What you get in .Net

The framework is a set of programming interfaces at the heart of .Net. It is the execution environment for .Net applications and handles many common programming tasks regardless of programming language. Visual Studio.Net is a suite of programming tools that supports multiple languages, including Microsoft's new C#.

A core set of Internet-based applications, such as file storage, preference management and calendars. HailStorm, which includes authentication and instant messaging, is the first set of such applications. Others will come from developers, but all are intended to be building blocks that can be incorporated into broader .Net applications.

Eight servers that create a platform for building and deploying Web services. Windows 2000 is the foundation, but it won't likely morph into Windows.Net until 2003, with such key ingredients as voice recognition. Other important servers are SQL Server for housing XML data; Application Center to support Web server load balancing; BizTalk for XML translation and building business workflows; Host Integration Server for connection to mainframes; and Mobile Information Server, a gateway to applications for mobile devices.

These offerings, all in their infancy, include wireless Pocket PCs, phones with Microsoft's Stinger technology and the newly unveiled Tablet PC. Microsoft provides the software and other vendors the hardware.

The "smart" in smart devices refers to their ability to take on some of the processing power of .Net applications and support work in offline mode. It also means the devices know you, other devices, the network and its constraints, and how to act on information.