Another area where the open source community in particular has stepped up for .NET is in the testing space. NUnit is a popular unit-testing framework for the .NET languages that was originally ported from JUnit, the well known unit testing tool for Java. NUnit is a popular tool among software developers and has been completely re-written using C#.
The tool boasts a command line or GUI user interface for testing applications. The command line suits running large test batches where you don't necessarily need to see the results at once, while the GUI features a -stoplight" approach where green, yellow and red indicators are used to return the test status.
The latest version of the tool is 2.2 and if you are using MonoDevelop, the open source IDE for developing .NET applications on Linux and other platforms, a version is installed with the product but you will need to upgrade to get the latest version.
Summary
So the question remains, can you replace Visual Studio completely? The answer is yes, as long as you are happy with the alternatives -- for developers who are new to .NET development it will be easier to get them started on another development environment, but for hard-core Visual Studio.NET users, there has to be a compelling reason or feature to get them to a new platform. Of course, with the increasing cost of Visual Studio.NET some of the open source and low-cost alternatives we have looked at may just fit the bill.
| Tool | Ease of use | Features and functionality | User interface development | Code development | Platform and language support | Documentation and support | Cost |
| Visual Studio.NET |  |
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| Visual SlickEdit | |
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| Macromedia Dreamweaver | |
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1
Rob Poyntz - 22/06/05
How could you perform this comparison of tools without considering the Borland Developer Studio / Delphi 2005? With support for both Delphi.Net and C#, surely the author should have considered this IDE in the article?
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2
Brendon Chase - 23/06/05
We chose these tools because they were a cheap alternative and lesser known than other enterprise options such as Delphi 05. We have covered Borland tools for .NET (well C# Builder just before Delphi 05) in our RAD tools comparison which can be found here:
http://www.builderau.com.au/program/0,39024614,39131183-5,00.htm
However, stay tuned for a head-to-head with VS in the near future!
Thanks for feedback,
Brendon Chase
Editor, Builder
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3
David Boccabella - 23/06/05
I agree SharpDevelop is an excellent product for learing the more advance features on .NET
One can purchase the standard and professional versions of VB.NET however it does not allow you to create Services etc..
SharpDevelop fills that gap and in a connstant developmetn cycle to improve it.
Very good Product indeed.
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4
Witness - 23/06/05
Visual SlickEdit costs $284 for a single copy. How can it be "Excellent" for cost??? Is the writer using a pirated copy of it? :-)
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5
Lewis Daniells - 23/06/05
Visual SlickEdit isn't free?
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6
James Brockman - 24/06/05
There was one other product that was worth mentioning:
http://www.c-point.com/c_sharp_editor.php
James Brockman
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7
Andrew Arnott - 25/06/05
Dreamweaver is NOT a replacement for Visual Studio coding.
It may have the ability to create an .aspx page, and even drop in a few standard ASP.NET controls, but in no way can it replace VS for writing Windows Forms applications, or any decently sized, ASP.NET-utilizing web app. Heck, it doesn't even have support for a compiler.
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8
Jon Paal - 30/06/05
Sharp Develop is not an excellent product. It is horribly buggy and hangs on every attempt to exit. the help and documentation is out of sync with the current version, the copy to clipboard often throws an ugly error message. I could go on.
Yes it's definitely free and it shows.
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9
Piet Pieters - 11/07/05
What about Borland Delphi ? The Delphi 2005 IDE can be used to develop .NET applications in Delphi and in C#.
http://www.borland.com/us/products/delphi/index.html
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