How does VSTA compare to VS Express?
VSTA and VS Express are aimed at entirely different spectrums of the developer community. VSTA is designed for seamless integration into a host application, providing ISVs and IT professionals a robust customization technology. VS Express Editions are lightweight editions aimed at the hobbyist, novice, and student developer. As such, the Express editions provide an introduction to a particular aspect of Visual Studio, but do not provide the robust development environment found in VSTA. Some specific differences: · Multiple Language Support: · VSTA supports VB.Net and VC# · The only VS Express version supporting multiple languages is Visual Web Developer, but this edition is target at web development scenarios, and not rich client development. · User Experience · While VSTA and VS Express share simplified menu options and defaults, VSTA is more streamlined to remove options/features that are not required for application customization (ie – publishing a solution, creating non-application
