It's official!  The product we've all be waiting for is released!  It's been a fun ride, 2 years 12 days since VS 2005 was released.  Our new version has a lot of great new functionality.

Check it all out at the MSDN site for Visual Studio 2008.  The .NET Framework 3.5 is ready, there's a 90-day trial of VS, and Express Editions are free.  MSDN Subscribers can download VS 2008 now.

Some of my favorite new features are:

• Code Profiler
  The Profiler has seen huge improvements in this version.  It is quick and easy to use.  I've pinned down perf issues in code in minutes using it, including a 5x app speed gain due to string comparisons.  It is in VS Team Suite & Developer editions.
• LINQ
  I'm totally digging LINQ now and am excited to see others use it in production code.  I love all the misc language improvements in C# 3.0 (mostly due to LINQ).  My ASP.NET provider, DiscountASP.NET has had a free Beta2 sandbox to play with.  But I've been using the latest build for awhile so I'm looking forward to getting my code published. :)
• Overall Performance
  VS load fast, real fast now.  One of my favorite demos is to assign a hotkey to VS, and just keep hitting it to load instances in about 3sec each.  Given this is with the Start Page turned off and without a project loading, but overall it's noticeable better than 2005.

Stuff to Check Out

• Soma's blog and Brian Harry's on VS, they've got a lot to say!
• Keep an eye on Sara Ford's Visual Studio 2008 Tip of the Day for tweaks and tips, I learn something new every week. 
• VS 2008 even has it's own Facebook group. :)
• Defy All Challenges is a fun "Fable Meets Halo" video game style marketing campaign.
• And of course the official Microsoft MSDN website of VS 2008
• P.S.  I've been using VS'08 on Vista 64bit for awhile now and it's working out great.

(This is my first release of VS to see all the way through.  When I joined we were mid way through VS 2005.  It's exciting to see VS from start to finish.  Enjoy!)