, you don't have to use it. However if you wish to learn, there you go.

Wed, Jun 22, 2011 Peter Vogel Canada

Rather than cramming HTML/JavaScript down our throats, Microsoft is ensuring that, if you want to use these technologies, you can do so in what is my favourite development environment. I would be far unhappier if Microsoft didn't include this support. I (or my clients) can decide what technologies we don't/don't want--I don't want Microsoft to make that decision on my behalf by not providing support for some industry standard.

Sat, Jun 18, 2011 HTML? Again? Really?

Quote from InfoWorld:
"The Web is not good enough to be your app library.

I've been using a beta Chromebook since they were first available in December 2010 and working regularly on an iPad and MacBook Pro, as well as testing most major tablets, trying out the Atrix Lapdock (a dockable smartphone), and dabbling in Windows 7 periodically. It's become quite clear that the Web is an insufficient venue to handle all your computing needs.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs was right when he ended the Web-app-only strategy of the iPhone after its first year and switched to an Internet-enhanced native apps model. I didn't have an iPhone back then (2007), so I didn't experience what early iPhone users went through in a Web app-only world. But the iPhone as we know it did not explode until the native apps came. For Chrome OS, we don't need to wait: Windows 7 and Mac OS X are here today, and they can run Web apps, too.
The Chrome OS Web apps, as I said, are primitive. If you've used Webmail, you know what I mean. Imagine if all your apps were like that. They just don't compare to the quality of "real" apps, whether on a tablet or computer. Google's own cloud services, such as Google Docs, are awkward on Chromebook -- even moreso than they are on a PC. If Google can't do Web apps well, don't expect anyone else to."

Fri, Jun 17, 2011

I'm very glad to see the HTML5, CSS, and Javascript update to Visual Studio. Unlike some people, who fail to see that HTML5 is the future, I'm appreciative that Microsoft is actually staying on the forefront of this, for a change.

Thu, Jun 16, 2011

I suspect Hansel hasn't had any Gretel for quite awhile, and so is venting his frustration at Silverlight users.

Thu, Jun 16, 2011

I do wish MS would quit trying to cram all this HTML/Javascript hacking crap down our throats. Professional MS stack developers have been very clear as to which technologies we want to see pushed to the forefront. Based on Hanselman's snarky little comment, it sounds like MS has heard us talking. Now if they would only listen to what we're saying.

Add Your Comments Now:

Your Name:(optional)
Your Email:(optional)
Your Location:(optional)
Comment:
Please type the letters/numbers you see above