Best of DevBlogs — 2025

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    A 10x Faster TypeScript

    TypeScript is undergoing a major performance improvement by porting its compiler and tools to a native implementation. This effort aims to improve editor startup, reduce build times by 10x, and decrease memory usage. Initial previews will be available by mid-2025, with a full feature release by the end of the year. The native port promises significant speed gains in editor responsiveness, command-line builds, and will support more advanced development features.

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    Announcing TypeScript Native Previews

    TypeScript Native Previews are now available, offering a significant speed advantage due to the native port of the TypeScript compiler using Go, shared memory parallelism, and concurrency. This preview can be installed via npm and extends the functionality in Visual Studio Code through a new extension. Although it's still in its early stages with some missing features, developers are encouraged to explore these previews and provide feedback for continued improvements.

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    Edit is now open source

    Edit is a new, lightweight open-source command-line text editor for Windows, designed to be a default editor for 64-bit versions of the OS. It offers features like multiple file support, find and replace functionality, and word wrap, and will be available for preview in the Windows Insider Program before being bundled with Windows 11.

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    Announcing TypeScript 5.9

    TypeScript 5.9 introduces several developer experience improvements including a streamlined tsc --init that generates minimal configuration files with modern defaults, support for ECMAScript's import defer syntax for deferred module evaluation, and a stable --module node20 option. The release also enhances editor tooling with expandable hover tooltips, configurable hover length, and improved DOM API documentation with summary descriptions. Performance optimizations include better type instantiation caching and reduced closure creation in file system operations.

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    PowerToys 0.95 is here: new Light Switch utility, faster Command Palette, and Peek with Spacebar

    PowerToys 0.95 introduces Light Switch, a new utility for automatic light/dark mode switching based on time or location. Command Palette receives major performance improvements with a new fuzzy matcher, reducing search times by up to 95% in some cases. Peek now opens with the spacebar by default, Find My Mouse supports transparency, and shortcut conflicts can be ignored or unassigned. Additional updates include Mouse Pointer Crosshairs customization, DSC v3 support, and ZoomIt smooth zooming.

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    Announcing WinUI Gallery 2.7

    WinUI Gallery 2.7 introduces sample history and favorites functionality, new samples for TitleBar and ThemeShadow controls, upgraded StoragePicker APIs with Windows App SDK 1.8, fresh typography and button styles, and over 100 community-driven improvements including accessibility fixes and UI polish.

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    PowerToys 0.93 is here: faster Command Palette, new dashboard UX and more

    PowerToys 0.93 introduces significant performance improvements through AOT compilation, reducing startup memory by 15%, load time by 40%, and installation size by 55%. The release features a redesigned Settings dashboard with clearer utility toggles and shortcuts, a new Spotlight mode for Mouse Highlighter that dims the entire screen except around the cursor, and enhanced Command Palette functionality including restored clipboard history and app pinning capabilities.

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    Microsoft for Python Developers Blog

    The November 2025 Python extension for VS Code introduces several productivity enhancements: AI-generated hover summaries can now be inserted directly as docstrings, Copilot summaries support localization, a new code action converts wildcard imports to explicit imports for better code clarity, and the debugger now supports multiple interpreters per workspace through the Python Environments Extension. Additional improvements include better PowerShell activation handling and enhanced Poetry and requirements file detection.

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    Announcing TypeScript 5.8 Beta

    TypeScript 5.8 Beta introduces several new features, including support for conditional and indexed access types, improved interoperability between ECMAScript modules and CommonJS with the `--module nodenext` flag, the `--erasableSyntaxOnly` option to ensure compatibility with Node.js' experimental TypeScript support, and optimizations for program loads and updates. Additionally, it incorporates new flags like `--module node18` and `--libReplacement` for better fine-tuning of module behaviors and library replacement lookups.

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    Previewing the JavaScript/TypeScript Modernizer for VS Code Insiders

    Microsoft introduces the JavaScript/TypeScript Modernizer, an AI-powered VS Code extension that automates upgrading npm packages and fixing breaking changes in JS/TS projects. Available in VS Code Insiders as part of the GitHub Copilot App Modernization extension, it analyzes package.json files, proposes upgrade plans, updates dependencies to latest versions, and suggests necessary code changes through an interactive Copilot Chat experience. The tool requires VS Code Insiders, Node.js/npm, GitHub Copilot access, and enabling an experimental feature flag. Currently in preview with limitations including single-project support and potential rough edges.

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    A C# Guide with Ollama

    GPT-OSS is OpenAI's first open-weight model since GPT-2, offering developers powerful AI capabilities without cloud dependency. The guide demonstrates how to build a local AI chat application using C# and Ollama, leveraging Microsoft.Extensions.AI libraries for unified abstractions. The 20B model runs on just 16GB of memory, making it accessible for local development. The tutorial covers setting up a console app, adding necessary NuGet packages, implementing streaming chat with conversation history, and preparing for advanced scenarios like function calling and agentic applications.

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    Microsoft for Python Developers Blog

    The April 2025 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code introduces enhancements to Copilot for Notebooks, improved support for editable installs, faster diagnostics, and the ability to pass custom Node.js arguments with Pylance. Key updates include editing notebooks seamlessly with Copilot and enhanced workflows using different Copilot modes.

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    OpenAPI.NET: The Biggest Update Ever

    Microsoft released OpenAPI.NET v2 and v3, the library's biggest updates since 2018. Version 2 adds OpenAPI 3.1 support with 50% faster parsing and 35% less memory usage through System.Text.Json integration. Version 3 introduces OpenAPI 3.2 support with enhanced media types, hierarchical tags, and extended parameter options. These updates impact major .NET tools like Swashbuckle, NSwag, and ASP.NET Core's native OpenAPI support in .NET 10.

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    PowerToys 0.96 is here: endpoints for Advanced Paste, metadata support for PowerRename and more!

    PowerToys 0.96 introduces major upgrades to Advanced Paste with support for multiple AI model endpoints (Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, Gemini, Mistral) and local models (Foundry Local, Ollama). Command Palette receives numerous improvements including search functionality and better extension management. PowerRename now supports EXIF and XMP metadata extraction from images. Light Switch gains manual location settings, Dashboard adds sorting options, and ZoomIt introduces screen recording with GIF export. The next release (0.97) is scheduled for January 2025.

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    Microsoft for Python Developers Blog

    Microsoft releases September 2025 updates for Python extensions in VS Code, introducing experimental AI-powered hover summaries with GitHub Copilot and Pylance, a new Run Code Snippet tool for executing Python code in memory, and significant improvements to the Python Environments extension including pipenv support and enhanced Conda experience. The update also removes friction in environment management and adds better diagnostics for troubleshooting setup issues.

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    Announcing TypeScript 5.8

    TypeScript 5.8 has been released with various enhancements such as granular checks for branches in return expressions, support for `require()` of ECMAScript modules in `--module nodenext`, a new `--erasableSyntaxOnly` option for flagging TypeScript-specific constructs with runtime behavior, the ability to disable default lib file lookups with `--libReplacement`, and optimizations for program loads and updates. Key changes also include preserved computed property names in declaration files and notable changes to `lib.d.ts` types.

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    PowerToys 0.94 is here: Settings search, shortcut conflict detection and more!

    PowerToys 0.94 introduces quality-of-life improvements including a search function in Settings with fuzzy matching, shortcut conflict detection that highlights conflicting hotkeys in red, and a new gliding cursor mode for Mouse Pointer Crosshairs that enables single-button navigation. Additional updates include WiX5 installer upgrade, Maltese language support in Quick Accent, runtime registration for Win10 context menu modules, and various bug fixes across Command Palette and other utilities.

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    Announcing Windows Community Toolkit v8.2

    Version 8.2 of the Windows Community Toolkit has been released, bringing updates such as Native AOT support, UWP support for .NET 9, and SwitchConverter improvements. The update also includes enhancements like AcrylicBrush for WinUI 3 and various bug fixes. Windows Community Toolkit Labs has introduced new experiments, including DependencyPropertyGenerator and OpacityMaskView, to further aid developers. Community contributions continue to play a significant role in these developments.

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    Roadmap for AI in Visual Studio (November)

    Microsoft shares Visual Studio's November AI roadmap, focusing on new AI agents, enhanced Agent Mode and Chat capabilities, Model Context Protocol (MCP) integration with full spec support and governance controls, and expanded model options including GPT-5 Codex and auto-model selection. The updates aim to integrate Copilot throughout the development workflow, from code writing to testing and version control.

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    Modernizing Project Files with AI: A Success Story from the .NET Team

    Microsoft revamped its .NET Framework build system by using AI to automate project file conversions. Through experimentation with Copilot and a Python script using Azure OpenAI models, the team achieved a faster transformation process. Although accuracy required manual intervention, the script method accelerated project burndown and met goals ahead of schedule. The initiative demonstrated AI's potential in simplifying complex workflows and enhancing productivity without significant cost.

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    Performance Improvements in .NET 10

    .NET 10 introduces hundreds of performance improvements focused on JIT compiler optimizations. Key enhancements include expanded escape analysis for stack allocation of objects and arrays, improved devirtualization capabilities for interface methods (especially array interfaces), and more sophisticated bounds checking elimination. The JIT can now stack-allocate delegates and arrays in many scenarios where they previously required heap allocation, devirtualize array interface implementations that were previously causing performance issues, and eliminate redundant bounds checks through better assertion handling and range analysis. These micro-optimizations compound to deliver significant performance gains across the entire .NET ecosystem without requiring code changes.

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    Python in Visual Studio Code

    The March 2025 release of Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code introduces improvements such as enhanced shell integration, a new auto test discovery file pattern setting, inline values on hover, and automatic quotation insertion for long strings. Several other enhancements and bug fixes are also included, aimed at improving the overall development experience.

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    Java at Microsoft: 2025 Year in Review

    OpenJDK 25 shipped as the new Long-Term Support release with Microsoft Build of OpenJDK 25 available across platforms and Azure services. GitHub Copilot expanded AI-assisted development across Java IDEs (Eclipse, IntelliJ, VS Code) and CLI, with new app modernization capabilities for upgrading Java versions and frameworks. Azure Command Launcher for Java entered public preview, providing automatic JVM tuning without manual configuration. Microsoft deepened investments in AI development with support for LangChain4j, Spring AI, Quarkus AI, and Embabel frameworks, plus educational content for beginners. The company participated in major Java conferences including Microsoft JDConf and JavaOne, while contributing to open source projects across the Java ecosystem.

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    Agentic AI Explained: A Philosophical Framework for Understanding AI Agents

    Explore how AI agents can embody the personas of philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle to tackle complex problems. See how their strengths in questioning, providing contexts, and analyzing can be defined using Semantic Kernel. Real-world applications range from education to healthcare, showcasing how these AI agents can contribute to various industries effectively.

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    TypeScript 7 native preview in Visual Studio 2026

    TypeScript 7 native preview is now available in Visual Studio 2026 Insiders, offering significant performance improvements including 10x faster compile times and 8x faster project loading for large codebases. The native port reduces memory usage and improves IDE responsiveness. To use it, replace the typescript package with @typescript/native-preview in package.json. The preview has known issues including package conflicts, limited editor integration, and HTML component file problems.

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