subject: First Step Towards Open Source - Microsoft Web Matrix 2 [print this page] We love free stuffsWe love free stuffs. Lets not discuss about pirated versions, there are lots of legal options here. Any Linux user (like me) will confess that one reason of their association is the free factor. Yes Linux is free, like any open source software, which means you can download freely and install/use wherever you want. Microsoft, who sold almost every product it produced for a price, is going to take a step towards open sourcing with the release of webmatrix 2, the all-in-one web development toolkit which is completely FREE!!
This release has a streamlined install, which means you just need to select your favourite open source application and get it install conveniently. Customized dashboard and application specific extensions make this product an excellent proposition. With webmatrix you can quickly publish content to a live server. Moreover, ripping and running of any site locally has become few clicks away with webmatrix 2. It has automated the process of local install, dependency checking and configuration. You can't delete any important file accidentally anymore as this tool will intuitively warn you before you proceed.
We are moving to cloud computing if not already have moved. Keeping that in mind, Microsoft has made inbuilt and enhanced features for cloud publishing. If you are using Windows Azure then you can open and edit easily. Webmatrix 2 provides remote login so it doesnt really matter from where you are logging in. Sound cool? Keep reading.
Webmatrix 2 can easily build sites using prebuilt templates for ASP lovers or apps for Joomal lovers. Latest web technologies like CS3 or HTML5 are supported of course.
MS kept in mind the SEO practitioners as well and inserted a very handy tool which will intuitively tell if anything needs a tag or if any page is loading slow.
Looking at the growing trend of using mobile devices for accessing the internet, it is necessary to have your website to be mobile-optimized. Microsoft carefully covered this aspect too. What's more, you can emulate few popular mobile devices like windows phone or iPhone or iPad to see how exactly your website will look in those devices. WebMatrix 2 introduces a code completion feature for jQuery Mobile which intuitively guesses for you the correct syntaxes and keywords.
Looking at the features, and of course the free factor, webmatrix 2 looks like a killer application and a must-have for all web developers and administrators. If you want training, you can go to the Microsoft site and choose from a preferred list of trainers. Coming from the IT giant called Microsoft, we can be highly expectant that this tool will introduce us to a new era of web development.
