what does dotnet 3.5 get me?

[BeemerBiker]

I am using VS2008 pro but set my project to use dotnet 2.0. It (VS2008) came with ajax and I didnt have to download ajax like I did with VS2005.

I just switched to dotnet 3.5 in the configuration manager and all I see are the same 6 items under "ajax" that were there with 2.0. I expected to see some more stuff especially tooltips with clickable links.

OK, I went to that ajax dotnet site and can download a toolkit but they suggest one toolkit for 2.0 and another for 3.5.

I checked with admin where I work and the server my app is going on is a 2003 server with dotnet 2 and sharepoint. I assume they can put 3.5 on it.

Question: Should I get the 3.5 toolkit and will it get me clickable tooltips?

I also brought up VS2005 and there are only the same 6 ajax features with no toolkit. Can I also download the 2.0 toolkit and put it just into VS2005?

Is VS2008 smart enough to show me only 2.0 ajax tools if I switch from 3.5 back to 2.0 or vice-versa? I assume the ajax toolkit goes into the Visual Studio toolbox but I could be wrong.

TIA

[Frinavale]

You may not see any cool new tools added with the .NET Framework 3.5;
But it includes new web protocol support for building WCF services including AJAX, JSON, REST, POX, RSS, ATOM, and several new WS-* standards.... and full tooling support in Visual Studio 2008 for WF, WCF, and WPF, including the new workflow-enabled services technology.

With Visual Studio 2008, you have the ability to create Silverlight applications....

There are a whole bunch of new and exciting things included in the 3.5 Framework that make life easier and let you do some pretty cool things.

If I were you I'd upgrade to Visual Studio and make use of the features available in the 3.5 Framework....since there's nothing holding you back.

-Frinny