The best way for an independent developer to get modern Microsoft control?
Considering that I:
- solo developer using VS2008 Professional
- looking for Microsoft source code source (I know there are alternatives)
- wants to get away from Visual SourceSafe 2005
Is it correct that my only option is to drop ~ $ 8k on Visual Studio Team System 2008 Development Edition ($ 5,469) + Team Foundation Server ($ 2,799) - to get the TFS version control component?
Reading the answers to other related questions, it looks like the routes to lowering the price of TFS are either by becoming a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner or by taking advantage of the ISV Empower Program. I would welcome any comments related to these options.
The top non-Microsoft solution looks like Subversion + VisualSVN , but I'd really like to go the all-Microsoft route if I can drop it.
The reason I want to go is because I prefer to try the patented solution first and then try alternatives with that experience. Plus, I've had a rare, positive experience with SourceSafe. Or maybe I'm just an MS fanboy closet. :-)
Also, does the image change at all when VS2010 is released?
Thank!
PS I am downloading VisualSVN now to give this snapshot as there is no reason for this.
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Given that you are an independent developer, and while I fully understand that you want to take the full-featured Microsoft route, I cannot stress the high enough point that using one over the other won't mean as much to you.
When I started using Source Control, I used VSS ... like many others on this site. After about 4 months, I quickly realized that there were a lot of problems with it (namely, that it was garbled every 10 days or so, and that it caused me a terrible error).
I switched to SVN and I must admit I am quite happy with the result. When you build your dev team to be 2,3,4,5 ... then look into the invoice. You will find that you can get the same impact on the Team Suite if you integrate SVN with something like fogbugz or look at something like CodeSpaces
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If you are a solo developer, you may not need the TFS path. As the product name suggests this is for teams. I suggest diving into version control systems like Subversion + TortoiseSVN or Mercurial + TortoiseHg. You can even use a web source control if it suits your needs like Launchpad.net
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