For the next release of Visual Studio, codenamed "Orcas," Microsoft expects to add support for the planned Windows Vista OS and Office 12 office suite, which are due out in 2006, Treadwell said.

"We're hoping to make [Orcas] a small release that follows on Vista and Office 12 as quickly as we can," Treadwell said.

Another feature expected in Orcas is something some bloggers have requested. This feature, nested master pages, provides a mechanism for more easily changing subsections of Web sites, Montgomery said.