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Microsoft Application Platform at a Glance

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“To stay on the map you've got to keep showing up.” -- Peter Gallagher

Periodically I create a map of the Microsoft application platform.  (Here is my previous map of the Microsoft application platform.)   Making the map helps me stay on top of the platform, identify potential changes to architecture and design strategies, and anticipate trends.  It also helps me figure out where to invest my time and energy.  It also helps me see potential customer confusion.

Here is my latest map of the Microsoft application platform:

Category

Items

Application Infrastructure
  • .NET Framework
  • Base Class Libraries (BCL)
  • Common Language Runtime (CLR)
  • Language Integrated Query (LINQ)

ALM (Application Life-Cycle Management)
  • Visual Studio Team System
  • Visual Studio Team Foundation Server

App Frameworks / Extensions
  • Enterprise Library
  • Managed Extensibility Framework (MEF)

Cloud
  • Windows Azure
  • Windows Azure DataMarket (“Dallas”)
  • Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio
  • App Fabric
  • SQL Azure

Collaboration / Integration / Workflow
  • SharePoint Server
  • Windows Workflow Foundation (WF)
  • Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS)
  • Microsoft BizTalk Server

Data Access
  • ADO.NET Core
  • ADO.NET Entity Framework
  • ADO.NET Sync Framework
  • LINQ to SQL
  • OData
  • WCF Data Services
  • WCF RIA Services

Database Server / Storage
  • SQL Azure
  • SQL Server
  • SQL Server Compact

Desktop
  • WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation)
  • Silverlight (Out-of-Browser)
  • Windows Forms

Developer Tools
  • Microsoft Visual Studio
  • Microsoft Expression Studio
  • Microsoft Visual Studio Express
  • Microsoft Visual Studio LightSwitch
  • Microsoft Visual Studio Team Foundation Server

Games
  • XNA
  • D3D
  • Win32

Identity
  • WIF (Windows Identity Foundation) (Geneva)
  • Active Directory Federation Services (Geneva Server)
  • Card Space

Languages
  • Common Language Runtime (CLR)
  • Dynamic Language Runtime
  • Visual Basic
  • Visual C#
  • Visual C++
  • F#
  • Iron Python
  • IronRuby

LINQ
  • LINQ to Entities
  • LINQ to SQL
  • LINQ to XML
  • LINQ to DataSet
  • LINQ to Objects

Manageability
  • Systems Center Operations Manager (SCOM)

Office
  • Office 2010
  • Visual Studio Office Development Projects
  • Office 2010 PIA (Primary Interop Assemblies)

Parallel
  • F#
  • Parallel Extensions for .NET
  • PLINQ
  • Task Library

Phone
  • Silverlight for Windows Phone
  • XNA Framework
  • Windows Phone Developer Tools

Services
  • Windows Communication Foundation (WCF)
  • WCF Data Services (ADO.NET Data Services, Astoria)
  • WCF Web APIs
  • WCF RIA Services
  • ASP.NET Web Services (ASMX)

Web
  • ASP.NET Web Forms
  • ASP.NET Web Pages (WebMatrix)
  • ASP.NET MVC
  • Silverlight
  • SharePoint Server
  • CSS
  • HTML / HTML 5.0
  • Internet Explorer
  • JavaScript (Jscript) / JavaScript (as of IE 9)

Web Server
  • Internet Information Services (IIS)
  • IIS Express
  • Web Farm Framework

Windows Server
  • Windows Server
  • Windows Server App Fabric (Dublin + Velocity)

Many thanks to Adam Grocholski, Alik Levin, Chris Sells, Jesse Liberty, Joe Stagner, Jon Galloway, Pete Brown, and Rob Boucher for helping review.

Comments

  • Anonymous
    October 30, 2010
    Surely Sharepoint put in category of Colloboration and Doc Management. Not an category of its own. if someone was looking for those categories they would not find it

  • Anonymous
    October 30, 2010
    @ Abe -- Good point.  I moved SharePoint to the collaboration and Web buckets.

  • Anonymous
    October 30, 2010
    J.D., in an upcoming version, it's suggested to include native technologies as well (C++ based all). For instance, for Web Services, instead of WCF the involved technology is Windows Web Services.

  • Anonymous
    October 31, 2010
    @ Diegum -- It sounds like the map will soon need another sweep :)