Every few years, there are new technology waves that software developers can catch. Each of these waves brings a new set of opportunities and it's the smart developer who sees these waves coming and rides them to shore.
Historically, Microsoft has provided the most tasty waves, and developers who caught them have prospered. Some of the waves I have seen are:
Microsoft Access- This is the first big wave that I remember. Microsoft launched Microsoft Access with a $99.00 price tag. They immediately changed the entire software industry, lowering the average price of software around 80%. After lowering the price, Microsoft sold millions of copies of Access. With each copy of Access sold, there was a proportional number of developers required to create applications. This provided untold numbers of consulting and development engagements.
Active Server Pages and IIS - Microsoft was late to the Internet party, but when they got there they came packing some really great development tools. ASP and IIS were adopted by thousands of companies, including many in the Fortune 500. These technologies, accompanied by the DNA architecture, provided numerous opportunities for developers.
Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 - Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 raised the bar for database technologies. SQL Server 7.0 provided very powerful scalable database tools, making them easy to install, configure and maintain, while also making them affordable.
Microsoft Visual Studio .NET - The next wave is coming now and it is called .NET. Microsoft has created a great development environment for the coming years. With a powerful Visual Studio .NET IDE and an extensive framework, .NET should provide thousands of training, consulting and development opportunities for the coming years.
This issue of Component Developer Magazine deals with a number of interesting topics that will help you catch the .NET wave. We have great articles on the .NET Framework, the Visual Studio .NET IDE, and COM Interop in Visual Studio .NET. There are also some great articles on using the Crypto API, developing user interfaces, UML Sequence Diagrams, SQL Server Testing, and Collaborative Development.
Over the past years, those whom I have seen take advantage of these waves have prospered greatly. Which wave are you going to catch?
Introduction
This is my first editorial for Component Developer Magazine and I want to say thanks to former editor David Stevenson (who is now the Associate Publisher), the Publishers, authors and editors of previous issues. I have been a long-time reader of CODE (as a matter of fact, I'm subscriber #1) and hope to keep up with the quality of articles that have been seen in these pages. The only unfortunate thing about being the editor is that I don't get to be surprised when a new issue arrives in the mail.
If you have any questions or ideas for articles, please feel free to send me e-mail to: editor@code-magazine.com
Thanks
